We are launching a brand-new software division alongside our established consulting business. How do we track this new venture on our weekly scorecard without overwhelming our existing leadership team meeting?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When launching a new business unit, the biggest mistake is cluttering your primary leadership scorecard with early stage operational metrics. This paralyzes your Level 10 Meeting and dilutes focus on your core cash cow business. You must isolate the new venture while maintaining clear oversight.

The correct EOS way to handle this is to create a separate departmental scorecard for the new software division. Keep your leadership scorecard focused on the vital few high level metrics of the parent company, plus one or two key integration metrics for the new division.

On your leadership scorecard, track only the overarching health of the new venture. This should include cash burn rate, major milestone completion dates, and initial customer acquisition. These numbers tell the leadership team whether the launch is on track or if it is bleeding too much capital.

Meanwhile, the leader of the new software division should run a separate, departmental scorecard with their own team. This departmental scorecard should contain the micro metrics, such as software development velocity, bug counts, and trial signups.

The leader of the new division must own the integration metric on the leadership scorecard. If that high level metric turns red, they must bring it to the leadership team Level 10 Meeting to IDS. This approach protects your core business operations, prevents meeting overwhelm, and gives the new division the space it needs to find its footing under a focused set of leading indicators.