You're working with physicians, but how do you know if your business is succeeding?

1 Define your goals

Before you can track your success, you need to define what success means for you. What are your short-term and long-term goals for your business? How do you align them with your vision, mission, and values? How do you communicate them to your team and your customers? Your goals should be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For example, you might want to increase your revenue by 10% in the next quarter, or expand your customer base by 20% in the next year.

2 Choose your metrics

Once you have your goals, you need to choose the metrics that will help you monitor your progress and evaluate your results. Metrics are quantitative indicators that show how well you're performing in different aspects of your business, such as sales, marketing, customer satisfaction, operations, and finance. For example, revenue is the total amount of money you generate from sales or services; cost is the total amount of money you spend on expenses or investments; profit is the difference between revenue and cost; ROI is the ratio of profit to cost expressed as a percentage; customer acquisition cost is the average amount of money spent to acquire a new customer; customer lifetime value is the average amount of money earned from a customer over their entire relationship with you; customer retention rate is the percentage of customers who continue to buy from you or use your service over a given period; customer satisfaction score is the average rating customers give to your product or service based on surveys or feedback; and net promoter score is the percentage of customers who are likely to recommend your product or service minus those who are likely to detract from it.

3 Use your tools

To collect, analyze, and visualize your metrics, you need to use the right tools for your business. Software applications and platforms such as CRM, ERP, BI, and KPI can help you manage your data and generate reports and dashboards. CRM software is used to organize and track customer interactions. ERP software integrates and automates core business processes like accounting, inventory, order management, and human resources. Business intelligence software transforms data into insights and recommendations using analytics, visualization, and reporting. Lastly, KPI software allows you to define and monitor strategic objectives and outcomes with metrics, targets, and scorecards.

4 Review and improve

Ultimately, regular review and improvement of your performance is essential, based on your metrics and tools. Set a schedule and format for your review, such as weekly, monthly, or quarterly meetings, reports, or presentations. Involve your team and customers in the review process to gain their feedback and suggestions. Ask yourself questions such as: what are the main achievements and challenges of the period? How well did you meet your goals and expectations? What are the strengths and weaknesses of your product or service? What are the opportunities and threats in your market and industry? What are the best practices and lessons learned from your competitors and peers? What are the action items and priorities for the next period? Working with physicians can be both rewarding and profitable, but to do so effectively requires consistent evaluation and improvement. By following these tips and tools, you can measure success and plan for the future with confidence.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?