Performance Measurement Systems

EV #batteries in the real world last nearly 40% longer than in lab tests. While new batteries continue to improve, there is now mounting evidence that EV batteries on the roads are exceeding expectations. This lowers the total cost of ownership for EV owners and also benefits the environment by getting more use out of each battery. How is this possible? In standard lab testing, the battery is subjected to rapidly repeated charge-discharge cycles using a constant rate of discharge. This is then used to estimate battery degradation rates. However, discharging power at a constant rate is not really how we drive. We might accelerate hard to get onto the freeway or be in stop-start traffic. And the battery is also not used for much of the time. In recent research from Stanford, 92 EV batteries were tested with different discharge patterns of a period of two years. The results? Batteries tested using real life scenarios degraded significantly slower than expected and had higher life expectancy than those tested under lab conditions. Even better, the more realistic the battery use, the slower the battery degraded. Also of note was that for personal use, the degradation associated with time had more of an impact than the degradation from charging and discharging. Other studies have found similar results, including one last year from GEOTAB using remote monitoring of data from 10,000 EVs. It found that improved battery technology is leading to slower degradation - around 1.8% per year, compared to 2.3% per year in 2019. With CATL announcing a new EV battery pack with a 1.5 million kilometre warranty last year, we're at the stage where the battery will outlast the vehicle. Link to story from The Driven is below. #energy #sustainability #automotive #emobility #energytransition

My first communications hot take of 2025! 🔥 Traditional PR metrics are dead. Stop counting press releases. Stop tracking AVE. Stop chasing meaningless numbers that don't tell you anything or move the needle. These metrics are a relic of the past. If you're still using them, your strategy is falling behind. (And if your agency is serving up these metrics as proof of their impact, then it's time for a hard conversation.) 🤨 Here's what needs to go: ❌ "Number of press releases" is just vanity. Nope, press releases aren't a strategy—they're a tactic. Publishing isn't the same as reaching. ❌ "Volume of coverage" tells you nothing. A hundred mentions in low-tier outlets don’t compare to one strategic feature that influences decision-makers. ❌ AVE (Advertising Value Equivalency) is meaningless. This was never a meaningful metric. Did you spend that budget on ads? No? Then why measure it like one? It doesn’t capture influence or impact. ❌ "Total impressions" lacks context. Reaching the wrong audience 1M times = wasted effort. Context is important here. If it’s 1M impressions with your target audience that drives some meaningful outcomes—that’s your metric. ❌ "Social follower count" is shallow. Having 50K silent followers is cool and all, but give me 5K engaged people any day. Social is shifting from brand followers to people, making follower count even less relevant. . Here's what (I think) actually matters in 2025: ✴️ Narrative Share (think thought leadership, elevated) → Are you shaping how people think about key issues? → What percentage of relevant conversations include your POV? → Are you leading the narrative—or playing catch-up? ✴️ Share of Voice *Quality* (not just mentions) Focus on: → Authority & Impact: Topic leadership and decision-maker credibility → Message Effectiveness: Perception shifts and resonance → Business Value: Lead quality and customer story impact → Stakeholder Engagement: How key audiences interact and respond ✴️ Audience Journey → What happens *after* someone sees your message? → Do your efforts drive real behavior change? → How are stakeholders engaging, retaining messages, changing behavior, or taking action? ✴️ Community-Driven Influence (beyond basic engagement) → Are you building advocates or just awareness? → What's happening organically in your networks? → Is your community telling your story for you? 🤔 I'll be the first to admit that measuring these isn't "easy" or as simple as open rates. Measuring the metrics that actually matter in PR requires a *mix* of qualitative and quantitative approaches, and it means leaning into tools, methodologies, and frameworks that go beyond surface-level data. 🗣️ Bottom line (and something I've been saying for years): PR isn’t just about getting your name out there. It’s about influencing how people think, feel, and act—to drive business OUTCOMES. If your metrics don’t reflect that, it’s time to rethink them. 📈 What PR metrics are you focusing on in 2025?

