Good KPIs can still produce bad company results. The problem appears when functions are rewarded for local optimisation but the interfaces between them remain undesigned.
This Management Signal shows the mechanism behind recurring cross-functional escalation: no enterprise priority rule, unclear decision rights and KPIs that reinforce different answers. It introduces a five-question Interface Test and a practical repair model built around Rule, Right and Metric.
The management question is simple: if the same trade-off keeps reaching the CEO, is the problem really the people involved, or is the decision system incomplete?
Prepared with AI assistance. Editorial responsibility: VIET TA