Case studies that get to the heart of the performance management challenge

As well as providing a wide range of illustrations from companies that are tackling the performance management challenges at different stages in the SPM Maturity Model, Strategic Performance Management brings you a range of case studies that take you to the heart of the practical issues that you are likely to encounter, including: the leader’s role in setting the context and goals for performance management, overcoming cultural barriers, resolving data quality issues, turning insights from business intelligence systems into actionable decisions – and much more besides.

Computacenter – a leading independent supplier of IT infrastructure services – needed to gain a better grip of its fast-growing business. Find out how it developed a method of relating its strategic objectives to operational and tactical goals that are highly practical. This case study explains how the company is implementing its vision “to enable informed management and operational decisions through the provision of contextually relevant and accurate information in a timely manner and appropriate format.” In particular, the company has set out to take into account the cultural and motivational issues that affect the acceptance and adoption of performance management practices.

Guinness Trust Group – faced with the need to improve its regulatory reporting, the housing association used this as the spur to rethink the way it managed performance. As a result, it redesigned a number of core processes and developed better data management systems and practices. The result has not only been to underpin the reputation of the Trust through more efficient statutory reporting but also to improve operational management through the use of  high-quality and timely information.

MacDonald’s – having taken “our eye off the fries” in performance terms, the fast-food chain launched a ‘Plan to Win’ strategy in 2002 that resulted in a more focused concentration on results using a scorecard approach that cascaded down to individual restaurant level. The implementation of SEER, a web-based business intelligence systems, brought a new level of precision to the management of the UK section of the business, generating savings of £1.35m in staff and telecommunications costs, as well as enabling the company to make performance-improving decisions in marketing and other areas of the business.

Maplin Electronics – to help the electronic component and product company manage its rapid growth, Maplin has developed a strong performance management culture that is built round a system of weekly reporting based on its ERP system. This gives the business a tight control of order fulfilment and stock control that has helped to give the company the necessary control to manage its growth. The case study explores its approach to performance and how it plans to develop a new level of performance management capability.

Video Arts – the 30-year-old company, founded by among others John Cleese, is famous for its wry, engaging training videos. It has recently undertake an initiative to revitalise the business and recapture its original brand magic. An integral part of the 2003 programme was the development of a performance management framework that reflected its newly defined goals. This case study examines the way in which Video Arts involved the whole company in developing a performance management framework to deliver its strategy.

Viking UK – find out how the UK division of one of the world’s largest office supply companies uses information on customer service and other aspects of its business to drive performance. By effectively segmenting its customer data, it has been able to target offers more effectively to different parts of the market and win new business. So far, the company has made significant progress through the introduction of a unified database and the addition of analytical tools. Now it plans to take its performance management to a new level.