How to Measure What Matters On the Job

Today we’re going to talk about how to choose what to measure to set yourself up for success.

Grandma Cuddles Daycare is in an uproar! Grandma recently started yoga classes. She's so happy with her newfound ability to touch her knees that she’s decided to travel to India to study directly with the Dalai Lama. The staff tried to explain to her that the Dalai Lama isn’t a yoga instructor. But she insisted, and what Cuddles wants, Cuddles gets.

Chip, the controller, will be taking over in her absence. When Grandma’s around, she rules the center with an iron fist. But she’s taking the fist with her (assuming she can get it through the metal detector at the airport), so Chip needs to find other ways to keep things running.

The old adage is “What gets measured, gets managed.” Chip intends to manage everything as best he can. That means setting measurements. But what to measure, and what to do with the measures, he’s less clear on.

Manage obvious outcomes

Some jobs have natural numeric measurements. Salespeople, for example, can measure how many new prospects they reach out to, their close rate is, the average sale size, and so on. 

The Cuddles sales team scours hospital birth records to find prospects for the daycare center. They’re ruthless when it comes to recruitment. A couple of years later, early-stage parenthood has taken a toll on the parents, and daycare suddenly becomes a necessity. That’s when the sales team swoops in like vultures to capture the sale. 

Monitor levels and changes

Chip could choose to measure the number of new births entered into the system each day. Or how many of this year’s candidates actually sign up for daycare (that would be the sales yield). 

Instead of just the numbers, Chip could also monitor the change in the numbers. Is the birth rate going up or down relative to last year? How about the close rate? 

Monitor second-order effects

Chip ponders the Grandma Cuddles maintenance person, who keeps the arc welder in tip-top condition. Everyone knows the arc welder is crucial to the daycare center’s metal shop, and the metal shop is where the kiddies learn the useful skills that will make them valued cogs in the military-industrial machine. Who can put a number on such a noble calling? (Aside from the Grandma Cuddles sales department, that is.)

We can. When you have a mystery job or an activity that doesn’t have an obvious number...

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