Lies, Damn Lies & Statistics...
David Holland MBA Your Business Co-Pilot
I help Business Owners & Executives build the Business and Lifestyle they always dreamed of?? Author, Speaker, Digger of Holes, Renovator of Cottages, Drummer, Husband to The Blonde One, Dad and Dog Person.
Beware the Single Statistic...
"Lies, damned lies and statistics..."
In 1915 the French military invested heavily and provided their infantry with steel helmets to protect them during trench warfare...
The worrying single statistic of a 75% increase in head injuries was reported from the front...
Sacre bleu...!!!
How could this be...?
Imagine the tabloid press of today finding out ￡000's had been spent on helmets, only for injuries to go up by a massive 75%...
The opposite of what was intended...
They'd have a field day, and of course blame The French..
People would be fired, incompetence confirmed and there would much shaking of heads, rolling of eyes and tutting of tuts...
And you may be thinking the same right now, given this selective statistical evidence...
And this is the danger of the Single Statistic...
In reality, it was discovered that the mortality rate from head wounds had reduced when the helmets were introduced - a balancing, secondary or consequential statistic...
Meaning that the shrapnel or bullets that would have previously killed the soldiers, were now just wounding them...
A 75% increase in head wounds was a "good*" thing, it meant fewer soldiers were being killed...
*Or at least a better thing...
In business too, always look for the balancing statistics..
Beware the Single Statistic, and beware the tabloid headline...
Have a fabulous weekend...??
Client Director at Langham Hall; Partner at Intabulis; Independent Director
1 年Yep... certainly for manufactured goods with variable costs, you have to be a Gross Margin and GM % & Mix nerd as this all drives your business viability. That is until my astute Yorkshire business clients demanded their balance sheets for what is effectively the 3 question Cash GM... Ha much av I got? Ha much am I due? Ha much do I owe?????? the rest is accounting stuff and nonsense ??