Our team figured out how to artificially hit their Scorecard targets, such as closing support tickets prematurely or booking unqualified sales meetings just to log activity. How do we structure our Scorecard to stop people from gaming operational metrics?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Any metric tracked in complete isolation will eventually be gamed. When employees feel pressure to keep a box green without a counterweight measuring the quality of the outcome, human nature optimizes for the target at the expense of operational integrity.

To eliminate gaming, pair high-volume activity metrics with balancing quality metrics. These tension pairs force accountability to both speed and standard:

- Pair Outbound Meetings Booked with Qualified Pipeline Added: Tracking booked meetings alone produces calendar clutter with low-probability prospects. Pairing it with qualified pipeline value ensures meetings meet ideal client criteria.

- Pair Ticket Resolution Velocity with First-Contact Reopen Rate: Measuring how fast tickets close encourages reps to mark tickets resolved prematurely. Tracking reopen rates within fourteen days immediately catches superficial resolutions.

- Pair Delivered Proposals with Minimum Deal Size: Measuring submitted bids encourages discounting or small-ticket proposals. Add a threshold for target contract value.

Beyond scorecards, examine seat fit. When a team member routinely hits an activity target using dishonest methods or superficial outputs, it is an issue of GWC and Core Values. The Scorecard exists to give leadership an objective snapshot of operational reality. If an individual prioritizes vanity green boxes over genuine business health, address the behavioral issue directly during their quarterly performance review.