We are struggling to find the right weekly numbers for our leadership team Scorecard, and our weekly meetings are getting bogged down in debates about what to track. How do we build a clean, effective Scorecard?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Designing a great leadership team Scorecard is an iterative process. Many teams stall because they try to create a perfect, comprehensive dashboard on day one. This leads to overcomplicated spreadsheets that fail to give you a clear pulse on the business.

Start by choosing five to fifteen high-level activity-based numbers, not lagging financial results. A good Scorecard measures weekly activities that predict future success. For example, do not just track weekly revenue, track sales calls made or proposals sent. These are leading indicators that you can actually influence in real time.

Each number must have a clear owner, a target, and a single person accountable for reporting it. If a number is off track for more than two consecutive weeks, do not debate it during the Scorecard review. Drop it down to your weekly Issues List and use IDS® to identify the root cause.

Expect to change your Scorecard numbers frequently during your first few quarters. It takes time to find the metrics that truly predict your company's operational health. Keep the list lean, focus on leading indicators, and let the Scorecard evolve naturally as your team gains experience with the tool.