How Keeping Score Can Crush Poor Performance

Learn why keeping track of the numbers with scorecards will keep you on the path to growth

If your team is suffering from poor or dwindling performance, there may be a simple solution that just takes a little planning. Create a scorecard for your business so you can track the numbers and use them to monitor and improve performance.

How do you start? Nail down the core processes for your organization, involve each department and team member in planning and start holding everyone accountable with tangible measurement strategies.

These tips will help you focus your scorecards and implement a strategy that works for everyone.

Know how to define your measurables

While each aspect of the business, and each department, should be tracked and measured, don’t include too many numbers in the scorecards. With too much going on, metrics won’t be decipherable or valuable.

Focus on a handful of measurements. What are the few core processes and goals of your business? Start there.

Don’t overcomplicate the process. Measure actual indicators of performance, including revenue, new customers, customer satisfaction, marketing wins, and response times, just to name a few examples. Nail down benchmarks for each task and area of operations so that it’s clear when something or someone isn’t up to par.

Involve team members in planning

Keep in mind that some employees may be stressed out or anxious when they’re faced with analyzing their work metrics, or knowing that you’ll be examining them. Instead of improving motivation and performance, it could have the opposite effect.

To address this problem, involve workers in creating scorecards. Ask for their feedback about how they currently measure their performance or productivity. Take their answers seriously and come up with metrics that work for both their concerns and those of the company. Stay open and in communication about scorecards.

Workers will start to see how effective measurements are in improving their performance and the business’s success. When goals are set in numbers, outcomes are more transparent and attainable.

Create different scorecards for each team

Depending on the size of your business and the number of teams within it, it’s smart to create scorecards for each department. Start by thinking about what is driving the performance of each group. What work can be measured? Which outcomes are most important in this department to drive growth for the entire business?

Within every department, further outline scorecards for each team or each individual on the team, as applicable. Employees should have factual knowledge about what they’re working toward.

For example, consider a customer service team. Create a target for employees answering phone calls within a certain number of rings, or one limiting hold times, and give that goal a numbered rating. Anyone falling behind that goal, or making a customer wait more than two minutes, will receive a lower score for that interaction. Set numbered goals based on these measurements for each day, week, and month.

This helps individuals, teams, and the business track what’s actually happening. Metrics help you determine weak points. Identify areas or employees that need additional training and support, strengthening the team as a whole and filling in any gaps in productivity.

Improve accountability

Scorecards help you improve accountability for teams and individuals. By setting clear expectations, workers can reach goals, measure performance, and succeed. Numbers provide much-needed clarity to keep employees motivated and working toward the company’s collective vision and the path to growth. Deadlines, work completion rates, and time tracking are vital efficiency metrics for each employee and team.

Accountability requires that metrics are tracked on a regular, ongoing basis. This improves the likelihood that everyone will deliver consistently—and only then will performance keep moving forward.

Even if employees are keeping their own scorecard, their manager needs to host regular check-ins so that each worker has someone to hold them accountable. According to Gallup data, employees who believe that their supervisor holds them responsible for their performance are 2.5 times more likely to be engaged in their position.

Accountability motivates people. And motivation helps drive the business to continued growth.

These suggestions will help you create and launch scorecards across your business. Bringing in the actual numbers on performance and efficiency will help you monitor success and reach objectives as a team.

The Entrepreneurial Operating System® (EOS) is employed by the team at Provident CPA & Business Advisors. We help clients implement the EOS model, keeping teams on track and in alignment with the brand’s vision.

Get in touch with Provident today to learn more about our growth and profit-improvement services.