The Dark Side of Optimisation

Organisations are increasingly preoccupied with quantifying and optimising every facet of their performance.

各类组织越来越热衷于对自身绩效的方方面面进行量化和优化。

Metrics promise objectivity, transparency, and a straightforward means of holding people accountable.

各种指标承诺带来客观、透明，以及一种直截了当的问责手段。

Yet when a measure becomes a target, it frequently ceases to be a reliable measure.

然而，一旦某个衡量指标变成了目标，它往往就不再是可靠的衡量指标。

Hospitals judged solely on waiting times may prioritise speed at the expense of thorough care.

只以候诊时间来评判的医院，可能会为了速度而牺牲周全的诊疗。

Schools assessed by exam results may be tempted to narrow the curriculum to tested subjects.

以考试成绩来评估的学校，可能会忍不住把课程缩减到只剩考试科目。

In each case, the indicator improves while the underlying goal quietly deteriorates.

在每种情形下，指标都在改善，而背后真正的目标却在悄悄恶化。

This is not necessarily a matter of dishonesty, but of perfectly rational adaptation.

这未必是不诚实的问题，而是完全合乎理性的适应。

The remedy lies not in abandoning measurement, but in combining it with professional judgement.

解决之道不在于放弃衡量，而在于把衡量与专业判断结合起来。

Some of the qualities we value most are, by their very nature, resistant to quantification.

我们最看重的某些品质，就其本质而言，是难以量化的。