Ah, measurement… It's been too long since I wrote to you. You do such wonderful things for us in business. You show us how everyone is performing right now and warn us when there could be trouble ahead. What's more, you make new things happen and help people see how far we've come.
I realize all of this and am grateful for it. But lately, I feel like there's a wall between us. We aren't communicating like we used to. It seems like the measures I selected for our scorecard a couple of years ago just aren't as responsive as they used to be. They don't seem to be opening up and telling me as much. And they also seem, well, kind of boring. Employees aren't responding to you like they used to. It's nothing personal, I'm sure, but I've noticed it.
I fear that I have been taking you for granted. I thought we had determined the perfect combination of metrics to drive performance, to alert us of improvement opportunities, and to measure changes we are making. It's been several months and, in some cases, several years since we developed the measurement schemes we're using. In the beginning, I promised to maintain you, to review you, and to evolve you as the world of business shifts around us. I guess I got complacent. Things were so comfortable the way they were. Everything seemed to be working. But now, it's all going wrong.
I didn't want to admit that it was my fault. I blamed you for our reduced employee engagement and diminished performance returns. I blamed employees for not appreciating you and working with you like they should. I blamed executives for not being decisive enough or being too picky about the reports we created for them. Now, I realize that I forgot my promise to you—that I would always maintain you, always review you, and always be willing to make changes when necessary.
I want to apologize to you, measurement. And I'm ready to start afresh. If you are willing and still feel the love for me that I feel for you, I'd like to give it another try. With a little assessment and alignment, I think we can figure out which metrics to remove, which to keep, and which to add. I want to keep the lines of communication open so that we can enjoy one another again and experience the happiness we felt when we first started down this road.
I thought our relationship would always stay the same, but I've grown up now. I realize that relationships change. I have to be willing to help you grow into a measurement system that will work in our world right now. And I want to continue allowing you grow into the future. I want to let go so that we can be closer—so that we can be better.
Can you forgive me? I want us to find the rhythm we used to have. If this looks like something you're willing to try, let me know. I'm here. I'm sorry. I'm ready.
Sincerely,
XOXO
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Is it time for you to review your performance measures? If you need help, check out APQC's Measurement Alignment Worksheet and some of our metric-related content, like Metrics for New Product Development Processes.