The Performance Aspect

When the word ‘performance’ in connection with an organization is used it nearly always refers to financial performance. However, financial performance depends on other factors such as the organization’s size, how well it looks after customers, how easy it is to adapt to change or how well it operates in relation to similar organizations.

The way performance is measured depends on who is doing the measuring. The shareholders of a rail company may use the share price and the dividend as a measure of performance, the executive management may look at turnover and profit, the rail travellers are concerned with the number of trains and their punctuality, while the suppliers of equipment or catering services are interested in how long they have to wait to get paid.

The five elements of Performance