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So, you may argue that if you achieve the 50 percent increase, why not chase the data? The goal is in the data—to increase membership! And to a degree you would be absolutely correct. The problem is that we are only working with the stated goal and not the reasons for the goal. This is why the measurement area includes strategic planning. If you purely chase the data, you may find ways to increase the membership that wouldn't meet the underlying intent of the goal (long-term or permanent expansion of the membership base). You may change the rules of what constitutes a “member” so that you can achieve the number. You may offer incentives that only result in a temporary increase (meeting the goal but missing the mark).

Besides the stated measures within the goal definition, you may also want to measure the following:

The cost to achieve

The time to achieve (showing progress over time)

Realized benefits of achieving the goal (a tough one that is rarely captured)

Specifically for the Strategic Planning portion, you'll want measures of the effectiveness of your planning. These may include the following:

Overall goal attainment (as components of the plan)

How well you met the plans timeline

How well you met the plans resource plans (costs, time, effort)

How well the plan was followed

How often the plan was revised (the more it is adjusted, the more likely it is a living, useful plan vs. shelf-ware)

While measuring the worth of your strategic plan, achievement of your goals, and the effectiveness of your projects and programs, you will realize that to do these well requires a level of prioritization. They can be either formal or informal, but you need a process for setting priorities in either case.

Priority-Setting Measures

The measures for priority setting, is a lot like measuring accuracy. It's a simple set of measures. Are you keeping to the priorities you've established? Or do you allow the latest need to send your priorities spinning? Do you allow the squeakiest wheel to get the attention? Do all of your plans get thrown out as soon as the first crisis occurs?

Of course, if a true emergency hits, you may have to drop everything and solve the crisis. But, do you find that there is always a crisis? Do you find that once you've overcome the emergency that your organization doesn't return to the priority list?

If your organization can't set or keep to defined priorities, then it will have a very difficult time growing. Prioritization not only provides direction, it also includes the identification of tasks, goals, and projects that will not be done. To truly mature, an organization, like an individual, must realize it can't do everything asked of it. You have to make some hard decisions. If you can't, you may find that you accomplished a lot—more than you expected—but little that you truly wanted to do.

The last quadrant we'll visit is the one most managers want to start with—Process Health, which is shown in Figure 11-4.

Process Health

The last quadrant you should tackle is Process Health, Quadrant 2.

Figure 11-4. Quadrant 2 of the Answer Key

Concepts

So you've stuck it out and are finally going to have an opportunity to play with efficiency measures. Or perhaps you've skipped to this portion because you must have them. Process health measures are the most risky because they are the easiest to abuse. It is the equivalent of a coach having statistics on each player's productivity. Like knowing the batting average of your players against each pitcher they will face in the upcoming series of games. You know their performance in night games, day games, even how long it's been since they ate last. Let's make it even more meaningful and say you also have data for how much things cost, how long it takes, how the resources are allocated, and the quality of work, in all situations.

But you might want even more data if you are going to set your lineup based on data. How about how each has performed based on what