Glossary: Business Key Performance Indicator (KPI)       A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) is a measurable value that demonstrates how effectively a company is achieving key business objectives. It is a quantifiable measure of performance over time for a specific objective. KPIs provide targets for teams to shoot for, milestones to gauge progress, and insights that help people across the organization make better decisions.   What gets measured gets done. Peter Drucker A great company continuously measures and improves the following attributes: meritocracy, fairness, justice, openness, speed, imagination and excellence in execution. Naryana Murhty Infosys Simplicity applies to measurement also. Too often we measure everything and understand nothing. Jack Welch GE Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. Albert Einstein   KPIs help to focus attention on what matters most and create an analytical basis for decision making.   Balanced Company: 5 Basic Elements     KPIs provide a focus for strategic and operational improvement. Managing with the use of KPIs includes: ① setting the desired level of performance (objectives / targets / critical quantifiable indicators of progress toward an intended result); ② tracking progress against those objectives.     KPIs vs. Metrics KPIs are strategic. Business metrics are primarily tactical. KPIs measure performance based on key business goals while business metrics measure performance or progress for specific business activities.     Effective KPIs: Measure right things to help inform better decision making Are strategically aligned, trickle down from the overall strategic goals of an organization Are simple, straightforward, easy to measure, self-explanatory, and actionable Challenge employees but don’t overwhelm them... More     Example When you're using social networks to drive traffic to your website, one of your most important KPIs is related to link clicks. Although if you want to build communities on social networks, setting a KPI for engagement stats is the best.   Social Media Marketing (SMM) How to Analyze Your Facebook Likes and Improve Engagement Copywriting   Small companies have dreams. Most of the big companies when they get to a certain size, they only have KPI. Jack Ma Measure what you value, value your measurements, and analyze them to discover new ways to create a greater value. VadiK Inventor Author Founder