Methods and systems for evaluation of business performance

• US 20040068431A1
• Filed: 10/03/2003
• Published: 04/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Gartner, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Gartner, Inc.
• Inventors: Smith, Michael W., Apfel, Audrey, Bergstrom, Ken
• Application Number:
  US10/678,476
• Publication Number:
  US 20040068431A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063112 Skill-based matching of a person or a group to a task
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06375 Prediction of business process outcome or impact based on a proposed change
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06393 Score-carding, benchmarking or key performance indicator [KPI] analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06398 Performance of employee with respect to a job function
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0203 Market surveys; Market polls

Abstract

Methods and systems for evaluation of business performance are provided. All actionable activities of a business are divided into a plurality of business aspects. A plurality of aggregate measures is then established for each business aspect. Each of the aggregate measures comprises a set of related actionable activities for a respective business aspect. A plurality of prime measures is established for each aggregate measure. Each of the prime measures quantifies one or more actionable activities from the set of related actionable activities. A value of at least one of the prime measures may be calculated to provide an indication of business performance. In addition, the value of each aggregate measure may be calculated by multiplying the values of each of the prime measures for that aggregate measure together to provide an indication of business performance. Multiplying the values of the aggregate measures together provides an indication of overall business performance.

Claims

1. A method for evaluation of business performance, comprising:

dividing actionable activities of a business into a plurality of business aspects;

establishing a plurality of aggregate measures for each business aspect, each of said aggregate measures comprising a set of related actionable activities for a respective business aspect;

establishing a plurality of prime measures for each aggregate measure, each of said prime measures quantifying one or more actionable activities from said set of related actionable activities; and

calculating a value of at least one of said prime measures to provide an indication of said business performance.

2. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

calculating values of each of said prime measures for at least one of said aggregate measures; and

calculating a value of at least one aggregate measure by multiplying said values of each of the prime measures for that aggregate measure together to provide an indication of business performance.

3. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

calculating values of each of said prime measures for each of said aggregate measures; and

calculating a value of each aggregate measure by multiplying said values of each of the prime measures for that aggregate measure together to provide an indication of overall business performance.

4. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein:

each prime measure provides a basis to determine an impact of a business project or process on overall business performance.

5. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein:

said aggregate measures and said prime measures collectively comprise leading indicators of financial performance.

6. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of prime measures is collectively exhaustive of the actionable activities of the business; and

each prime measures is exclusive of all other prime measures.

7. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

selecting a subset of said plurality of prime measures for each respective aggregate measure which best defines that aggregate measure for said business; and

calculating a value of at least one of said prime measures from at least one of said selected subsets to provide an indication of said business performance.

8. A method in accordance with claim 7, wherein:

said selected subset of prime measures for each aggregate measure comprises between five and nine prime measures.

9. A method in accordance with claim 7, wherein:

said selected subset of prime measures for each aggregate measure comprises seven prime measures.

10. A method in accordance with claim 7, further comprising:

adding at least one industry standard prime measure to at least one of said selected subsets of prime measures.

11. A method in accordance with claim 7, further comprising:

customizing at least one of said prime measures in at least one of said selected subsets to better define at least one of said aggregate measure for said business.

12. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein:

said plurality of business aspects comprises at least a demand management aspect, a supply management aspect, and a support services aspect.

13. A method in accordance with claim 12, wherein:

the plurality of aggregate measures established for the for the demand manage aspect comprises at least a market responsiveness aggregate measure, a sales effectiveness aggregate measure, and a product development effectiveness aggregate measure;

the plurality of aggregate measures established for the supply management aspect comprises at least a customer responsiveness aggregate measure, a supplier effectiveness aggregate measure, and an operational efficiency aggregate measure; and

the plurality of aggregate measures established for the support services aspect comprises at least a human resources responsiveness aggregate measure, an information technology responsiveness aggregate measure, and a finance and regulatory responsiveness aggregate measure.

