Entrepreneurs like to get into the thick of things.
They jump into an opportunity, build an appropriate business structure, roll their sleeves up and get to work.
The cut-n-thrust of the “coalface” is often what drives them. This can be a serious mistake.
Business success is about “owning” a business, not running […]
I’ve been quiet for a few weeks (working on a new business venture – more on that soon), so I thought I’d touch on a topic close to all entrepreneur’s hearts: raising money.
Few entrepreneurs are in a position to self-fund their idea, either at the startup or growth phases. Seeking money to get […]
I finally received word that I had been accepted into the beta testing program for Xobni, a tool that leverages machine learning and statistical modelling to improve the overall email experience.
Like many of you, I practically live in Outlook. Approximately 95% of my interaction with clients and colleagues (and many friends located outside Sydney) […]
I was interviewed last month by Brad Howarth for an article discussing the likely future of radio advertising as the industry launches its digital broadcasting platform in 2009.
The exchange touched on a range of issues (and opportunities) for the Australian radio industry, and I thought I would summarise my thoughts here.
Key Challenges
The successful launch […]
For those of you who have met me in person, you’d know that I have long been championing the need for a technology that would enable ‘profile portability’.
A key constraint with social networks is that they force you to choose. You must choose whether you will invest your time and efforts in Facebook, or […]
I must be turning into a sceptic in my old age. I simply could not believe my eyes when I read that Microsoft had invested $US240 million for a 1.6 percent stake in Facebook. This effectively valued Facebook, which anticipated revenues this year of just $US150 million, at $US15 billion dollars.
That’s a crazy valuation. […]
There is an old adage in management circles that “what gets measured gets managed.” For all its apparent simplicity, this maxim is actually very difficult to implement, as it requires you to know what to measure, how and by whom. Key performance indicators (KPIs) vary from business to business, depending on their overall goals and key business drivers, so blindly following the metrics applied by other businesses could spell disaster.
First, why is “managing the numbers” so important?
Successful performance management helps extend accountability throughout the business, ensures day-to-day activities are in alignment with your strategy and financial targets, enables faster and more confident decision making, and helps both management and staff to prioritise tasks, identify market changes and spot opportunities. It also ensures broader transparency of business issues, drivers, and impediments to success.
Understanding the What
It takes significant management resources to measure, plot and track performance indicators, so it is imperative to measure only what matters. How do you determine what matters? The answer requires an accurate understanding of how value creation occurs in your business.
Technorati Tags: KPIs, Performance Management, Value Creation, Measurement, Long-Term Focus, Key Performance Indicators
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The Wall Street Journal Online published an interesting article last week titled Microsoft Fires Volley At Google in Ad Battle, which states in part:
Some industry executives believe the Internet today is facing the sort of turning point that the computer-operating-system sector confronted two decades ago: Whoever controls the technology platform for buying and selling online […]
An interesting interview with Professor Stephen P. Bradley on the Harvard Business Review web site, about his research for a forthcoming book titled Broadband: Remaking the Advertising Industry.
The background to the research:
We are looking at industries that are being transformed by broadband such as the news and information industry-the younger you get, the […]
My 5th Tenet of Entrepreneurship is: Ideas are WORTHLESS. I’ve had a number of debates over the years about the value of ideas. As I wrote in my original Tenets article:
Ideas are worthless. Knowing what to do with those ideas – how to implement ideas, how to monetise them, how to drive them from an […]