10 key attributes of establishing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

1. Key stakeholders- involve key stakeholders in selecting KPIs
2. Visibility- create a KPI dashboard visible to all parties
3. Adding value- ensure KPIs add value to your business and highlight opportunities for process improvement
4. Customer focus- selected KPIs should add value to your customer’s business and ultimately improve the consumer experience
5. Financial impact- always keep in mind the bottom line
6. Direction- by evaluating key KPIs, you can determine the direction your business is heading
7. Education- it is important to train your employees and services partners so that they have a clear understanding of each KPI and how it adds value to your and their businesses.
8. Focus- limit KPIs and don’t try to track too much;  you are likely to lose focus.
9. Baselines- Create clear baselines you can measure your business against and track progress
10. Eliminate- evaluate the usability of each KPI and do not be afraid to eliminate KPIs that are not adding value to your business

Supply chain benchmarking

Without senior executive buy-in, the project becomes much harder, or sometimes impossible to implement. This is one of the key findings of a recent supply chain benchmarking study we conducted. Unsurprisingly you might add. However, the supply chain implementation battlefield is littered with stories where senior executive involvement and direction were missing.

The supply chain knowledge gap, between decision makers and operations was also highlighted as a major concern. Most organizations also complained about red tape and in some cases the lack of a project approach. Overlapping IT systems were also viewed as a major headache.