Questioning Performance Measurement: Metrics, Organizations and Power

Guy Redden is Associate Professor in the Department of Gender and Cultural Studies at the University of Sydney. His research in the field of cultural economy centres upon the diffusion of contemporary economic rationalities through media, popular culture and institutions. A central theme of his work is how patterns of commodification and marketization interact with cultural change and social reform, especially with regard to the broad formative context of ‘neoliberalism’. He has co-edited two books and authored or co-authored over forty articles, most recently in Television and New Media and Critical Sociology.

If you are interested in how individuals, organizations, and entire societies are being increasingly shaped by the application of metrics that capture ‘performance’ – and everyone should be - this excellent book by Guy Redden is insightful, timely and a great read. It provides an important discussion of the social and political implications of measuring everything.

• The Performance RevolutionWhat is Performance Measurement? Nuts, Bolts and Critical IssuesPerspectives on Performance MeasurementMaking the Numbers: Performance Measurement in BusinessMagical Numbers: Performance Measurement and Public GoodsRethinking Performance Culture