KPIs are easy to understand; every student accountant learns about them. So why is it so hard to add real value by helping clients or internal colleagues to use KPIs to deliver business success?

"Businesses are desperately keen to find new ways of understanding information. They want signposts to actions that lead to real improvements in their business." observes Robin Tidd, an author with 25 years' experience of advising clients on performance management. "They may have good information but poor behaviour, or keen managers with poor information."

Whether operating from outside a business as a trusted advisor, or from the inside as a member of the finance team, accountants can play a key role in ensuring that the managers of a business achieve proper control of their processes.

Optimising performance and achieving great results depends on excellence in both management information systems and management responses. This course provides the tools accountants need to help their clients and colleagues succeed.

What you will gain

·         Understand what sort of plans should come out of the strategy process

·         Model significant performance improvement

·         Advise clients on establishing control systems to achieve business plans

·         Establish the best ongoing review process

·         Understand and use action review and problem solving meetings

·         Advise clients how to get the most out of Action Review Meetings

·         Develop process maps and procedures to help solve problems

Content

Business plans and targets

·         What happens when I come out of the strategy workshop?

·         What do I need to know about processes and departments?

·         What types of target are there?

·         What is modelling and evaluation?

·         How do I use a business plan document?

·         What is the review process?

·         What is the purpose of planning?

Key Performance Indicators

·         What is the purpose of KPIs?

·         Where do KPIs come from?

·         How are KPIs evaluated?

·         How should KPIs be displayed or presented?

·         What are short interval controls?

·         What are low level and high level KPIs?

Meetings

·         Why is it important to have meetings?

·         What common problems arise?

·         What is the difference between action review and problem solving meetings?

·         What other types of meeting are useful?

Action review

·         What is the purpose of action review meetings (ARMs)?

·         How should ARMs feel?

·         What should the format and agenda be?

·         Who should attend?

·         What is action logging?

·         How do you get people to do their actions?

·         What is the effect of action reviews on teamwork?

·         What is the relationship with process improvement?

Problem mapping and problem solving

·         What is a process?

·         What are vertical departmental barriers?

·         What is process mapping?

·         What is waste and where do we find it?

·         What are the measuring processes?

·         How do we solve problems?

·         How should we make decisions?

·         Where does the stimulus for process improvement come from?

Target Audience

Accounting and finance professionals in practice and in industry.

Author

Robin Tidd, MBA, FCMA, MCIM

Robin Tidd, MBA, FCMA, MCIM, is an experienced management consultant. He has developed significant knowledge over the past 27 years working with organisations, and driving their success via a down-to-earth, practical approach. He was Chair of CIMA Members in Practice 2000-2005 and is a member of CIMA's council.