On the city housing-voucher ART, keep-everyone-busy utilization is up while voucher-decision flow time is getting worse, and leaders still choose utilization as the success metric. Using a systems view, which outcome should the RTE prefer?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
Keeping every specialist "busy" while voucher folders sit is a packed waiting room, not a faster decision. Flow time is what the resident feels. A systems view picks the whole path over a full calendar.
Full Explanation
When utilization and flow time conflict, systems thinking favors end-to-end outcomes the citizen experiences. High utilization typically lengthens queues because there is no slack to absorb variation in voucher work. Weighting utilization above wait, or dropping flow time because it is harder to staff to, institutionalizes delay. The RTE prefers shorter decision flow even when some specialist utilization declines.