How would you design a meritocracy?

[minacia]

You have been summoned in a hero-summoning ritual to another world that is similar to ours, except the largest country in the world is an empire ruled by an emperor.

The emperor tells you that you have been summoned in order to a design a new system of rule that must be a meritocracy. Every 50 years, there will be an imperial exam, and the person who scores the highest on the exam will be the new emperor for 50 years who can change any law except the imperial selection law.

The exam can consist of any number of tests focusing on any quality that you feel is important — strength, math, kindness, morality, beauty, etc. — however, you must be able to describe exactly how each test converts into a numerical score. For example, if you choose to test ‘bravery’, how exactly do you put this into an exam?

What would your imperial examination look like?

 

[Sola-sama]

Am not sure how an imperial examination would be, but one thing for sure, ancient China has the right idea about administration, especially in a meritocratic environment.

They do a good job, the get to keep their job.
They do a bad job, they lose their head.

 

[Empress_Omnii]

Hmm... I prefer demonstrated achievements in meritocrastic systems though...

I'd have to think about this for quite a while though, but a couple I don't need to think hard for would be a test to ensure that the people are put first. Then also make sure that the candidates understand the laws and why they are in place.

 

[Placeholder]

My only problem with the Great British Bakeoff is the lag time before the winner becomes the new Queen.

 

[ACertainPassingUser]

You have been summoned in a hero-summoning ritual to another world that is similar to ours, except the largest country in the world is an empire ruled by an emperor.

The emperor tells you that you have been summoned in order to a design a new system of rule that must be a meritocracy. Every 50 years, there will be an imperial exam, and the person who scores the highest on the exam will be the new emperor for 50 years who can change any law except the imperial selection law.

The exam can consist of any number of tests focusing on any quality that you feel is important — strength, math, kindness, morality, beauty, etc. — however, you must be able to describe exactly how each test converts into a numerical score. For example, if you choose to test ‘bravery’, how exactly do you put this into an exam?

What would your imperial examination look like?

Use illusion test, just like those damned xianxia immortal cultivator.

If youre talking about Emperor, usually it's either Chinese, Korean, or Japanese, neither culture were shy of illusion magics.

Some thing like bravery were rather physical and experience based. We can test the participants against their greatest trauma and fears, sure, but we need to test how he fare against the standardized troubles they might face once they became the emperor.

We put catgeories on the way they faces the troubles one by one. Failing categories and success categories, and within the sucess category, there's the desirable sucess, the undesirable success, and the out of the box.

 

[AYM]

Not in order:
1. Literacy. If you can't read I'm sorry but I have terrible news for you.
2. Questions on history the empire. If one is to become Emperor, they must know their domain like the back of their hand. This includes geographical landscape, major or previously major political powers, any state religions, and foreign relations.
3. Written analysis of one or several specified policies enacted or actions taken by previous emperors and the consequent impacts in their perspective.
4. Responses for hypothetical scenarios to judge compatibility with the empire's politics, religions, or philosophies.
5. Military qualification, either through martial prowess or strategem. As long as their skill in strategy cannot be understated, a lacking in physical aspects is acceptable, though obviously meeting or surpassing both qualifications is most welcome. You can ask more questions to test their ability to analyze military movements and supply lines, though martial prowess may need a more physical test.
Sometimes, this goes hand in hand with point 3. The Six Arts is a good example of this, where to become a perfect gentlemen you must excel in both civil aspects like calligraphy and rites, as well as military aspects like archery, horseback riding, and mathematics.
6. Speaking of rites and calligraphy, performance test on noble etiquette. Do they know all the titles? Are they well versed in tea culture?
7. Written response to what steps the empire should take moving forward, should they become the new emperor.
8. Are you a simp? We can't have a fucking simp run the empire only to completely destroy it because of a heavenly defying jade beauty.

If this is not the pitiful mortal realm with no access to qi, but a great cultivation land, include tests for spiritual roots, cultivation level, and send everyone into a trial the wills of your ancestors control.

