At this point, you may have already pushed a project to Execution. Well done!
Now, we will talk about 2 important things often used in performance evaluation for a project that is already in Execution, Lead and Lag indicators. But what exactly do they mean?
Lead Indicator is an indicator of performance that might predict future outcomes while Lag Indicator is an indicator of past performance that measures how we performed. The difference between the two is that a Lead Indicator can influence change while a Lag Indicator can only record what historically happened. To enhance project success, our focus should be on the Lead indicators.
What has become clear over the years is that a combination of lead and lag indicators result in enhancing the overall business and project delivery performance. The reason for this is obvious; Lead indicators provide the signal and early warning of how results will be if no further actions are taken. For example, a Lead Indicator for a deliverable with a potential slippage will immediately prompt the Project Manager into corrective actions to bring it back on track before the due date.
Focus HQ has set-up Lead and Lag indicators for Budget, Milestones and Deliverables. They are:
Milestones and Deliverables: Overdue, Projected to slip, or Due in the next 30 days are the Lead and Lag indicators that fully integrate the delivery schedule, milestones and deliverables.
Budget: Actual to Date, Estimate to Complete, Estimate at Completion, and Variance at Completion (-/+) are best referenced as lead indicators for you to take corrective action and prevent budget blowout.
In conjunction with the Lead / Lag indicators, Project Risk and Issues should be reviewed to reflect any exceptions, actions or decisions required. This may lead to re-alignment of the project baseline (scope, schedule, budget, benefit) subject to the Change Control process. More on this later.
To know more on how you go about Lead and Lag indicators within Focus HQ, you can check this video:
Please also visit the Focus HQ Support Portal for more details:
Feel free to check Focus HQ Overview page to review your Project’s lead and lag indicators and help you determine your Project’s status.
If you have any other questions, you can reach out to us via the Focus HQ Help or send us an email to support@focushq.com. We’ll be happy to guide you in navigating through these and provide other valuable support links when needed.