Are You Keeping Score?

Imagine yourself at a basketball game. You’ve paid big bucks for prime seats and you’re anxious for the game to begin. Just before the tip-off, the announcer lets everyone know that the scoreboard has malfunctioned but that tonight’s game will go on as scheduled. He explains that the athletes are ready to go and that the sports writers have agreed to keep score and report the outcome by the end of the month. Would you be content to watch the action and then wait a few weeks for the results?

Now let’s assume during a staff meeting you ask, “How are things going?” “I’ve been busy”, says the sales manager. “Had a long week”, says the director of operations. “Paid lots of bills”, says the controller. Would these answers give you a good sense of how your business is doing?
Do you find yourself tossing and turning at night, even when things are going well, because you’re not sure what’s driving your results? You’re not alone. Many business owners suffer from anxiety over not having a pulse on their business. As in sports, in business a scorecard gives you timely information about how well you’re doing. And, just like the basketball coach, it allows you to make timely adjustments that will help you win. Unfortunately, most business owners find themselves in month-end business reviews pouring over income statements, wondering what went wrong and listening to lots of reasons and excuses for why the company fell short of its goal.

An effective scorecard measures the activities that drive desired results. This gives you assurance that your processes are working and that your organization is taking ownership for results. Building a robust scorecard is easier than you might think. Challenge yourself and your leadership team to think about key activities that must be performed well. How can these activities be measured? Give everyone on your team a number, a measurable that they are held accountable for achieving. These key activities will roll up to your company scorecard and will reassure you that everything is on track.

I’ve had owners tell me that everything was going fine until one day “boom, we were hit by a tsunami!” To avoid the tsunami, use your scorecard to spot trends and make the corrections necessary to keep the team on track.

Let’s go back to that basketball game. How well do you think those teams would play without a working scoreboard? Face it, the scoreboard cuts through egos, emotions and effort and reveals how well they’ve really played.

Work with your team to create a scorecard for your business. It will be rewarding and like a good game of basketball … fun!