Using Measurement to Boost Your Unit's Performance

If you're like most managers, you're drowning in statistics. Financial numbers, operational data, and page after page of reports are piling up on your hard drive or desk. The information overload just gets worse as companies install enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, which provide real-time data on an ever-greater number of variables. But data doesn't have to be the bane of your existence. In fact, it can be a tremendously powerful tool for measuring your unit. HMU offers five tips for sorting through the data and using it to improve performance. Includes two sidebars on performance measurement systems ("The Unbalanced Scorecard at Wainwright Industries" and "Tools for Tracking the Numbers").