program selection system

Metrics can backfire. They are useful for both self assessment and retrospectives. But experience since 2002 with 80 teams at IBM has shown it’s not just a matter of finding the right metrics. It’s important to use them properly, and avoid common pitfalls, including bloated metrics, the evil scorecard, lessons forgotten, forcing process, and inconsistent sharing. Turning assessments into “un-assessments” returns power back to the team. Instead of defining more metrics, this paper tells how not to misuse them.