When companies only measure lagging indicators—like revenue, profit, or customer churn—it’s like checking the scoreboard after the game is over. You know the outcome, but you don’t know what actually led to it—or how to change it next time.
Worse, it leaves your team in the dark.
Set Your Team Up to Win Everyday
As an engineer earlier in my career, I’d show up to quarterly or yearly business reviews and feel completely disconnected. Sales were up or down. Profits were good or bad. But none of it felt tied to my day-to-day work. I had no levers to pull. No sense of how my efforts made a difference. And if we didn’t hit our numbers? It felt like I’d been showing up every day… just to lose.
That’s the power of leading indicators.
When you track proactive, team-driven activities—whether it’s customer response times, production cycle times, proposal turnaround, or quality checks—your team gets visibility into how they’re driving success before the results hit the P&L. It gives them a sense of ownership. They see the connection between their efforts and the company’s performance.
And that creates engagement. Momentum. Buy-in.
A good scorecard doesn’t just tell you where you’ve been—it helps your team drive where you’re going.
Are you using leading indicators in your scorecard? What’s worked (or not worked) for you?
If you’re not sure where to start or want to sharpen your internal metrics, let’s talk. At Efficiency Edge, we help companies design scorecards that not only track performance but also empower teams to move the needle. Message me for a quick consult—happy to help.
