We understand the conceptual difference between leading and lagging indicators, but when we sit down to write our weekly Scorecard, my leadership team still defaults to tracking lagging results like revenue closed or projects completed because they say they cannot measure activities. How do we convert a critical lagging result into three actionable weekly leading indicators?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

To stop defaulting to lagging metrics, you must run a simple reverse engineering exercise on your primary business goals. Lagging indicators tell you what already happened. By the time you see them, you cannot change the outcome. Leading indicators are activity based, predictive, and fully within your control.

To convert a lagging result like revenue closed into leading indicators, look at the exact steps required to generate that result. If your goal is closing ten new deals a week, look at your sales pipeline conversion ratios. How many proposals must be submitted to close ten deals? If the ratio is one in three, you need thirty proposals. How many discovery calls does it take to generate thirty proposals? If it is two to one, you need sixty discovery calls.

Your three weekly leading indicators for the Scorecard are: number of discovery calls booked, number of completed proposals sent, and number of follow up calls made. These are activities your team can control every single day. If these activity metrics are green, the lagging revenue number will take care of itself. If they are red, you have an early warning system that allows you to course correct weeks before your cash flow takes a hit. Put these activity metrics on your weekly Scorecard and make sure a specific seat on your Accountability Chart owns each one.