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Cambridge University Engineering Group

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Peter Burgess One of things I learned from Cambridge engineering was that engineering and technology are a key constraint on what is possible, and that metrics are vital to making improvements and getting the best possible performance. I have carried these ideas from engineering into economics, accountancy and corporate management. I argue that we have better science and technology than at any time in history and around the world there are more educated young people than ever. Given this we should have a world full of optimism about the future ... but we don't. My take on this is that there is a terrible trio of metrics: (1) money profit for business; (2) stock prices in capital markets for investors; and (3) GDP growth for politicians and pundits, which ensure that mostly wrong decisions get made. These metrics only address money flows without taking into consideration all the real things that matter, and I don't see much of anything that is getting any traction to help change the way wrong metrics are dominating decision making.