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Casual Articles - Do Your Organisation's Measurements Support Its Goals?
Leadership skill development is accomplished on the job. People learn to be project managers by managing projects; people learn to recruit staff by recruiting staff; people learn to discipline staff by disciplining staff; and people learn to lead a team by leading a team.When managers and leaders acquire these skills, they actually do most of their learning the first time that they complete such a management or leadership initiative.Therefore, it is through undertaking challenging new projects that leaders learn. Their development and situational maturity grow as a result of doing something different and unfamiliar.John Dewey, in his wonderful book, “How We Think,” writes:“The familiar and the near do not excite thought on their own account, but only as they are adjusted to mastering the strange and remote.”e available at different levels of the organisation. For instance a hotel chain will have measure of customer satisfaction for each hotel, with results rolled up and summarised for the chain. It must be possible for someone at a higher level to drill down to view details, otherwise the measures will not be actionable. Visit the url below to see the illustration of a hierarchy of measures.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/hier.jpg
Comparative Measures:
Measures as a means of tracking performance, diagnosing performance problems or decision making can only be meaningful in the context of relevant references and comparatives.
Baseline measures refer to the starting point. These are the values of the variables at the point of setting up the system, at the beginning of an improvement project or some similar event.
Trending measures show the chosen variable as a time series. This makes it easy to see the direction - improving, worsening or stagnant.
Control measures, generally used in combination with trending measures show maximum and minimum allowable values for the performance variable.
All the above are internal comparatives.
External comparatives might involve comparing y
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.” Albert Schweitzer1.You set the standard: Work as hard, or harder, than your employees. Be a role model when managing people. Strive to know more than your best employee (or best sales rep) about your product line, industry, and their jobs. This doesn’t mean you have to know everything. Still, educate yourself. I frequently hear in my seminars, “My boss has no idea what I really do in my job. The challenges, the pressures I face, and the time constraints.”2. Be an effective communicator: Communicate the good, the bad, and the ugly at least weekly. In study after study, employees and business leaders overwhelmingly want a leader who is “straightforward.” I hear this over and over in my leadership seminars and workshops worldwide. Good interpersonal skills are crucial
In very general terms, organisations process inputs received from resources into outputs delivered to their stakeholders. For business concerns the inputs are capital, labour, materials and technology. These are converted into products and services for customers and financial returns for investors and other financial stakeholders. Visit the url below for illustration.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/biz.jpg
Systematically Decide What to Measure: The most obvious source of organisational performance measures are the stakeholders.
In staking out a position in the marketplace, responding to competition and the environment, the organisation crafts and attempts to implement a strategy. Thus organisational strategy, missions and goals are another source of performance measures.
The procedure is to determine the critical business issues that are relevant to the satisfaction of stakeholder needs or successful strategy implementation. For these business issues determine the critical success factors. Finally metrics are chosen to measure these factors.
Example:
A mechanic workshop might recognise customer service as a critical business issue. The critical success factors required for this business issue might include prompt attention, accurate diagnosis and repair and proactive service. Specific measures for accurate diagnosis and repair might include first pass yield (i.e. percentage of vehicles diagnosed and repaired "first time right" as opposed to those that have to be returned a second time).
Measures so derived are results based and can be used to report performance, align effort and manage accountabilities.
Internally, the business is organised by function but, as we have repeatedly stressed, carries out the conversion of inputs to outputs (i.e. creates value) through business processes. Since the effectiveness of the processes determine all future results, measures of process effectiveness are required.
Further leverage over future results can be gained by managing organisational capabilities since they determine the effectiveness of all future processes in the organisation. To do this requires that measures of these capabilities are tracked.
Example:
An entrepreneurial business school regarded as its main result measures the number of its graduates leaving school with a viable business plan and the number that established businesses that survived three years or more. For process measures, the number of open ended case studies solved, number of hours spent on interactive business simulations and number of internships were chosen. Capability measures included the number of active successful entrepreneurs, and board members on the faculty, and the number of businesses with which the school had a close relationship.
Visit the url below to see the image illustrating leverage.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/lev.jpg
Lastly, the organisation must maintain a certain level of environmental awareness to avoid surprise changes that may result in significant negative impacts, or in missed opportunities.
