The KPI North Star: Adoption, Proficiency and Value.

Executive Summary.

If we’re honest, most “digital wins” stall in the space between launch and behavior. Dashboards light up for a week, then reality creeps in: usage dips, help tickets rise, and the business asks, “So what changed?” The answer is usually: not enough.

Here’s the fix I use with sponsors and operating leaders: a simple, shared ladder we climb every week—Adoption → Proficiency → Value (APV).

• Adoption asks: are the right people actually using the capability?

• Proficiency asks: can they perform the critical task without assistance?

• Value asks: did a material KPI move (cycle time, revenue, CSAT, cost-to-serve)?

One page. Three rows. A weekly conversation that replaces status theater with decisions. In 90 days, APV turns “we shipped” into “we changed how work happens, and here’s the outcome.”

The Problem (why launches don’t turn into outcomes).

Let’s talk about familiar patterns:

1. Shipped ≠ Adopted. We celebrate deployments and assume behavior will follow. It rarely does. People are busy, friction wins.

2. Activity masquerades as progress. Logins, page views, and training attendance feel comforting, but they seldom predict business outcomes.

3. Ownership is scattered. Product owns features, Operations owns performance, Enablement owns training, PMO owns meetings—no one owns the behavioral bridge between “new capability” and “business result.”

4. Reporting is noisy, not decisive. Teams send 20 metrics because no one agreed on three that matter. Leaders can’t see the signal, so they can’t fund, fix, or focus.

5. Cadence is misaligned. We review projects monthly, but behavior drifts weekly. By the time we notice, value leakage is baked in.

The net effect: budgets consumed, resilience taxed, credibility dented, and a portfolio that looks busy but doesn’t compound value.

The Remedy (how APV closes the behavior gap).

We fix this by narrowing the lens and tightening the rhythm.

1) Start with one critical task. Not “the system,” not “the program” the exact behavior that creates value (e.g., create & progress an opportunity, resolve priority chat with handover). Name it. Instrument it.

2) Put APV on a single scorecard. Three rows—Adoption, Proficiency, Value. For each row, pick one primary metric you’re willing to defend in the room. Add target, current, Δ vs last week, threshold (R/A/G), owner, and the next action in one sentence. If a metric doesn’t change a decision, it doesn’t live here.

3) Change the conversation cadence.

• Weekly (30 min): “Stuck → Shipped” review. What blocked adoption? Where is proficiency lagging? What one action moves the next rung? Show a 60-second win tied to behavior, not features.

• Monthly (45–60 min): Value checkpoint. Validate attribution, tune targets, retire solved risks.

• Quarterly (60–90 min): Portfolio APV view. Compare initiatives by maturity, not volume; reallocate capacity to the highest slope of value.

4) Align roles to behavior, not bureaucracy.

• Sponsor clears constraints and signs off on the Value KPI.

• Product/Process Owner owns Adoption & Proficiency targets.

• Ops/Enablement embeds job aids, prompts, and hypercare in-flow.

• Analytics guarantees measurement quality and simple visuals.

• Change/OCM manages stakeholders, comms, and resistance with a bias to adoption.

• PMO protects the cadence and integrates APV into portfolio reporting.

5) Prove it in 90 days.

• Days 0–15: Define the task, lock metric definitions, instrument, baseline, and publish the one-page scorecard.

• Days 16–45: Drive proficiency, remove two clicks, add one default, ship a 2-minute job aid, run office hours; log one action per tier per week.

• Days 46–90: Tie behavior to business movement (cohorts, simple controls), retire vanity metrics, and publish the lessons learned.

What changes in the room?

• You stop debating if the tool is good and start deciding how to move behavior.

• Teams bring a single sheet, not a slideshow.

• Investment decisions become obvious: double down where APV climbs; pause where it flat lines.

Executive takeaway: APV is not extra governance. It’s the shortest path from capability to outcome. One critical task, three metrics, a weekly rhythm. That’s how launches become habits, and habits become value.

Your next tiny step
Pick your one task. Fill the 3 rows. Choose one tiny improvement. See you next week with better numbers and happier humans.

Kenny.