Knowing the score.

_{If you ran your own business you’d always want to know “the score.”  Right?  Well, maybe.}

_{Keeping score describes how well you’re playing the game.   It tells you about wins and losses, about opportunities seized and missed, and, above all, it suggests both what you have done well and could do differently.  It also is a measure of how well you’ve, personally, have been performing.}

_{Wouldn’t you think this would be something that small-business owners would be committed to?}

_{Maybe I’m missing something.  I’m a business coach, and this is where my clients and I struggle.}

_{Many of my clients seem to be averse to scorekeeping. Could it be they don’t want to give themselves a bad report card?}

_{Now most of us are used to reading the checkbook.  What’s good about this is you (usually) know how much you have in the bank.   What’s not so good – your checkbook is a “lagging indicator.”  It tells you what has already happened.  Your bank balance is a result.  It doesn’t suggest what disasters you might avert or opportunities  you might pursue.  It just says  “this is the way it is right now.”}

_{Accountants are industrious about keeping score.  They will print you out a computerized balance sheet and income statement at the drop of a hat, showing you what went well and what went wrong.   They’ll give you a ton of numbers and numerical relationships, some helpful.  It’s better than driving blind, but at best it’s more like driving with your eyes only on the rear-view mirror.  You see only history.  Are crashes likely?  Hmmm?}

_{If you’re a businessperson, you have been successful primarily because of your ability to analyze, anticipate and act.}

_{And the magic of KPI’s should help you employ those critical skills.}

_{KPI’s are Key Performance Indicators. They’re different for each business, and each aspect of business.}

_{In sales, a KPI might be the number of sales calls and/or the  number of appointments each week.  Will this data correlate with the number of sales closed, or number of dollars in your checking account next month?  Yes, this is a leading indicator.  Also, # of sales calls, # of cold calls, # of proposals offered, etc. etc.  No question that monthly sales volume is important.  But other measures can tell you much more.}

_{In marketing, consider the number and scope of webinars,  the development, ranking and traffic volume of your website, the expansion of your prospect database, your speaking schedule, etc.}

_{In accounting, there’s the tracking of business activities which impact your bottom line – collections, value of collections divided by receivables,  value of  90-day receivables, etc.}

_{As a CEO, there are two general categories of Leading Indicators which you want to follow.}

1. _{1. Leading indicators for others.}
2. _{2. Leading indicators for yourself.}

_{They answer two questions:  How are we doing, and how am I doing?}

_{One of the reasons why some CEOs seem to shy away from accountability is that they fired their boss long ago, and they didn’t want to have to be accountable to anyone.  Isn’t that what President and Owner means?}

_{Here’s bad news.  Philosophers suggest that the CEO is actually accountable and in service of everyone who works for him or her, despite appearances to the contrary.}

_{The successful CEO/President/Owner wants full and bidirectional accountability in his business.  He is accountable to all for the success of his business, and they to him!}

_{It’s true that as CEO, we can usually get away with not being accountable.  My opinion – not being accountable may be awkward, and will cost you money.}

_{New Years’ Resolutions are nice,  and transient.   But if some part of this discussion hits home with you, speak with me about it .  I’m a business coach looking for clients who want more success, more income, and are willing to take on more accountability for themselves and their business.  Accountability is one of the places where a coach can be really helpful.}

_{Call me for a strategy session – 516 944-6454, or email to Craig@Craigjennings.com.   I assure you that you’ll make some discoveries!  At going rates, this kind of strategy session is worth $300-400 – but this one’s on the house.  I’d like to talk to business owners who want more control, more focus and more income, and are willing to put their money where their mouth is.}

_{Craig Jennings}

_{Professional Business Coach}

_{516 944-6454}

_{http://www.craigjennings.com}

_{craig@craigjennings.com}