We have a metric on our weekly scorecard that has been red for two months, but our operational delivery is great and our clients are happy. Our team wants to stop tracking it, but we are hesitant. How do we determine if this metric is actually obsolete or if we are ignoring a hidden risk?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

If a metric is consistently red and your business is still performing well, you are dealing with one of two scenarios: either the target is unrealistic, or the metric itself is completely useless.

First, audit the target. If your team is achieving great results while missing this specific target, the benchmark might be set too high. Ask your team if the current target was based on actual capacity or if it was just a wishful number. If the number was arbitrary, adjust the target to reflect your real operational capacity.

Second, analyze the correlation. If there is absolutely no correlation between this red metric and your lagging results, then you are tracking the wrong thing. A good scorecard metric is a leading indicator. If it goes red, a lagging indicator should eventually go red too. If that is not happening, the metric is noise. Kill it and replace it with something that actually predicts success.

Do not let your team just ignore a red metric because they are tired of seeing it. Ignoring red metrics breeds a culture of complacency where people stop taking the scorecard seriously. Either adjust the target, replace the metric, or make a conscious decision to remove it entirely during your next quarterly session.