Managed and Improved: Metrics that Matter

Picture it. You’re updating your monthly dashboard for the 10th time. Running all the numbers, creating waterfalls and detailed pie charts, preparing for your End-of-the-Month Review, when your Sr. Leadership pings you on MS Teams to ask for a preview. Begrudgingly, you oblige and within a few minutes, you realize that although your data is accurate and your charts are on point, you’re measuring the wrong things. Technical Leaders often pride themselves on being data-driven—yet many are flying blind when it comes to measuring what truly matters. When you’re working around the clock in environments with competing priorities, it’s easy to default to what’s visible: lines of code written, action items closed, material demand, or sprint velocity. However, these activity-based metrics can create a false sense of productivity. So, what’s missing? Outcome-based indicators that actually tell us whether the work is driving value and therefore, results.

When we measure the wrong things—or worse, measure nothing at all—we leave our teams without a roadmap. Mistake #5 of the Top 5 Productivity Mistakes Technical Leaders Make centers on how measuring the wrong things doesn't just hinder performance; it erodes alignment, drains morale, stalls innovation, and blocks progress. Fortunately, the fix is straightforward and powerful: shift your focus to outcomes, and everything changes. By focusing on outcome-based indicators, you will be able to assess the effectiveness of a program by tracking changes in specific areas like knowledge, skills, attitudes, or behaviors. They help determine if the intended impact of a program has been achieved.

When one of my clients, Michelle* became an Engineering Director, she inherited a high-performing team—at least on paper. Status reports looked great and the backlog was consistently cleared. Her team closed more tickets than any other department, however, customer churn was up, deployment bugs were increasing, and stakeholder confidence was dropping.

In our first 1:1 Strategy Session, I challenged Michelle to consider what success looks like and what metrics she measures that support creating that success. After pondering and discussing it further, Michelle knew what she had to do. At her first leadership offsite, she asked her team: “What does success look like for us this quarter?” As the Developers talked about code quality and backlog grooming, she pointed out that no one mentioned customer satisfaction, deployment reliability, or business goals. The room went quiet. That’s when it clicked for them just like it had clicked for Michelle during our session.

She introduced three new outcome-based KPIs: customer satisfaction per release, mean time to resolution for incidents, and the number of days from code commit to deployment. Michelle tied these to the team's goals and started biweekly reviews to track progress. This gave her good data that not only told an informed story, but also motivated the teams.  The shift was swift with Engineers asking different questions in standups, and teams prioritizing fewer—but more meaningful—features. Within 90 days, customer satisfaction scores improved, and post-deployment incidents dropped by 40%. Michelle’s team wasn’t just busy—they were effective and engaged.

What gets measured gets managed—and improved. Forgetting to measure what matters is one of the most avoidable—and damaging—mistakes Technical Leaders can make. Tracking output may feel like control, but it doesn’t guarantee impact. When Leaders focus on outcomes, they empower their teams to make smarter decisions, align with strategic goals, and deliver real value. Metrics help teams celebrate progress and spot issues early. Remember, don’t wait until performance problems surface to re-evaluate your metrics. Start today by identifying just a few KPIs that reflect the outcomes your team exists to create. Review them regularly, and watch how clarity, motivation, and results begin to rise. 

📈 Are you measuring what actually matters? Too often, we track outputs, but miss the big picture. If you’re ready to elevate your team's performance with outcome-based leadership, book a 1:1 Strategy Session with Dr. Cristi to refine your KPIs, boost alignment, and drive smarter, data-informed decisions. Learn how to shift to outcome-based metrics that boost alignment, morale, and real impact. Let’s measure what matters — together.

Looking forward to working with you to #EngineerBetterLeaders! ✨

*Actual client whose name has been changed