Key Performance Indicators, 4th Edition

CHAPTER 8Characteristics of Meaningful Measures

Overview

Many performance measures are ascertained far too frequently, in a rush, by untrained staff. Seldom will these measures stimulate the desired and appropriate action. This chapter looks at common measurement traps, what we need to measure, and what staff need to understand before they start to look for measures that will work in their organization.

The exercises in this chapter will train the staff, who performed them, to take care when constructing measures. You should expect the outcome of the training to be:

• Fewer measures
• Abandonment of many broken measures
• Introduction of more current- and future-oriented measures that act like a fence at the top of the cliff
• Clarity over the different types of measures, result indicators and performance indicators
• A recognition that KPIs are unique measures and there will only be a few in the organization

The key learning points from this chapter are:

1. The common measurement traps to avoid
2. Wisdom on measures from other writers e.g., When designing measures begin with the end in mind
3. The rules for designing measures
4. For staff to help the KPI team determine measures, they first need to understand the rules for designing measures
5. Suggested exercises to help staff to design measures
6. The need to abandon measures where the cost of gathering the data is greater than the benefit

It is very easy for a team in the workshop to come up with poor measures. There needs to be a structured approach ...