ELEVEN PRINCIPLES, SEVEN SKILLS, AND FIVE METRICS 293
the lack of a human capital information database and re-
porting system. People who have the best information and
know how to turn it into intelligence are the winners.
Princip le 3: Human Capita l D ata Sh ows the
How, the Why, and the Where
Since people are the only self-determining assets, it follows
that they are the cause of everything that happens. If some-
thing goes well, it is due to the behaviors of the people in-
volved. If it blows up, literally or figuratively, that is also the
result of human behavior. It must follow, then, that in order
to know how to improve something, we must know how
people are dealing with it. Structure and policies are inert.
People activate them. Cost, time, quantity ...