Example:
A bottle making company supplying the brewing and soft drinks sector with returnable packaging materials had been lulled into a false sense of security by consistently good financial results and a high customer satisfaction rating. It came as a shock to the CEO when demand flattened and then declined. If they had had measures for monitoring the external environment they would have noted two worrisome trends that converged to squeeze demand. (A.)The near total adoption among their customers of initiatives like lean, six sigma and TPM that drastically reduced breakages, and (B.) The growing preference for cans and cartons to bottles among their major customers.
Get a Balanced View with a Family of Measures: There is an African proverb which says that you cannot watch a dancing masquerade from one spot. A family of measures reflecting the various areas of organisational performance should be chosen. The balanced scorecard approach advocates measures to track financial performance, customers, internal operations and learning and growth. For each area, measures that drive present performance should be balanced with those to guarantee future results.
Achieve Vertical Alignment with Measurement Hierarchies: The concept of vertical alignment means that employees at different levels in the organisation are driven towards the same goals. For example, a measurement system which holds a production supervisor accountable for quality while his boss is rated only on production volume is not aligned and will drive inconsistent performance. In order for performance measures to be vertically aligned from the level of individual jobs to the organisational level, different degrees of detail of a particular measure of performance must be made available at different levels of the organisation. For instance a hotel chain will have measure of customer satisfaction for each hotel, with results rolled up and summarised for the chain. It must be possible for someone at a higher level to drill down to view details, otherwise the measures will not be actionable. Visit the url below to see the illustration of a hierarchy of measures.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/hier.jpg
Comparative Measures:
Measures as a means of tracking performance, diagnosing performance problems or decision making can only be meaningful in the context of relevant references and comparatives.
Baseline measures refer to the starting point. These are the values of the variables at the point of setting up the system, at the beginning of an improvement project or some similar event.
Trending measures show the chosen variable as a time series. This makes it easy to see the direction - improving, worsening or stagnant.
Control measures, generally used in combination with trending measures show maximum and minimum allowable values for the performance variable.
All the above are internal comparatives.
External comparatives might involve comparing y
It is so easy to make use of business cards to advertise your business. They are so inexpensive if you design and print them yourself and they can be very good little advertisements for your business.Never leave your home without your cards so that you will always be ready to give one to someone you meet who you would like to introduce your business to. This is the way to make people aware of your store in the area. You want people to visit your premises so that they can become your customers. Every time you give someone a card you are telling them about the product or service you provide.These cards are for advertising so make sure that is what they are doing. Take trouble with the design and make sure that the name of your company is in the largest font in the middle of the card and all your contact details printed clearly in one cor
Measures so derived are results based and can be used to report performance, align effort and manage accountabilities.
Internally, the business is organised by function but, as we have repeatedly stressed, carries out the conversion of inputs to outputs (i.e. creates value) through business processes. Since the effectiveness of the processes determine all future results, measures of process effectiveness are required.
Further leverage over future results can be gained by managing organisational capabilities since they determine the effectiveness of all future processes in the organisation. To do this requires that measures of these capabilities are tracked.
Example:
An entrepreneurial business school regarded as its main result measures the number of its graduates leaving school with a viable business plan and the number that established businesses that survived three years or more. For process measures, the number of open ended case studies solved, number of hours spent on interactive business simulations and number of internships were chosen. Capability measures included the number of active successful entrepreneurs, and board members on the faculty, and the number of businesses with which the school had a close relationship.
Visit the url below to see the image illustrating leverage.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/lev.jpg
Lastly, the organisation must maintain a certain level of environmental awareness to avoid surprise changes that may result in significant negative impacts, or in missed opportunities.
Example:
A bottle making company supplying the brewing and soft drinks sector with returnable packaging materials had been lulled into a false sense of security by consistently good financial results and a high customer satisfaction rating. It came as a shock to the CEO when demand flattened and then declined. If they had had measures for monitoring the external environment they would have noted two worrisome trends that converged to squeeze demand. (A.)The near total adoption among their customers of initiatives like lean, six sigma and TPM that drastically reduced breakages, and (B.) The growing preference for cans and cartons to bottles among their major customers.
