Posted by Rod Welch on December 29, 1999 at 12:01:48:
Communication is the predicate to action. The new
environment of information overload overwhelms human
cognition, causing "meaning drift," which makes
daily management a process of continual bumbling.
Constant meetings, calls and email transfers and
defers meaning drift so that the cause of mistakes is
not readily evident, i.e., it is a "secrete," leading
to "Murphy's Law." Adding "metrics" to communication
provides alignment with objectives, requirements, laws,
policies and commitments, so that small deviations in
meaning are recognized in time to avoid mistakes in the
work that cause extra cost and delay, and evenutally
reduce shareholder value.
Executives are afraid of adding metrics to communication
because they fear accountability more than they desire
to improve earnings. It is human nature to deal with
immediate personal threats before worrying about
others.
One solution might be to mandate Communication Metrics
in the same way that financial metrics are required
by law. While it is imperative to eventually learn the
bottom line, it may be more helpful to the bottom line
to avoid the constant mistakes in communication that
reduce earnings.
See for example the article on reducing the high cost
of medical mistakes.
http://www.welchco.com/03/00050/61/99/09/2401.HTM#0001
Rod