We are tracking high-value, low-frequency metrics on our leadership scorecard, like enterprise contracts signed, which results in zero entries for several weeks in a row before a single spike. How do we track long-cycle sales or operations on a weekly scorecard?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Tracking low-frequency, high-value outcomes like enterprise contract signings on a weekly scorecard is a mistake. It creates a scorecard filled with zeros that provides zero predictive value. By the time a zero changes to a one, weeks have passed, and you have had no early warning signs of trouble. To run your business on data, you must break these long-cycle outcomes down into their weekly leading activities. Stop tracking the final contract signing on the leadership scorecard. Instead, identify the weekly activities that must happen to make that signing inevitable. Track the number of face-to-face meetings scheduled with decision-makers, the number of custom proposals submitted, or the volume of active deals moving from the evaluation phase to the negotiation phase in your pipeline. These are high-volume, weekly activities that you can actually measure and influence. If your leading indicators are consistently green, the lagging contract signings will take care of themselves. If the leading indicators go red, you know you will have a pipeline problem in three months, giving you plenty of time to solve the issue in your Level 10 Meeting™. Shift your scorecard focus from the final event to the weekly behaviors that drive it.