Most L&D professionals learned the Kirkpatrick Model early on. Fewer have seen it applied beyond Level 1. Here's what each level can actually look like when you put it into practice, not just the textbook definition. ✨ Level 1: Reaction 🔹 Textbook version: Did learners find the training engaging and worth their time? ✅ In practice: Instead of "Did you enjoy this session?", ask "Was this relevant to the work you do?" and "Could you apply this right away?" ✅ Metric to track: Relevance and applicability ratings, not just satisfaction scores. ✨ Level 2: Learning 🔹 Textbook version: Did learners gain the intended knowledge or skills? ✅ In practice: Replace recall-based quizzes with scenario-based checks. Can the learner apply the concept to a situation they'd actually face? ✅ Metric to track: Pre/post assessment scores on scenario-based questions, not just "did you pass the quiz." ✨ Level 3: Behavior 🔹 Textbook version: Are learners applying what they learned on the job? ✅ In practice: 30/60/90-day check-ins, manager observations, or peer feedback on whether the new behavior is showing up in real work. ✅ Metric to track: % of participants demonstrating the target behavior, based on manager or peer input, not self-reported confidence. ✨ Level 4: Results 🔹 Textbook version: Did the training impact business outcomes? ✅ In practice: Pick one business metric the program was meant to influence, before you build it, not after, and track the change. ✅ Metric to track: Movement in that specific KPI (error rates, time-to-productivity, conversion rates, retention) compared to a baseline. Most programs are measured thoroughly at Level 1 and barely at all beyond it. But Levels 3 and 4 are where the "did this actually matter" conversation happens, and they are also where L&D earns a seat at the table. Which level does your organisation measure consistently, and which one do you wish you could measure better? #LearningAndDevelopment #LnD #KirkpatrickModel #TrainingEvaluation #InstructionalDesign #LearningMeasurement #TrainingAndDevelopment #LnDStrategy

Are you measuring what matters in your organization? A comprehensive measure of organizational effectiveness includes much more than profit margins and growth rates. The market and media often celebrate companies that show rapid financial growth or high profitability, leading to a cultural bias towards these metrics as signs of success BUT the tide is slowly turning- more businesses are recognizing the long-term value of a holistic approach to effectiveness and success. Many more businesses are embracing the concept of the "Triple Bottom Line," which measures success not just by financial profit ("Profit"), but also by the company's impact on people ("People") and the planet ("Planet"). HOWEVER 🚨 There is more work to be done! The prioritization of non-financial elements of organizational success can get pushed aside when financial pressures hit or quick results are valued. You have probably heard the phrase "What gets measured gets managed". This is generally true. Quantifying and measuring non-financial aspects of effectiveness, such as employee well-being, social impact, and workplace culture, is hugely important but remains challenging. 💡 Here's some straightforward steps to move you towards a more holistic approach to measuring success: 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬: Define what holistic success means for your organization. This could include specific targets related to employee well-being, social impact, and environmental sustainability. 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬: Talk to employees, customers, and community members to understand what aspects of your business matter most to them. Their insights can help shape your holistic success framework. 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐬: Based on your goals and stakeholder feedback, pick metrics that are meaningful and manageable. For example, employee satisfaction can be measured through regular surveys, while environmental impact can be tracked through energy consumption or waste reduction metrics. 𝐔𝐬𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬: Look into established frameworks (like GRI or B Corp standards for sustainability; Gallups Q12 Engagement Survey for employee engagement or the Denison Organizational Culture Model to measure workplace culture). There are existing frameworks for most known elements of organizational effectiveness so it's just a matter of looking into them. 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧-𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠: Ensure that these holistic metrics are part of regular business reviews and decision-making processes, not just side projects. 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲: Share your progress openly, including both successes and areas for improvement. Transparency builds trust and credibility. 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠: Be prepared to adapt and refine your approach as you learn what works and what doesn't. This is a journey, not a one-time task. #organizationaleffectiveness #measurewhatmatters #leaders

