KEY PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND BUSINESS CULTURE

Assignment 1: Discussion—Key Performance Measures and the Business Culture

Business culture is the context in which the measures exist. They are bound to each other in terms of context and environment. Understanding business metrics as key performance measures is an important part of business strategy and management. In this assignment, you will look at financial performance measures.

Financial performance measures are vitally important to assessing corporate performance. However, financial measures are primarily backward looking in that they measure the results of past actions, and do not always give a reliable indication of future direction.

Using the module readings, Argosy University online library resources, and the Internet, respond to the following for your own organization:

• Give three examples of key performance measures that are forward looking and more predictive.
• What aspect of the value chain are they measuring?
• How do these measures tie to specific strategies in your business unit?
• Does the business’ culture enable or block its business strategy and/or does it have an effect on financial performance in the value chain? Provide a rationale in support of your answer.
• What are cultural norms that govern the organization, and what types of behaviors does the culture promote or punish?

Write your initial response in approximately 300 words. Apply APA standards to citation of sources.

By Saturday, March 1, 2014, post your response to the appropriate Discussion Area. Through Wednesday, March 5, 2014, review and comment on at least two peers’ responses.

Consider the following when you respond to your peers’ posts:

• Comment on which you found most helpful and the reasons you found them helpful. Provide a citation or resource to each response based on your learning or research.
• Comment on one of the measures described in your peers’ posts about how their organizations are alike or different from your own organization.
• Explain how your organization might benefit from considering the measures stated by your peers.

Assignment 1 Grading Criteria	Maximum Points
Initial response: Was insightful, original, accurate, and timely. Was substantive and demonstrated advanced understanding of concepts. Compiled/synthesized theories and concepts drawn from a variety of sources to support statements and conclusions.	16
Discussion response and participation: Responded to a minimum of two peers in a timely manner. Offered points of view supported by research. Asked challenging questions that promoted the discussion. Drew relationships between one or more points in the discussion.	16
Writing: Wrote in a clear, concise, formal, and organized manner. Responses were error free. Information from sources, where applicable, was paraphrased appropriately and accurately cited.	8
Total:	40