Monday, June 7, 2010
Organizational Change
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Useful Metrics that have nothing to do with measurement.
One of the top ten reasons for failure in a strategic planning process is that the plan is written, then it gets placed on a shelf where it collects dust. Certainly communicating the plan immediately after its preparation is important, but without constant reinforcement, the strategic plan's message grows stale and its message becomes forgotten.
The powerful thing about metrics is that measurement must be continuous. Just as an organization needs to turn out monthly financials (financial metrics), a well-executing organization will track key metrics on a monthly basis as well. Ideally these metrics will be on a dashboard and shared across the organization.
One of the greatest strengths of metrics, then, is that they serve to continuously reinforce the strategic plan to all team members on an ongoing basis. They keep the organization focused on the few Most Important things that need to be done and help to maintain organizational focus against the threat of day to day entropy that takes over daily activities.
So, by all means measure for measurement's sake, but also remember to measure for communications' sake.
Metrics: Right or Left Brain Activity?
The initial response, of course, is that metrics are a numbers-based, quanitification-oriented activity that must be a left brain function. These are logical, step-by-step activities if they are taken at face value. Who are the primary metricians in a corporation? The accountants - who, by definition are left-brainers.
The reason Daniel Pink got me thinking about this is that when properly deployed, metrics are not about measuring routine activities, but rather they are about conceptualization, systems-level thinking and big-picture approaches to problem solving in business.
Metrics are borne of big ideas. Sam Walton is well known for saying "you get what you measure." The question about "what do you want to get" in a company is typically a board level/executive level function that includes setting the company's vision and mission, clarifying its values and setting its goals.
Metrics are how you go about achieving the vision, mission, values and goals. There is a lot of creativity involved in translating those high level objectives into specific, measurable actions that are carried out by each and every member of the organization. When you have a goal such as "Provide world class customer service." there is not much for your staff to dig their teeth into in how they carry out their day-to-day activities.
Hermes is the greek figure who served as the messenger of the gods. His job was to translate the deities' messages into a form that was understood by the mortals. The job of creating organizational metrics is no less challenging than this. Abstract concepts such as "world class customer service" consist of many critical tasks and projects that must be carried out, each of which has measurable outcomes. By focusing on these measurable outcomes we empower teams to use their creativity and to gain ownership in how the outcomes are achieved, while creating a crystal-clear description of what specifically needs to happen.
After all this has happened, it falls to someone to collect, organize and present the metrics data. And "yes", I suppose this is a left-brain activity, but this collection and presentation of data is not what metrics is about any more than cleaning paint brushes is what an artist does when he is creating a painting. Cleaning the brushes is an integral part of the process, but comes well after the creativity has occurred.
Metrics: Focus on the Future or the Past?
Are Metrics Based in the Future or the Past?
Six Dilemmas Challenging Organizational Execution
The Denial of Uncertainty
Monday, May 24, 2010
Retorts to "That's Not Measurable"
So when someone tells me something’s not measurable, here are seven of my favourite retorts:
- If that goal were happening now, what would be different?
- How would you know if you’ve reached that goal or not?
- How would anyone else be convinced whether or not you’ve reached this goal?
- Imagine you’ve already reached that goal – what would you be looking at to convince you of this?
- What exactly is this goal trying to change or improve?
- What problem is this goal going to solve or fix?
- If you don’t have this goal, are your or others going to miss out on?
Now you’ve got some more productive alternatives to giving up, next time you here those words, “That’s not measurable!”