HOW TO MEASURE SUPPLY CHAIN PERFORMANCE

4 | R i g h t S c o r e s ™ sure how to respond and so I said what I often say when I don’t know what to say and I don’t want to be derogatory. I simply said, “That’s amazing.” That is amazing. There is no way anyone could keep track of 349 metrics. (I suspect that they, like many, use metrics as a substitute and/or pretense of management.) At some point, too many metrics dilutes the meaning of any single metric. The right number of metrics is the fewest needed to do the job. I typically recommend that no more than seven metrics be used for any activity. People can only remember up to seven things about anything. As long as they are the right ones, fewer is better than more! Being meaningful also means being relevant. According to Webster, “relevant” means having significant and demonstrable bearing on the matter at hand. If a metric is irrelevant, either because it is buried under so many other metrics that no one can find it, or because no one is accountable to it, or because when the performance for the metric changes and no behaviors or decisions changes – then it should not be incorporated in a supply chain performance measurement program. Controllable Several years ago I was invited to address the supply chain management team of one of the world’s largest grocery companies. I was first up and before I got up to speak the CEO asked to speak with me. After a little chit-chat, he shared with me that he was going to speak to the group a little about their new