Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are part of our daily lives. ESPN uses KPIs to discuss athletes’ performances and progress throughout the season, such as Steph Curry’s 3-point shooting percentage. Our smartwatches monitoring steps monitor our exercise, tracking the number of steps taken or distance walked toward a daily fitness goal.

With KPIs all around us, why is it difficult for businesses to include them in their strategy for change management? KPIs are often looked at as immensely important and “must haves,” but are often greatly simplified and misunderstood. What value do KPIs provide? When an organization has aligned on its vision for success, KPIs can help the organization measure and communicate progress toward the defined success.  KPIs can also help organizations fully align on what success looks like.

Why are Change Management KPIs Important?

Organizational Change Management (OCM) is the process of moving people from the current state to a desired future state. When change is made in any organization, it’s important for everyone to share the same vision for success – whether it’s moving warehouse inventory tracking to an ERP system or transitioning to a new ERM software.  Change management activities and communications work to provide a seamless transition for all stakeholders involved but how does an organization know that it is successful?

KPIs are often defined but may not always align to the vision for success. The challenge is getting the KPIs to have context and provide the right focus.  KPIs are sometimes viewed as a destination and not a journey. KPIs are measurements; they are not goals. Rather, KPIs provide organizations with the information to monitor progress toward achieving goals. They must be evaluated regularly to determine if the KPIs are being met; if not, the business might need to adjust the KPI, or define and put a mitigation strategy in place. With any change management plan, businesses must consider and monitor KPIs throughout the entire change management journey as they work toward a successful, seamless implementation.

It is crucial KPIs be specific when thinking through the metrics how to measure the success.  Just like goals, KPIs should follow the SMART goal framework to ensure they are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-bound. Below are examples on how to include KPIs with change management:

• Vague KPI: “Increase project awareness.”
• Change Management KPI: “Increase project awareness in the first quarter by 20%.”

With direct feedback from employees through surveys or focus groups progress toward 20% project awareness can be measured.

• Vague KPI: “Everyone needs to be trained on the new software.”
• Change Management KPI: “95% of the employees need to be trained one week before go-live. Employees need to have a minimum proficiency score of 75% before system access is granted.”

By including specific metrics for employee training, businesses can monitor the training process to ensure employees are comprehending the information provided and are prepared to go live.

• Vague KPI: “The go-live will have minimum disruption on our daily operation.”
• Change Management KPI: “Go-live with no more than a 10% drop from current levels or less than 20 calls to the help desk after two weeks of deploying.”

Providing KPIs in the change management plan helps ensure the right information is gathered to measure execution and track improvement before, during, and after the implementation. It is key to communicate the KPIs transparently and on a regular cadence either weekly or monthly. It is also important to reassess to ensure the right KPIs are being tracked and be able to adjust as needed if the right things are not being measured.

Navigating Change Management KPIs 

KPIs are designed to measure progress toward a goal. By including KPIs in your organization’s change management plan, you can keep your pulse on how successfully the organization is moving toward its goals and adjust as needed to mitigate risks.  Through the use of KPIs, the organization is collecting measurable insights and can make data-backed decisions to more efficiently achieve strategic goals. For strategic advice on establishing change management KPIs to drive successful change adoption in your organizational change management strategy, contact us today to learn more about our Change Management Consulting Services.

Contributions from Clarence Thomas