2026-03-26
6 分钟Hello, Alice Fullwood here, co-host of Money Talks, our weekly podcast on markets, the economy and business.
Welcome to Editor's Picks.
You're about to hear an article from the latest edition of The Economist.
Thanks for listening.
This sentence is false, is an example of a logical inconsistency known as the liar paradox.
If this sentence is true, then it is indeed false.
But if this sentence is false, then it must be true.
This is the kind of thing that makes philosophers go weak at the knees and gives normal people a headache.
A small echo of the liar paradox can be heard in a ritual of modern management, the annual employee survey.
Imagine being asked to react to this statement.
This survey is a complete waste of time.
If enough people strongly agree with this proposition, then it's probably true.
But if a company is the kind of place where employees are prepared to give such honest feedback,
then is n't it likely to be false?
Employee surveys are a staple of corporate life.
Knowing what workers are thinking is an important goal.
High employee churn imposes financial and operational costs.
There is lots of research to suggest that employee satisfaction leads to better financial outcomes.
But set-piece surveys are really useful only if three conditions are met.
They are properly designed, they're used in conjunction with other tools, and they lead somewhere.