Get a Balanced View with a Family of Measures: There is an African proverb which says that you cannot watch a dancing masquerade from one spot. A family of measures reflecting the various areas of organisational performance should be chosen. The balanced scorecard approach advocates measures to track financial performance, customers, internal operations and learning and growth. For each area, measures that drive present performance should be balanced with those to guarantee future results.
Achieve Vertical Alignment with Measurement Hierarchies: The concept of vertical alignment means that employees at different levels in the organisation are driven towards the same goals. For example, a measurement system which holds a production supervisor accountable for quality while his boss is rated only on production volume is not aligned and will drive inconsistent performance. In order for performance measures to be vertically aligned from the level of individual jobs to the organisational level, different degrees of detail of a particular measure of performance must be made available at different levels of the organisation. For instance a hotel chain will have measure of customer satisfaction for each hotel, with results rolled up and summarised for the chain. It must be possible for someone at a higher level to drill down to view details, otherwise the measures will not be actionable. Visit the url below to see the illustration of a hierarchy of measures.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/hier.jpg
Comparative Measures:
Measures as a means of tracking performance, diagnosing performance problems or decision making can only be meaningful in the context of relevant references and comparatives.
Baseline measures refer to the starting point. These are the values of the variables at the point of setting up the system, at the beginning of an improvement project or some similar event.
Trending measures show the chosen variable as a time series. This makes it easy to see the direction - improving, worsening or stagnant.
Control measures, generally used in combination with trending measures show maximum and minimum allowable values for the performance variable.
All the above are internal comparatives.
External comparatives might involve comparing y
When it comes to portable trade show displays the most common type on the market today is the pop-up, expandable-frame style; surprisingly it has been around for over 15 years. The first models had a flexible fiberglass frame with aluminum channels bars and rollable fabric that was attached to the framework with magnets. Over the years the basic design has not changed but the materials, sizes and weights have made pop-up displays less expensive and easier to transport to trade shows than ever before.Today’s frames expand to larger sizes allowing a full 10-foot wide exhibit to be transported in a relatively small case. Most 10-foot pop-up displays weigh less than 90 pounds in their case; this typically includes the fabric, lights and vertical bars. Pop-ups come in a variety of sizes with a number of different options to give consumers greater flexi
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/lev.jpg
Lastly, the organisation must maintain a certain level of environmental awareness to avoid surprise changes that may result in significant negative impacts, or in missed opportunities.
Example:
A bottle making company supplying the brewing and soft drinks sector with returnable packaging materials had been lulled into a false sense of security by consistently good financial results and a high customer satisfaction rating. It came as a shock to the CEO when demand flattened and then declined. If they had had measures for monitoring the external environment they would have noted two worrisome trends that converged to squeeze demand. (A.)The near total adoption among their customers of initiatives like lean, six sigma and TPM that drastically reduced breakages, and (B.) The growing preference for cans and cartons to bottles among their major customers.
Get a Balanced View with a Family of Measures: There is an African proverb which says that you cannot watch a dancing masquerade from one spot. A family of measures reflecting the various areas of organisational performance should be chosen. The balanced scorecard approach advocates measures to track financial performance, customers, internal operations and learning and growth. For each area, measures that drive present performance should be balanced with those to guarantee future results.
Achieve Vertical Alignment with Measurement Hierarchies: The concept of vertical alignment means that employees at different levels in the organisation are driven towards the same goals. For example, a measurement system which holds a production supervisor accountable for quality while his boss is rated only on production volume is not aligned and will drive inconsistent performance. In order for performance measures to be vertically aligned from the level of individual jobs to the organisational level, different degrees of detail of a particular measure of performance must be made available at different levels of the organisation. For instance a hotel chain will have measure of customer satisfaction for each hotel, with results rolled up and summarised for the chain. It must be possible for someone at a higher level to drill down to view details, otherwise the measures will not be actionable. Visit the url below to see the illustration of a hierarchy of measures.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/hier.jpg
Comparative Measures:
Measures as a means of tracking performance, diagnosing performance problems or decision making can only be meaningful in the context of relevant references and comparatives.
