Building a Soviet Nail Factory: how KPIs killed efficiency

232 · · June 16, 2026, 6:54 a.m.
Summary
This blog post recounts the author's experiences at Orange Portails, where the introduction of KPIs led to inefficiencies and a focus on numbers over actual productivity. Using personal anecdotes, the author explains how the obsession with measuring performance eventually distorted work processes, illustrating Goodhart's law and Campbell's law. The message emphasizes the dangers of misusing metrics in software development.