KPIs Across the Academic Ecosystem

By Kenwright

You're probably measuring the wrong things. Your department definitely is. And that grant you lost? Yeah, someone else understood the metrics. This book won't make you popular at faculty coffee breaks. It might just save your career.

Pages: 460
Publication: 2026
Language: English
ISBN: 9798258934901

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Curiosity Killed the Cat / The reading view

A promising detour for a curious mind.

If Academic Administration keeps catching your attention, “KPIs Across the Academic Ecosystem” is a title to put on your radar. Its listed scope opens a worthwhile conversation about Research Metrics. Metrics become useful when you can explain what a number represents and what it leaves out. Compare the indicator with the actual goal: that gap is a productive place to start a critical reading. Follow the most surprising question first. Sketch an explanation, imagine an alternative, and see what you would need to distinguish them. The best part of an interesting subject is often the next question it unlocks. Pick a question. Open a book. See where it takes you.

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Curiosity Killed the Cat reading lens

Follow the surprising question

Explore Higher Education, Academic Administration, Research Metrics with a reading approach that gives the ideas somewhere to go. Metrics become useful when you can explain what a number represents and what it leaves out. Compare the indicator with the actual goal: that gap is a productive place to start a critical reading.

The listed 460 pages give a sense of extent; page count alone does not establish depth or difficulty.

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Does the description distinguish an explanation from an intriguing possibility?

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Write an observation connected to one of the topics. List two possible explanations and the evidence that would help you tell them apart.

Publisher’s synopsis

Most academics hate metrics. They'll tell you 'real impact can't be quantified.' Funny how the same people keep losing grants, missing promotions, and wondering why their research gets cited by their mom and no one else. Here's the ugly truth: someone is measuring you right now. Every citation. Every student eval. Every dollar you bring in. The question isn't whether KPIs exist — it's whether you understand them. This book is not warm. It's not fuzzy. It's not going to hold your hand and tell you that you're special. It will show you exactly how academic measurement actually works: the good, the manipulative, and the 'why did we ever think this was a good idea?' You'll learn which metrics matter for tenure, which ones are total garbage, and how to make the system work for you instead of crying into your third coffee about 'publish or perish.' If you're looking for a gentle critique of neoliberalism in higher ed, put this book down slowly and walk away. If you want to game the game without losing your soul — or at least without losing your job — read on. Warning: contains sarcasm, actual data, and zero participation trophies.

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