Baseline measures refer to the starting point. These are the values of the variables at the point of setting up the system, at the beginning of an improvement project or some similar event.
Trending measures show the chosen variable as a time series. This makes it easy to see the direction - improving, worsening or stagnant.
Control measures, generally used in combination with trending measures show maximum and minimum allowable values for the performance variable.
All the above are internal comparatives.
External comparatives might involve comparing y
When considering the executive management decision to launch a mobile oil change business whether it is a small business or a large Corporation there is much to think about besides the obvious things of employee training, equipment, scheduling, marketing, business structure, cash flow and growth. Such unique businesses like mobile oil change business will require additional Business Management Decisions; especially things such as Environmental Controls and perhaps some alternative marketing plans.You see, although a Mobile Oil Change Business is rather a simple automotive on-site service business it also makes sense that getting to all those customers and getting rid of the oil collected will take significant planning. When discussing this business management case study with a gentleman going into the business recently he stated;“With the n
Get a Balanced View with a Family of Measures: There is an African proverb which says that you cannot watch a dancing masquerade from one spot. A family of measures reflecting the various areas of organisational performance should be chosen. The balanced scorecard approach advocates measures to track financial performance, customers, internal operations and learning and growth. For each area, measures that drive present performance should be balanced with those to guarantee future results.
Achieve Vertical Alignment with Measurement Hierarchies: The concept of vertical alignment means that employees at different levels in the organisation are driven towards the same goals. For example, a measurement system which holds a production supervisor accountable for quality while his boss is rated only on production volume is not aligned and will drive inconsistent performance. In order for performance measures to be vertically aligned from the level of individual jobs to the organisational level, different degrees of detail of a particular measure of performance must be made available at different levels of the organisation. For instance a hotel chain will have measure of customer satisfaction for each hotel, with results rolled up and summarised for the chain. It must be possible for someone at a higher level to drill down to view details, otherwise the measures will not be actionable. Visit the url below to see the illustration of a hierarchy of measures.
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/hier.jpg
Comparative Measures:
Measures as a means of tracking performance, diagnosing performance problems or decision making can only be meaningful in the context of relevant references and comparatives.
Baseline measures refer to the starting point. These are the values of the variables at the point of setting up the system, at the beginning of an improvement project or some similar event.
Trending measures show the chosen variable as a time series. This makes it easy to see the direction - improving, worsening or stagnant.
Control measures, generally used in combination with trending measures show maximum and minimum allowable values for the performance variable.
All the above are internal comparatives.
External comparatives might involve comparing y
In all the years I have been involved with small business, it never ceases to amaze me how many problems facing owners have been self-inflicted, creating problems of their own doing. And indeed some of these problems have resulted in the failure of the enterprise. Below I have listed five of the most egregious problems that have caused much pain to the small business entrepreneur.1.. POOR PLANNINGFailure to plan is tantamount to planning to fail. Think of every decision that you make in your business. What products should I manufacture? What products should I purchase for resale? Who is my target customer? Who is my competitor? Has the economy changed since last year? What should my inventory be? How much can I afford? How much should I spend on advertising and where should I spend it? What should be my staffing level? What is my cash flow
http://www.leapfrogalliance.com/ezgrphx/hier.jpg
Comparative Measures:
Measures as a means of tracking performance, diagnosing performance problems or decision making can only be meaningful in the context of relevant references and comparatives.
Baseline measures refer to the starting point. These are the values of the variables at the point of setting up the system, at the beginning of an improvement project or some similar event.
Trending measures show the chosen variable as a time series. This makes it easy to see the direction - improving, worsening or stagnant.
Control measures, generally used in combination with trending measures show maximum and minimum allowable values for the performance variable.
All the above are internal comparatives.
External comparatives might involve comparing your performance with competitors, industry standards or theoretical benchmarks.
In Summary:
Effective performance metrics must be derived from critical business issues and their success factors.
A balanced set of metrics which together form a family of measure must be chosen to reflect the multidimensional nature the business.
The external environment must be tracked even if it does not currently affect the organisation's performance
Achieve vertical alignment by creating a hierarchy of performance metrics
Make use of comparatives to put your measures in context
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