Our operations team seems to be shifting their task completion dates in our project management software to make their weekly Scorecard numbers look green. How do we stop this behavior?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When employees begin manipulating software dates to protect their scorecard metrics, you have a culture problem and a process problem. First, remember that the Scorecard is not a weapon for punishment. It is a tool for diagnosing issues. If your team is gaming the numbers, it is usually because they fear the consequences of a red metric. You must reset expectations in your next Level 10 Meeting™. Explain that a red number is not a personal failure. It is simply an early warning signal that tells us we need to solve a problem together. Second, you must close the technical loopholes. Modify the permissions in your project management software so that original baseline dates cannot be modified without system administrator approval, or use automated logs to track date changes. Third, change what you measure. Instead of tracking self-reported task completion, track a binary metric like the percentage of projects delivered on the original baseline schedule. If they move a task date, the system must still flag the overall project as off-track relative to the original client agreement. Finally, ensure that the seat owner on the Accountability Chart has absolute GWC™ for their role. A leader who truly GWC's their seat will not tolerate date-shifting because they understand that hiding issues today creates catastrophic operational failures tomorrow. Use IDS® to address this behavior directly with the department head.