On a daily basis the amount of care we give to the human body is remarkably little. When you are feeling in good shape the best the body can hope for is a good wash, a brush of the teeth and a slap of moisturiser if you are a bit of a girly. What else? Haircut and manicure perhaps oh, and possibly a check that your weight has not dropped that desired 10% overnight.
Considering the complexity of the human body and how we cannot live without it we do not spend too much time analysing how it is performing. We probably spend more attention on our cars and IT gadgets. Why is my PC running so slow? The car is overheating, I must check this now. Such symptoms are immediately of prime importance and top of mind and must be addressed now!
This all changes when we are feeling unwell. Suddenly we are taking our temperature, blood pressure and pulse rate. Blood tests may be needed. You may be wired up to monitor to see how the heart or brain is functioning. The body is now getting the intensive care it needs in hospital. Recording and monitoring this raft of data is the route to a hopefully full and speedy recovery.
When all is not going smoothly however, the Balanced Scorecard may need supplementing with other measures. In companies where sales are below expectations and cash flow has dried up you need intensive care focus in that area. This does not mean you stop generating the Balanced Scorecard as this will contain important financial and non-financial measures. Instead, you need to place the sensors in the critical locations.
What about when things are not going well? Measuring the usual set of KPIs is all very well but when you are in a mess you need some intensive care. For businesses struggling with tight cash flow here are top ten tips for some relatively simple Recovery KPIs:
In addition to the sensible tight control of discretionary spend this approach can stabilise your vital signs and guide you back to a healthy glow without the intensive glare of the suits from HQ.
Imag courtesy of moggara12 at freedigitalphotos.net