Going Off the Rails: How do KPI's Deceive in Leadership? – My Conversation on Next in Queue

shmuelsaklad
Aug 8
2 min read

🚨 Going Off the Rails: When KPIs Deceive and Processes are Broken

We all love a good dashboard.

Green lights, up arrows, and metrics that make us feel like we’re winning.

But what if the data you’re looking at… is lying to you?

That’s exactly what we explored on the latest episode of Next in Queue, where I joined the show to talk about something too many leaders overlook: how broken business processes and KPIs can quietly sabotage performance and how do KPI's deceive in leadership.

🎧 Listen to the episode here:

📊 KPIs Without Context Can Be Dangerous

In the episode, I shared this line:

“If your process is broken then your data might be lying to you.”

KPIs are only as good as the systems behind them. When those systems are messy, outdated, or unclear, metrics can give a false sense of confidence. It’s like judging a restaurant based only on how fast the food comes out… without checking if it’s actually edible.

🛠 The Role of QA Isn’t Just Scoring

We also talked about the true role of Quality Assurance in an organization.

QA shouldn’t just be about catching mistakes or checking boxes. When used intentionally, it becomes a coaching tool, a way to:

Identify patterns
Strengthen consistency
Reinforce expectations
And yes, support performance conversations that actually help people grow

🎯 Metrics Drive Behavior—For Better or Worse

We covered a big leadership truth: What you measure shapes how your team behaves.

When KPIs are too narrow, unrealistic, or disconnected from the real work, they can unintentionally encourage the wrong behavior. People may start gaming the system instead of improving the process.

Leaders need to be thoughtful about:

What gets measured
How it’s communicated
And whether it reflects the why behind the work

💬 Communication Is Culture

Speaking of the why...

If your team doesn’t understand why a process exists, why a metric matters, or why a change is being made—engagement drops. Confusion rises. Trust erodes.

We talked about how strong communication isn’t just a “nice to have” it’s a leadership requirement.

👀 Final Thought: Don’t Just Manage the Numbers—Lead the Process

As leaders, we need to look beyond the surface of our reports and dashboards. Ask questions. Trace problems back to the root. And make sure we’re building systems that support, not sabotage our teams.

The data might look fine on paper. But if the process is broken, things are going off the rails whether you see it or not.

💡 Want more practical leadership insight?

I work with new and emerging leaders who are navigating the messy middle of management—where confidence, communication, and accountability really matter.

👉 https://www.theleadershiphub.org/confident-leader-guide Or shoot me a message. Let’s talk leadership.