The organization can represent reality accurately enough to make good decisions.

What Dysfunctions Arise from Weak Represent Reality?

  • Feature Factory: the organization does not accurately capture or surface usage data, obscuring whether features provide value.
  • Validation Blindness: the organization fails to observe or communicate actual user behavior and outcomes.
  • Output Obsession: the organization measures and reports output metrics instead of reflecting true value delivered.
  • Watermelon Reporting: the organization surfaces overly optimistic or incomplete information, masking underlying issues and misrepresenting reality.
  • Proxy Metrics: the organization relies on indirect or easy-to-measure indicators that do not accurately reflect real outcomes, distorting understanding and driving harmful behavior.
  • False Precision: The organization treats estimates as certain when they are inherently uncertain.