So how to solve the problem of scientific misconduct? I don't have any good answers. I can think of things like "Stop awarding people for mere number of publications" and "Gauge the actual impact of science rather than empty metrics like number of citations or impact factor." But I can't think of any good way to do these things. Some alternatives - like using, for instance, social media to gauge the importance of a scientific discovery - would almost certainly lead to a worse situation than we have now.

If you go up the administration, at some point you reach someone who simply isn't equipped to evaluate a scientist's work. This may even just be the department head not being familiar with some subfield. Or it might be the Dean, trying to evaluate the relative merits of a physicist and a chemist. It's the rare person who knows enough about both fields to render good judgment. That's where metrics come in. It's a lot easier if you can point to some number as the basis for a decision. Even if it's agreed that number of publications or impact factor aren't good numbers to use, they're still convenient.