Designing the Successful Corporate Accelerator

CHAPTER 12METRICS AND KPIS

Source: Peter Drucker in The Practice of Management, 1954.

Anyone who has worked for a large corporation can tell you that what gets measured is what gets managed. When it comes down to it, whatever gets tracked and mapped to personal and business performance will get the attention. Individuals want career progress through promotions, as well as good reviews and the raises that come with them. Business unit leaders want to increase their responsibility and budgets. All of this depends not just on what leadership says is important, but what metrics they track and monitor to determine success.

Peter Drucker's quote is notable for a few other reasons. First of all, he never actually said it, according to the Drucker Institute.¹ Notwithstanding, this is actually a closely held belief in management. Things that get measured get managed. In fact, that is sometimes the problem. Things that get measured do get managed – even if they are useless or actually detrimental to the company and its goals.

For your corporate accelerator to set itself up for success, it's important to set goals first – the “why” of the accelerator – then translate them into quantitative measurements that showcase the positive impact of these goals on the wider corporation. Select the wrong measures, and it will be easy to dismiss and shut down the program at the slightest change of ...