Evaluating Intellectual Labor Results

The outcomes of scientists' work—acquisition and dissemination of scientific knowledge—can completely contradict the interests of their organization. By formulating an intellectual labor task, one can assess its results. However, in some cases, it is impossible to definitively state what those results should be. Merchants are correct when assessing results based on sales volume per customer. But they are also right when evaluating results by customer loyalty. Thus, the next step toward increasing intellectual labor productivity is to determine what specific results should be achieved by an individual intellectual worker. Making such decisions involves a certain risk, as it is necessary to find the point where the intellectual worker's tasks and the organization's goals intersect and harmoniously align. The task of department store management is to decide whether the goal is the maximum sales volume per transaction or the maximum sales volume per customer. Clinic management must decide who is more important—the doctor or the patient. Making such decisions becomes a constant task for managers and senior leaders in organizations that utilize intellectual labor. TIP OF THE DAY Evaluate your intellectual activity results. Identify contradictions between your evaluation and how your work results are assessed by your organization.