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

View on Amazon

Details are supplied by the publisher catalogue. Confirm the edition, price, and availability with the retailer before buying.

0 reader favourites

Real votes on Ask Why Not What. This is an interest count, not a review score.

Ask Why Not What / The reading view

An invitation to think one step further.

The appeal of “KPIs Across the Academic Ecosystem” starts with its focus on Academic Administration. That is fertile territory for a reader ready to move beyond collecting ideas and start making connections. 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. Bring your strongest question to the material. Examine a claim, consider an alternative, and ask what evidence would settle the difference. There is real satisfaction in turning a broad interest into a sharper judgement. Save it for the next time you want to follow the idea further.

Find your reading angle →

Ask Why Not What reading lens

Examine the promise

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.

A question before you choose

Which claims are supported by the material I can actually inspect?

Try this with the topic

Choose one claim in the catalogue description. Identify what evidence would support it, what limits it might have, and what a sample could help you check.

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.

Make room for the reading