Going Clear Day 581: Last week we cut burn by $200k / mo (or $2.4M / year) & it really hurt because I had to let some of our sales team go. As we get closer to raising our Series B next year, I've been learning about some of the critical metrics we need to watch to tell an efficient story in the AI era. What I found is that things are changing. Background: Warmly just finished our Q2. The first half of the year has been monumental for us: - 2x'd our customers - 2x'd our ARR - My cofounders & I moved to SF to start our offices - And I'm most proud of: >130% NRR As I start to meet with investors in the Bay, I've been struck by three metrics that I haven't been tracking well: - Magic Number - Burn Multiple - Revenue per employee --- 1/ Magic Number: how efficient is your Sales & Marketing function? Measured by: how much recurring revenue is generated for each dollar spent on sales and marketing. 2/ Burn Multiple: how efficient is your overall business? Measured by: dividing our net burn (cash spent minus revenue) by the net new ARR. 3/ Revenue per employee: how much money are you making per employee? Measured by: dividing our total revenue by number of employees --- These 3 were mentioned by 5 of 7 of the investors I spoke to in the last quarter. After a full health check on our business, it was evident that we were spending more than we needed to. In the first half the year, I authorized a lot of spend with the belief that it would help us grow faster to nab market share. Last week I made the tough decision to end a "grow at all costs" type policy when I realized that we could STILL achieve our ARR goals (& our NRR goals) without spending so much. So what did we do: - lowered S&M expenses by $150k/mo - lowered other expenses by $50k/mo - As part of this, our cofounders & rev leadership are taking a salary cut too. These cuts hurt but have a dramatic improvement to these new metrics that we need to watch intently: - Magic Number: 0.85 -> 1.1 (good) - Burn Multiple: 2.5x -> 1.5x (good) - Revenue Per Employee: ~$60k -> ~$95k (good?) An additional benefit to right-sizing the ship is that now we're projected to go profitable when we go out to raise which puts us in a stronger position with investors. But, importantly, and what sucks a ton, is that we had to let some of the sales team go. All of these folks were high performers & I would re-hire them again in a heartbeat if/when our metrics allow for it or we raise again. Partly I feel guilty. If I was a more aware and better founder (& not a first-timer) I would have foreseen the importance of these metrics earlier & hired accordingly. Partly I know I couldn't have done much differently. I'm evolving & reacting to how an AI-native world is shaping up and the response from the market / investors as I meet them. Open to all questions in comments / DM's. Warmly, Max ps. If you're looking to hire Warmly battle-trained SDRs (Macedonia) or AEs - DM me!

For half a decade, I thought I was tracking the right metrics I was wrong Revenue. Growth rate. ROAS. Conversion rate. New customers. Repeat revenue All important But they could tell me the business was growing without telling me whether that growth was making the company more valuable You can buy more traffic, discount more aggressively, and acquire less-profitable customers while the top line keeps going up The business gets bigger That doesn’t automatically mean its equity value does A stronger Brand should make future revenue easier to earn, more profitable, and less dependent on buying every sale Here are the 11 metrics I wish I’d started tracking sooner, framed as questions: 1. Are branded organic searches growing faster than revenue? 2. Are contribution dollars and contribution margin going up? Contribution Dollars = Revenue - variable costs like COGS, marketing, and shipping 3. Is direct and branded search revenue growing faster than overall revenue? 4. Is the gap between gross and net sales shrinking? This signals less reliance on discounts and fewer returns 5. Are 30, 60, and 90-day incremental LTV going up, excluding the first purchase? 6. Is reach growing as fast as—or faster than—revenue? 7. Have your worst days gotten better? One way to measure this: is the average of your 30 lowest-revenue days trending up? 8. For organic search, is revenue per session rising while sessions are growing or stable? 9. Is your share of branded organic searches growing versus your competitive set—at both the Brand and category level? 10. Is Baseline Revenue growing, both in dollars and as a percentage of total revenue? I define Baseline Revenue as revenue from direct traffic, organic search, and organic social referrals It’s imperfect. But if it’s rising in dollars AND as a percentage of revenue, good things are generally happening 11. Is Baseline Revenue per branded organic search going up? Branded searches are an imperfect proxy for the Brand you’re building. Baseline Revenue per search shows whether you’re monetizing it better If searches are soaring but Baseline Revenue per search isn’t, that’s something to audit — A few caveats: None of these metrics are perfect. You can game any of them They’re also mostly leading indicators—not the ultimate company scorecard The ultimate outcome is more operating profit and net cash over time The right metrics also change with the company’s stage, economics, and strategy. A five-month-old company shouldn’t use the same scorecard as a 100-year-old company But if you can honestly answer “yes” to most of these questions, there’s a good chance the quality of your growth is improving And that gives you a better chance of building a more valuable company—not just a bigger one Question for the people of the internet: What else do you track to understand whether growth is increasing the quality and equity value of the business?