After the examination, those who passed should undergo a review of their past records, specifically reviewing if they have achieved any merits prior to the exam and if they have a criminal record. Then a pedigree check if possible. The lucky winner becomes emperor, though the exam can provide a list of candidates for other positions.

Frankly, a complete meritocracy is impossible for a large nation. Ultimately there will be promising candidates that slip through the sieve and terrible canditates that remain. Nepotism is also impossible to eradicate even though it's technically a meritocracy since your Prime Minister may decide to instate his eldest son into an official position. Hopefully he is qualified (at least not a fuck up), but the effectiveness of a state examination is heavily dependent on the access of education, and between the son of an established noble, who you know at least attained an education, and the million nobodies who took the exam you're doubling as an exam for other officials, you may as well take the chances. If education access is abysmal expect only nepotism unless you think divining a candidate nets better results. Ah, yes. The sticks have chosen a girl, roughly 11 years of age, in the remote southwest regions of the empire to become the new chancellor. Send the troops immediately!

 

[Zagaroth]

Some more testing categories: General intelligence(can think critically and learn new topics quickly), ability to judge the character of others, willingness to take advice/critique of others (what good are advisors if they are all yes-men?), bravery, strength of will, leadership/charisma, patience and tolerance.

If long enough life spans are involved, this could actually be a 50-year process that starts as soon as a new emperor takes the throne, and be a combination of training/testing. If some candidates start off a little lacking in a couple of areas, but they can grow and learn, then they may be better than candidates who started off 'stronger', but whose potential doesn't grow as quickly.

 

[Succubiome]

I'd ask the emperor
1. Why did they choose me, an outsider who doesn't understand what skills are useful / considered important in the culture?
2. Why won't the new emperor just... change the selection rule, because they have absolute power over everything else? Is an emperor model really the best one for a meritocracy?

If they're set on this emperor-meritocracy idea with the tests set up by me, I'd have a bunch more questions as I try to figure out what is going on well enough to make a system that will hopefully lead things in a good direction in the longterm.

 

[georgelee5786]

By murdering inefficient people

 

[StoneInky]

Use illusion test, just like those damned xianxia immortal cultivator.

If youre talking about Emperor, usually it's either Chinese, Korean, or Japanese, neither culture were shy of illusion magics.

Some thing like bravery were rather physical and experience based. We can test the participants against their greatest trauma and fears, sure, but we need to test how he fare against the standardized troubles they might face once they became the emperor.

We put catgeories on the way they faces the troubles one by one. Failing categories and success categories, and within the sucess category, there's the desirable sucess, the undesirable success, and the out of the box.

If illusion magic is possible, here is an even easier way to do things.

Just put all the test participants in an illusion where they rule the country for five to ten years. See who does it best, and messes up the least. They're emperor for the next several decades. Problem solved.

 

[AnonUnlimited]

The question will be simple.

"Are you Anon2025?"
The test has a lie detector.
The only one who answers yes who isn't lying will be emperor.

 

[Macha]

Do the opposite of whatever Lenin and Polpot do.

Don't murder competent people because you are jealous of them.

 

[Corty]

For starters, I would scrap the 50-year limit. That is not how this works. Second, meritocracy can’t be based on exams.

Paper-based exams and grades are not representative of actual skill. I don’t need people who are good with theories but then try to rigidly apply them onto the world and fail.

Meritocracy is all about skill. Let the people who show it in the real world rise to leading position. Basing it on just an exam is foolish.

 

[Golden_Hyde]

meritocracy in general is all about achievements, track records, reached milestones, and expectations on doing the same thing, except on a sovereign scale. Aptitude tests doesn't really matter on the higher level. Lower level, sure.

As a future civil servant, I say this because merit itself is given when the one in charge expect you to do things you're really good at. Meritocracy, ideally, is the repellant of nepotism, where the incompetent cannot get their way to hold a job on something they know jack shit about... unless the two of those got entangled because human species tend to play favoritism.

 

[BigBadBoi]

What would your imperial examination look like?

Make sure some scholar doesn't go schizo and imagine he's the brother of jesus christ after failing multiple times is the bare minimum requirement