The approach to business future proofing can sometimes result in nothing more than a superficial fresh coat of paint. The thinking is well-intended. Digitize everywhere, leapfrog competitors, unlock the power of total experience, leverage AI strategically, disrupt old workflows to inspire innovation. It is mostly understood that “data” is key, but why do so many of these efforts disappoint or come up short?
One powerful tactic that is often overlooked in the race to modernize is to pause and ask a simple series of questions…
Are we measuring in a way that can enable us to gain a true, multi-dimensional view of our business? One that can address the new complexities and pace of disruption? Or are we defaulting to the same old metrics? Essentially flying blind in a new world with yesterday’s dashboard.
The reality?
It’s incredibly challenging to adapt to the future if you don’t know what’s actually happening in your business beneath the surface.
To become truly future proof, leaders need to rethink how they measure progress, momentum, and resilience. It’s also critical to rethink “what” is measured. The metrics that mattered over the last few years still have a place in analysis and evaluation. But they need to be augmented by what we refer to at SQA Group as next-gen metrics — the numbers that surface the signals that actually drive growth, de-risk, and accelerate innovation.
Grab your copy: 10 Next Gen Metrics for Future Oriented Leaders
Interested in modernizing your dashboard with next-gen metrics? Here are five to get you started:
1. Bail Because of Data, Not Gut
Organizational waste is around us constantly. Slack’s recent State of the Workplace report found that employees spend 32% of their time on average dedicated to performative tasks that don’t directly contribute to their company’s goals.
As leaders, how and where we aim our teams is essential. We need to strike a perfect balance between giving our teams space to experiment and create, while also keeping an eye on fiscal health, resource allocation, and cycles of spin. So how do you both well?
Our next-gen metric Speed to Bail provides you with the signals to identify your ideal “bail moment” by calibrating the speed at which your organization or teams can recognize an activity is not bearing fruit so the team can move on to more productive, impactful activities. As our VP of Data & Advanced Analytics Solutions David Pacific says in his most recent blog about Speed to Bail…
“Forget everything you’ve been taught about perseverance and grit for a second. In today’s warp-speed business climate, the real superpower? Knowing when to say, “Nope. We’re done here.”
The most future proofed companies aren’t just good at scaling what works. They’re exceptional at walking away from what doesn’t.
2. Built to Thrive, Not Just Last
The notion of stickiness — or how frequently and consistently users engage with a product/service/brand etc. over time — has long been understood and prioritized, especially for companies whose revenue is derived solely from the quality and impact it delivers.
It’s imperative that today’s businesses are sticky across a number of business components, from their employee culture to investor trust to marketing messages to customer loyalty. It’s why we’re so bullish on the notion of Total Stickiness as a next-gen metric, which enables organizations to gauge “staying power” across a myriad of dimensions, from stark raving client fans to operational expediency to customer experience.
After all, if one critical component of business wobbles, the viability of an entire business becomes at risk. Total stickiness enables leaders to leverage data and advanced analytics to pinpoint weak spots, reduce risk, and build an organization that’s truly future proof.
3. From Core Values to a Competitive Edge
Values are not just nice words to embed on websites and employee handbooks. When leveraged intentionally, they can have a direct impact on a company’s growth and vitality. A few stats that really underscore this include the fact that companies with a high sense of purpose increased in value by 175 percent over a 12-year period. In addition, employees are 115% more engaged when their organization has a well-defined set of company value.
Core Value Differentiation, as a metric, ensures that values are able to be correlated to actual dollars and cents by correlating values actualization to things like customer acquisition, marketing resonance, employee loyalty and so forth.
In my last blog, I dove further into this metric, referring to it as the hidden metric that can greatly catalyze impact (click here to dive in). Because while other metrics surround pace of tech adoption, speed to innovation, technical debt accumulation, and so on, Core Value Differentiation can serve as a cultural blueprint for teams to organize around.
4. Don’t Assume Your AI Readiness — Measure It
Look no further than your personal world to see just how much AI has shifted from trend to day-to-day operating reality. AI investments are up, leadership across the globe is commitment to doing more with AI, and teams everywhere are racing to come up to speed on the latest tools and technologies.
But true AI readiness goes far beyond a “yes, we want to leverage AI.” It requires an intentional understanding of the foundation — the information architecture — that powers AI, as well as the cultural components that inform its success (or lack thereof).
The modern metric of AI Preparedness enables businesses and teams to assess how ready they truly are to harness the potential of AI, without compromising agility, ethics, or performance. This metric evaluates multiple dimensions of readiness including: the quality and accessibility of data, the maturity of infrastructure, and the adaptability and mindset of teams. Helping leaders identify both the accelerators and friction points that will impact the AI journey.
AI Preparedness doesn’t just tell you if you’re ready. It shows you where you’re ready, and where foundational work is still needed.
5. Track Your Innovation Follow-Through
Ideas can be the easy part. Execution is where we see organizations getting stuck. The difference between a future proofed organization and one that falls behind often comes down to one thing: follow-through.
Our latest metric, Innovation Pipeline Conversion, enables teams to measure how effectively and efficiently ideas transition from mere conception to value-generating execution. It tracks the movement of innovation from concept to execution, highlighting what’s being prioritized, what’s stalling, and what’s actually delivering impact.
As organizations double down on innovation, the concept of a healthy “innovation pipeline” becomes critical for assessing progress. Pipeline conversion for innovation is quite similar to pipeline conversion for Sales, except “ideas” take the place of opportunities. And, for any given period, the question becomes how many ideas from our team end up being fully executed?
This metric exposes where promising ideas lose steam — whether due to resource misalignment, lack of executive sponsorship, unclear ownership, or process breakdowns — and ensures the innovation engine is built to deliver, not just imagine.
Future proofing in business is not simply about reaching the next point faster. Rather, it’s about seeing further ahead. With the right metrics in place, organizations can cut through noise, uncover what’s really moving the business, and act with clarity in the face of complexity. The five metrics outlined here are more than performance indicators; they’re decision accelerators, risk mitigators, and growth enablers.
At SQA Group, we help organizations go beyond legacy reporting to uncover the modern metrics that matter most. Ready to rethink how you measure success — and unlock the insights that drive what’s next? Learn more about our award-winning Metrics Finder offering by clicking here.