The Tyranny of Meritocracy
"Tell his Majesty that I will do exactly what he says. Nothing more, but frequently less, because of a misunderstanding or a lack of communications."
The following passage was found within an ethnographic notebook written by a historical anthropologist. The profession in question has been anonymised to protect those associated with this work.
There was once a tyrannical system where the people in charge were arbitrarily chosen.
The method of choosing had nothing to do with their competence in the things at which they would do. Unless one regarded quite adjacent activity as central to what they did - namely the conversation and cocktails. These landed people were first chosen by birth. Son joined father.
But that was hardly a sustainable system, so there were plenty that ‘grew’ into the class, and spent some effort at making it look like they had always been there. Nevertheless, the guiding principle was the same. It must be arbitrary, in whatever fashion.
We must concede that there was some merit sorting going on. There had to be. Since that fast tracked man was actually alright. He was personable. And perceptive. And articulate. Some sort of secreted after-hours professionalism would not have been surprising. Nevertheless, whatever the means of this sorting was, it was certainly not transparent.
It also yielded a fierce independence among those privileged few - they appeared to strive towards a set of values that could not be found in writing anywhere. Whatever those values were, they did not sit within the gift of anyone to change. Not even the King could dent their idea of ‘right’.
Now, it delights me to say, we operate strictly in accordance with merit.
First we measured that which people did. This proved harder than it first appeared, but our ideals told us we were righteous in our pursuit - and besides, getting the measure of merit slightly wrong must be better than what was before.
After a few years the tests didn’t seem to yield the candidates we wanted. Of course, we couldn’t know that definitively since there wasn’t a good test of the tests, but we certainly had a sense that things were going downhill.
So we amended the tests. They needed to be more accurate. More like the real thing. So we simulated the paperwork, and the interviews, and the management, and the briefings, and the means of giving direction… but still something was wrong. Candidates quickly became good at those things, but didn’t seem to be any better at the actual job.
At least now it is fair.
It must be conceded that conversation and cocktails still play their part, and while critiques have said that, in this area, it is even more opaque than what went before, at least it cannot be said that it is a dominant feature. Well, it can be said, and has been, but it is easily denied.
Our strongest defence of our meritorious system is that merit is now firmly at the centre of all we do, and as such, only the best are in charge. What is more, those who are the bestest are the mostest in charge. Those identified as the middle best, unsurprisingly, hold the middle positions. And those that do not possess even those qualities, suffice to say, know exactly where they stand.
No one appears happy with the situation. Those at the bottom, while they do belong there, don’t seem to be satisfied by the honesty (and candidness) of our meritorious tests. Perversely, the least happy are those at the top: each regards himself to be not quite high enough, his estimation of himself being always slightly higher than the measure of merit.
The old system would never tell a man his worth, it being assumed that he had it, regardless of position. As though each were equal before one another. And no position conferred any earned privileges, only commensurate status and its accompanying burden of responsibilities.
What a silly misalignment of value. And of resource.
Now the best have privileges. Which they can now say they have earned. And they have earned them, by virtue of being better than those who are lesser: special rooms, special events, and special treatment. It is their right. They are the best.
Where once everyone had ‘special’ rooms, according to their ‘own specialness’, now only the best have special rooms, and everyone else has lesser ones. As is right. As is fair.
My own tests are tomorrow, where I look forward to confirming my worth, escaping my present company, and securing a few privileges too.
May merit reign forever more.
This appears to be the last entry.
