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Engaging Managers To Measure: What Don't They Know?
It's always going to be harder, longer and more painful to embed good performance measurement into an organisation whose leaders don't champion the effort. Sure, you can get some great traction by introducing performance measurement here and there, but truly embedding performance measurement as an accepted and valued part of doing business is an uphill battle without management support.
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Engaging Managers To Measure: What Don't They
Know?
by Stacey Barr, the Performance Measure Specialist
It's always going to be harder, longer and more painful to embed good performance measurement into
an organisation whose leaders don't champion the effort.
Sure, you can get some great traction by introducing performance measurement here and there, to
assist a team in measuring the impact of a project, or to solve a known problem in their processes, or to
demonstrate the impact they create for the resources they get. But truly embedding performance
measurement as an accepted and valued part of doing business is an uphill battle without
management support.
You already appreciate that performance measures' power is helping us to know. Helping us to
know objectively and confidently what is *really* happening with our business performance so we can
stop wasting time and effort doing the wrong stuff when we show up at work each day. No crystal ball
needed!
Do your cagey managers appreciate this too?
If you're not sure, then here are three tips to strike up a chat that might just plant the seeds for them to
see measurement as a fertile idea:
1. Tip #1: Find out a problem that's bugging them right now. And ask them, "Is there something
you don't know yet, that if you did know it, you'd be able to do something about this problem?"
This problem may be easier to solve if you could measure the thing they don't know yet.
2. Tip #2: Ask them, "If you had more time to walk around and find out how our [division] is really
performing, what would you want to look for first?" A good performance measure could show
them, without the need for them to walk around and see for themselves.
3. Tip #3: Check if they are getting any pressure to validate their actions or performance to their
own managers or stakeholders. Rather than them having to feel defensive or give "hearsay"
validation, a couple of good measures can do the job far more convincingly instead.
Can you see that the key is to start with what is relevant to them now, and *not* with anything
about measures?
Of course, try variations on these ideas. But the important thing is to try. You have more influence than
you think!
about the author
Stacey Barr is the Performance Measure Specialist, helping people to measure their business strategy,
goals and objectives so they actually achieve them.
Sign up for Stacey's free ezine at www.staceybarr.com to receive your complimentary copy of her e-
book "202 Tips for Performance Measurement", and get more control over the destiny of your business.
reprinting this article
Please feel welcomed to reprint this article in your publication but make sure it stays complete and
unchanged (especially including the "about the author" information at the end), and please send a copy
of your reprint to staceybarr@staceybarr.com.
Know?
by Stacey Barr, the Performance Measure Specialist
It's always going to be harder, longer and more painful to embed good performance measurement into
an organisation whose leaders don't champion the effort.
Sure, you can get some great traction by introducing performance measurement here and there, to
assist a team in measuring the impact of a project, or to solve a known problem in their processes, or to
demonstrate the impact they create for the resources they get. But truly embedding performance
measurement as an accepted and valued part of doing business is an uphill battle without
management support.
You already appreciate that performance measures' power is helping us to know. Helping us to
know objectively and confidently what is *really* happening with our business performance so we can
stop wasting time and effort doing the wrong stuff when we show up at work each day. No crystal ball
needed!
Do your cagey managers appreciate this too?
If you're not sure, then here are three tips to strike up a chat that might just plant the seeds for them to
see measurement as a fertile idea:
1. Tip #1: Find out a problem that's bugging them right now. And ask them, "Is there something
you don't know yet, that if you did know it, you'd be able to do something about this problem?"
This problem may be easier to solve if you could measure the thing they don't know yet.
2. Tip #2: Ask them, "If you had more time to walk around and find out how our [division] is really
performing, what would you want to look for first?" A good performance measure could show
them, without the need for them to walk around and see for themselves.
3. Tip #3: Check if they are getting any pressure to validate their actions or performance to their
own managers or stakeholders. Rather than them having to feel defensive or give "hearsay"
validation, a couple of good measures can do the job far more convincingly instead.
Can you see that the key is to start with what is relevant to them now, and *not* with anything
about measures?
Of course, try variations on these ideas. But the important thing is to try. You have more influence than
you think!
about the author
Stacey Barr is the Performance Measure Specialist, helping people to measure their business strategy,
goals and objectives so they actually achieve them.
Sign up for Stacey's free ezine at www.staceybarr.com to receive your complimentary copy of her e-
book "202 Tips for Performance Measurement", and get more control over the destiny of your business.
reprinting this article
Please feel welcomed to reprint this article in your publication but make sure it stays complete and
unchanged (especially including the "about the author" information at the end), and please send a copy
of your reprint to staceybarr@staceybarr.com.
