The branch's external KPI
Sales, costs and the internal audit score describe a branch from the inside. The external KPI measures the same branch from what its customers write: which category, and which way it is heading.
Internal KPIs show the result
Sales and costs are the result of a period. When they drop, they don't say why, and the drop often shows only after the month has closed. Customers write about what they experienced on the day. When service slows down, they are the first to say so.
In management terms this is a leading indicator: it measures the path to the result rather than the result. How far a drop in the customer's eyes reaches your sales, you see by putting it next to your own figures.
How the external KPI is measured
Every customer review is read across 18 categories; service speed, staff attitude, food, cleanliness and value for money are a few of them. Each category's satisfaction rate is compared with the industry average. Order accuracy is measured separately, as the share of reviews reporting a problem. The measure stays the same every month, so months can be compared.
After Action Review for a branch
The After Action Review was born in the US Army and is used today in hospitals and companies. After a piece of work, the team meets and asks three questions. The aim is to do better next time, not to find someone to blame.
For a branch, this meeting usually runs on internal figures. The external KPI brings the customer's view to the table. Our report follows the same three questions, and that is where the name Review-Action comes from: from review to action.
- What did we expect, and what happened? The last 3 months, the previous period and the industry average side by side.
- Why did it happen? Which category, day and time the drop is concentrated in, in the customers' own words.
- What's next? One target for the branch manager, with a deadline, an owner and a measure. Next month you look at the same measure and see whether the target was met.