The power of world‐class performance management: use it!

“What you measure is what you get” is a favorite aphorism of many a management writer. As most practicing managers know, measures drive management behavior, especially if they are reinforced by reward systems. But few organizations have understood the importance of this connection and dealt with these issues in a holistic way. It means building new performance management systems in parallel with new management structures and redefining responsibility boundaries. This is not an easy message for a measurement industry that believes it has the complete solution. The article “The power of world‐class performance management: use it!” deals with the key measurement issues, tackles the organization problems concerned with aligning strategy and behaviors, and describes the way organizations can obtain a world‐class performance management process. The ideas described in the article are based on a benchmark study recently performed by the author at prominent, global companies, and during projects he performed, in the area of performance management, at various clients.