When our Scorecard numbers drop into the red, our leadership team immediately jumps into problem-solving during the Scorecard review instead of dropping the metric down to the Issues list for the IDS portion. How do we stop this premature problem-solving?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Premature problem-solving during the Scorecard review is one of the most common ways to run a Level 10 Meeting™ off the rails. The Scorecard review is strictly for reporting. When you start discussing why a number was missed, you are wasting time that belongs to the rest of the agenda.

To stop this, the facilitator must enforce a hard rule: if a number is red, the owner of that metric simply says, drop it, and the meeting coordinator immediately adds it to the Issues list. No explanations, no excuses, and no defense.

If a team member starts to explain why the number is off, the facilitator must interrupt them immediately. Say, that is an issue, let's drop it to the list and solve it during IDS.

This keeping of reporting separate from problem-solving is critical. Often, when you get to the IDS® portion, you will find that a missed Scorecard number is actually connected to three other issues on the list. By waiting to solve it, you can address the root cause holistically rather than patching a symptom during the first five minutes of your meeting.