GCC Leaders: Are You Measuring What Truly Matters? To measure the real impact of your Global Capability Center (GCC), you must go beyond traditional operational KPIs like cost savings or headcount. Those are hygiene. What truly matters is how your GCC moves the needle for the business. Here are 5 strategic metrics every GCC leader should track: 1. Value Delivered per Dollar Spent Why it matters: Shows how effectively the GCC converts investment into business outcomes. How to measure: • Business value (e.g., product revenue, productivity gains, IP created) / Total GCC cost • Can be benchmarked against alternative models (outsourcing, onshore) 2. Time to Market Acceleration Why it matters: Reflects the GCC’s ability to improve speed of execution for product development, support, or operations. How to measure: • % improvement in release velocity or cycle times after GCC involvement • Lead time from idea to launch before vs. after GCC enablement 3. Innovation Output Why it matters: Indicates contribution toward competitive advantage and future growth. How to measure: • Patents filed, features launched, automation use cases deployed • Number of AI/GenAI initiatives incubated and scaled • New product ideas or MVPs driven from GCC 4. Business Function Ownership & Accountability Why it matters: Measures the maturity and strategic importance of the GCC. How to measure: • % of global business function fully owned or co-owned by GCC (e.g., platforms, support functions, analytics COEs) • Strategic roles (Directors, VPs) based in the GCC • Participation in global decision-making forums 5. Customer or Stakeholder NPS / Satisfaction Score Why it matters: This metric reflects how well the GCC is delivering value—both through the products it helps build and the support it provides to global stakeholders. How to measure: • NPS from external customers using products or services developed by GCC teams • NPS from internal stakeholders on the GCC’s responsiveness, collaboration, and strategic alignment • Qualitative feedback on product quality, innovation, speed of execution, and business understanding If your GCC isn’t driving the business forward, it’s just another offshore team. And in 2025, that’s not enough. Rethink how you measure. Reframe how you lead. Redefine what your GCC stands for. Zinnov Amita Goyal Karthik Padmanabhan Amaresh N. Mohammed Faraz Khan Namita Adavi Dipanwita Ghosh Sagar Kulkarni Hani Mukhey ieswariya Rohit Nair Komal Shah Saurabh Mehta

Ever wondered why despite immense potential, some SaaS companies struggle to scale and achieve profitability? I recently went deep into a compelling discussion that shed light on the vital role of business metrics in SaaS growth. One anecdote stood out: the story of Salsify, a company that enhanced its trajectory by relocating its European headquarters to Lisbon, symbolizing a strategic shift in optimizing operations. The central theme was crystal clear: "If you can't measure it, you cannot improve it." Accurate metrics are not just numbers; they shape strategies, align teams, and spark growth. But what's the secret formula? Key takeaways include: - The Rule of 40: A SaaS company's growth rate and profitability combined should exceed 40%. - Net New ARR: Monitor bookings via net new Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR), encompassing new customer ARR, expansion ARR from existing customers, and losses from churned customers. - Sales Funnel Efficiency: Deploy a holistic funnel that includes onboarding, retention, and expansion. - Sales Team Metrics: Productivity per salesperson and timely hiring are crucial to meet growth targets. - Customer Economics: Balance the Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) against the Lifetime Value (LTV). Aim for an LTV to CAC ratio of 3:1 and recover CAC within 12-18 months. - Negative Churn: Expansion revenue should ideally outpace revenue losses from churned customers for sustainable growth. Metrics like these can transform a SaaS company from merely surviving to thriving. It's fascinating how strategic measurement and adjustment can turn potential into proven success. How do you leverage metrics to steer your SaaS business towards growth and profitability? Share your experiences and insights! #SaaSMetrics #GrowthStrategy #BusinessAnalytics #SaaS #CustomerRetention #StartupGrowth #ScaleYourBusiness

