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Inferno - Circle II: KPI Obsession
- This article delves into the impact of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) on product development using real stories from companies like Facebook, Booking.com, Zynga, and more.
- KPIs initially brought control by providing metrics like OKRs, KPIs, and dashboards, but eventually, teams fell into a cycle of KPI obsession where they lost sight of the product's essence.
- The article emphasizes that precision in reporting numbers does not always equate to truth and can mislead with the illusion of objectivity.
- At Facebook, the focus on video based on misleading metrics led to irreversible damage when it was revealed that their view counts were inflated, highlighting the danger of relying solely on metrics.
- Booking.com's excessive reliance on A/B testing and metrics resulted in a cluttered product, demonstrating that winning every test doesn't guarantee a successful product identity.
- Zynga's success in Daily Active Users (DAU) metrics showed that even when metrics spike, the product may suffer beneath the surface, leading to player burnout.
- The article further discusses how chasing KPIs without strategic alignment can lead to unintended consequences, as seen in cases like the UK ambulance service prioritizing easy calls to meet response time targets rather than urgent cases.
- Examples from X and Google's Core Web Vitals illustrate how metrics can alter user behavior and product design, sometimes at the expense of the original mission and user experience.
- The narrative warns against falling into the trap of KPI obsession, urging companies to focus on meaningful metrics rather than mere numbers, and to pause or refine metrics that do not drive strong decision-making.
- It suggests strategies like pairing lagging metrics with leading indicators, thinking in systems rather than snapshots, and evaluating the impact of metrics on decision-making processes.
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