3 Quick Ways to Assess the Health of Your Business

In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, transformation isn't just an option—it's a necessity. Across industries, businesses are grappling with the need to adapt, innovate, and scale at unprecedented speeds. Because of this whirlwind of change, understanding and measuring business maturity is now mission-critical.

But how do you assess the maturity of your business during the chaos of constant transition?

In this article, I'll share three unconventional yet powerful metrics that can shed light on your business maturity level and guide your path toward sustainable growth and success.

1. Unused Vacation Days of Your Leaders

It might seem counter-intuitive, but the number of unused vacation days among your leadership team can provide valuable insights into the maturity of your business. In a fast-paced, high-pressure environment, leaders who feel unable to take time off may indicate a culture of overwork and burnout.

On the other hand, leaders who feel empowered to balance short bursts of focus time with appropriate recovery demonstrate a more effective approach to prioritizing and delegating.

By tracking the percentage of unused vacation days, you can gauge the health of your organizational culture and identify ways to improve your collective ability to deliver consistently.

2. Volume of Firefighting

In many businesses, firefighting—swarming to tackle urgent issues as they arise—has become the norm. While this agility may seem impressive, frequent firefighting can actually be a sign of underlying inefficiencies or gaps in critical workflows.

Instead of proactively addressing root causes, teams may find themselves constantly reacting to crises, leading to burnout and diminished morale.

By monitoring the frequency and trigger of 'fires', you can uncover areas of the business that require attention and investment to promote long-term stability and performance.

3. Key Person Risk

Finally, consider the concept of key person risk—the degree to which your business relies on individual employees for critical functions or decision-making. While it's natural to have talented individuals who excel in their roles, over-reliance on a select few can pose significant risks to your business.

If key employees were to leave or become unavailable, would your business be able to operate smoothly? By diversifying expertise and promoting knowledge sharing across teams, you can mitigate key person risk and foster a more resilient and adaptable organization.

In summary, measuring business maturity requires looking beyond traditional metrics and exploring the underlying factors that contribute to organizational health and resilience.

By tracking unused vacation days, volume of firefighting, and key person risk, you can gain valuable insights into your business's strengths and weaknesses and chart a course towards more growth and success.

Let's continue the conversation: Which of these metrics resonates most with you? How will you leverage these insights to drive meaningful change in your business?

About the Author

I'm Ije Jemie Nwabueze Lean Six Sigma, CTI, ORSC, PMI-ACP, CBAP (pronounced 'E-J'), CEO and founder of NextLevel Strategies , a business transformation consultancy, Team Coaching Head for Dreamcatchers Performance , a mental fitness executive coaching company, and Host of Real Talk: Conversations on Mental Fitness , a podcast for high performing leaders.

As a Lean Six Sigma strategy execution expert with 16+ years of experience at mid-market and Fortune 500 companies in 3 global markets, I have served as a trusted advisor to C-suite executives, managed complex transformational change and built high performing teams from the ground up.

This thought leadership is my gift to the world--a way of sharing my deep experience and training to support visionary business leaders in solving problems that matter.

I understand that during the growth or expansion stage of your business, your goal is not just to scale, but to do so swiftly and sustainably.

In addition to relevant research, my intention is to share lessons learned from my past wins and (perhaps more importantly) setbacks, so you can get the most out of your efforts.

To have me as a thought partner for urgent needs, book a no-obligation discovery call or complimentary coaching session .

Excited for this journey! Together, we'll multiply the impact of your legacy, supercharge your leaders and teams, and build a lasting business that will transform the world.

Until our next edition, keep powering forward.

Kind regards,

Ije