The major flaw of all goal setting systems: They start with a KPI or metric instead of the desired state. Even if they were not meant to do so (like OKRs). But when you optimise for a metric instead of an outcome, your team will come up with the weirdest ideas that will derail your PRODUCT efforts. Increase engagement ↳ Games on LinkedIn? Reduce number of cancellations ↳ "Let's not count upgrades as 'cancelled and booked' anymore on the backend. Let's introduce a new state 'upgraded' instead." (true story) Keep loading time  < 6 seconds (health metric as a goal) ↳ Stakeholder: "We want to show more products on the catalogue" ↳ "The Tech": "Nope. That's going to increase loading time for catalogue, we can't do that" instead of finding out together how to make it happen (another true story) BUT!!! Not optimising for metrics will derail your BUSINESS efforts! Here's how you can find good product goals... ... that help you keep business focus... ... by helping your customers/ users succeed. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 (𝗶.𝗲. 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲) 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀: 1. Describe in words what success looks like. 2. Ask "how can we measure that?" to find metrics. 3. Refine: Action, Unit of Analysis, Statistical Function and turn into a goal 4. Ask "what are bad ways to improve this metric?". 5. Define guardrails and health metrics, and refine again. Turn the metrics into goals by adding a direction of improvement, a value as threshold and a time-frame. Find details and examples in the carousel. Genuinely curious: Share your wildest stories with me how optimising for a metric / goal made you and your team build the weirdest frankensteins 😁🧟

The Two Types of Metrics Every Business Needs 📊 Every founder I work with eventually hits the same wall. They're drowning in data but starving for insights. Spreadsheets full of numbers that don't connect to any clear action plan. The problem isn't tracking the wrong things, it's mixing up two completely different purposes for metrics. While many of these metrics overlap (because good business metrics are good business metrics), I've organized them by their PRIMARY focus during fundraising vs daily operations. Think of it as two different lenses for viewing the same business. ➡️ VENTURE CAPITAL METRICS These tell a story of scale, momentum, and market opportunity. ARR and MRR show recurring revenue strength that investors love because it means predictable income streams. Growth rate demonstrates month over month momentum and shows investors you're accelerating, not just maintaining. Burn rate and runway answer the critical investor question: "How long will my money last?" CAC and LTV prove your unit economics work at scale and show whether more marketing spend will generate returns. Revenue multiples help investors benchmark your valuation against comparable companies. Churn rate reveals retention risk and tells investors whether you have a leaky bucket problem. Market size using TAM, SAM, and SOM shows this is a billion dollar opportunity, not just a nice business. Logo count provides social proof that other smart people believe in your solution enough to pay for it. ➡️ OPERATING METRICS These power decisions, accountability, and optimization. Active users, DAUs, and MAUs reveal real product usage patterns and tell you if people find value in what you've built. Conversion rates expose exactly where prospects drop off so you know where to focus optimization efforts. Sales pipeline health compares forecasted deals against closed deals, helping you predict revenue and spot problems early. Gross margin shows profitability of your core product after direct costs. Headcount and hiring plans manage your biggest expense category since most companies spend 60-70% on people. Support tickets and NPS scores measure customer satisfaction and predict churn before it happens. Product engagement reveals which features customers actually use, helping you prioritize development resources. Unit economics breaks down real cost vs return per customer segment for optimized marketing spend. === The best founders track both sets religiously. Use your operating metrics to build compelling investor stories, and let investor feedback guide your operational focus. What metrics are you tracking that I missed?