14. A method in accordance with claim 13, wherein:

said plurality of prime measures established for said market responsiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

target market index, market coverage index, market share index, opportunity/threat index, product portfolio index, channel profitability index, and configurability index;

said plurality of prime measures established for said sales effectiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

sales opportunity index, sales cycle index, sales close index, sales price index, cost of sales index, forecast accuracy, and customer retention index;

said plurality of prime measures established for said product development effectiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

new products index, feature function index, time to market index, and research and development success index;

said plurality of prime measures established for said customer responsiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

on-time delivery, order fill rate, material quality, service accuracy, service performance, customer care performance, agreement effectiveness, and transformation ratio;

said plurality of prime measures established for said supplier effectiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

supplier on-time delivery, supplier order fill rate, supplier material quality, supplier service accuracy, supplier service performance, supplier care performance, supplier agreement effectiveness, and supplier transformation ratio;

said plurality of prime measures established for said operational efficiency aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

cash-to-cash cycle time, conversion cost, asset utilization, and sigma value;

said plurality of prime measures established for said human resources responsiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

recruitment effectiveness index, benefits administration index, skills inventory index, employee training index, human resources advisory index, and human resources total cost index;

said plurality of prime measures established for said information technology responsiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

systems performance, IT support performance, partnership ratio, service level effectiveness, new projects index, and IT total cost index; and

said plurality of prime measures established for said finance and regulatory responsiveness aggregate measure comprises at least the following prime measures;

compliance index, accuracy index, advisory index, and cost of service index.

15. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the target market index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said market coverage index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, and said new products index;

a change in the market coverage index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said product portfolio index, said sales opportunity index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said sales price index, said cost of sales index, said forecast accuracy index, said on-time delivery, and said service accuracy;

a change in the market share index causes a change in at least one of said opportunity/threat index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, and said new products index;

a change in the opportunity/threat index causes a change in at least one of said target market index, said market share index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, and said new products index;

a change in the product portfolio index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, and said new products index;

a change in said channel profitability index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said configurability index, said market coverage index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, and said cost of sales index; and

a change in said configurability index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cost of sales index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, and said sigma value.

16. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the sales opportunity index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said sales price index, and said forecast accuracy index;

a change in the sales cycle index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said product portfolio index, said sales close index, and said forecast accuracy index;

a change in the sales close index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, and said forecast accuracy index;

a change in the sales price index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, and said cost of sales index;

a change in the cost of sales index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, and said sales price index;

a change in the forecast accuracy causes a change in at least one of said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization; and

a change in the customer retention index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said sales price index, and said cost of sales index.

17. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the new products index causes a change in at least one of said target market index, said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said configurability index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, and said sales close index;

a change in the feature function index causes a change in at least one of said target market index, said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said configurability index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said conversion cost index, and said asset utilization;

a change in the time to market index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said configurability index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, and said sales close index; and

a change in the research and development success index causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said opportunity/threat index, said configurability index, said product portfolio index, said sales cycle index, and said sales close index.

18. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the on-time delivery causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said configurability index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the order fill rate causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said configurability index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the material quality causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said configurability index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the service accuracy causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said configurability index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the service performance causes a change in at least one of said agreement effectiveness, and said transformation ratio;

a change in the customer care performance causes a change in at least one of said agreement effectiveness, said transformation ratio, and said service performance;

a change in the agreement effectiveness causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization; and

a change in the transformation ratio causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization.

19. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the supplier on-time delivery causes a change in at least one of said time to market index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the supplier order fill rate causes a change in at least one of said market share, said sales cycle, said sales close, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the supplier material quality causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the supplier service accuracy causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the supplier service performance causes a change in at least one of said supplier care performance, said supplier agreement effectiveness, and said supplier transformation ratio;

a change in the supplier care performance causes a change in at least one of said supplier agreement effectiveness, said supplier transformation ratio, and said supplier service performance;

a change in the supplier agreement effectiveness causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization; and

a change in the supplier transformation ratio causes a change in at least one of said market share index, said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization.

20. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the cash-to-cash cycle time causes a change in at least one of said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the conversion cost causes a change in at least one of said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, and said asset utilization;

a change in the asset utilization causes a change in at least one of said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, and said conversion cost; and

a change in the sigma value causes a change in at least one of said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization.

21. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the recruitment effectiveness index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the benefits administration index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the skills inventory index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the employee training index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, said asset utilization, and said recruitment effectiveness;

a change in the human resources advisory index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization; and

a change in the human resources total cost index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization.

22. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the systems performance causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the IT support performance causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the partnership ratio causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the service level effectiveness causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the new projects index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization; and

a change in the IT total cost index causes a change in at least one of said sales cycle index, said sales close index, said forecast accuracy index, said time to market index, said research and development success index, said on-time delivery, said order fill rate, said material quality, said service accuracy, said supplier on-time delivery, said supplier order fill rate, said supplier material quality, said supplier service accuracy, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization.

23. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein:

a change in the compliance index causes a change in at least one of said time to market index, said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the accuracy index causes a change in at least one of said cash-to-cash cycle time, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization;

a change in the advisory index causes a change in at least one of said time to market index, said conversion cost, and said asset utilization; and

a change in the cost of service index causes a change in at least one of said conversion cost and said asset utilization.

24. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said target market index is calculated by:

selecting appropriate target market industries based on current product and/or service offerings and planned and budgeted offerings of the business over a future twelve month period using International Standard Industrial Classification codes;

obtaining a relative market size by summing revenue of selected target market industries and dividing the sum by normalized industry revenue; and

multiplying relative market size by relative market growth rate plus one, wherein the relative market growth rate plus one is a weighted average growth rate of all target market industries.

25. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said market coverage index is calculated by:

selecting appropriate target market industries based on current product and/or service offerings of the business using International Standard Industrial Classification codes; and

dividing a number of countries in which the business has sold its products or services by a total number of countries where revenue exists for the target market industries selected.

26. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said market share index is calculated by:

selecting appropriate target market industries based on current product and/or service offerings of the business using International Standard Industrial Classification codes; and

dividing revenue of the products and/or services offered by the business by total revenue of the selected target market industries.

27. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said opportunity/threat index is calculated by:

selecting appropriate target market industries based on current product and/or service offerings and planned and budgeted offerings of the business over a future twelve month period using International Standard Industrial Classification codes; and

computing a market share index for each top five competitor of said business in the selected target market industries by dividing total revenue of each competitor by total revenue of target market industries for each competitor; and

adding the market share indexes for the top five competitors.

28. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said product portfolio index is calculated by:

creating a grid starting with a point 0,0 in a lower left corner with gross margin figures labeled on a horizontal axis and growth rate figures labeled on a vertical axis;

determining a current product or service of said business with a highest growth rate in annual revenue;

dividing the growth rate of said product or service with said highest growth rate by two to provide a midpoint of said vertical axis;

determining a current product or service with a highest gross margin in absolute dollar terms;

dividing the dollar gross margin figure of said product or service with said highest gross margin by two to provide a midpoint of said horizontal axis;

extending the respective midpoints of said horizontal and vertical axis to define four quadrants of said grid;

plotting all products and/or services currently offered by the business based on respective growth rates and gross margins in dollar terms on said grid; and

dividing the total revenue of the products and services in all quadrants except the lower left quadrant by the total revenue of the business.

29. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said configurability index is calculated by:

determining total revenue generated from options offered on products and services offered by the business during a previous twelve month period; and

dividing the total revenue generated from said options by total revenue of said business;

wherein an option is defined as a feature or function that is purchased as part of a basic product or service and that is not required for the basic product or service to function.

30. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said feature function index is calculated by one of:

for businesses selling a product, dividing a number of new component items listed on a bill-of-materials for products released to market during a previous 12 month period by a total number of component items on said bill-of-materials;

or

for businesses selling a service, dividing a number of new skill sets required on a bill-of-services for new service offerings released to market during a previous 12 month period by a total number of skill sets required on said bill-of-services.

31. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said service performance is calculated by one of:

for a continuous request service, dividing a percentage of hours said service is available to a customer of said business and performing adequately by total hours said service is expected to be available for the customer;

or

for a discrete request service, dividing a number of customer requests that are adequately responded to and completed by a total number of requests made by the customer during standard hours of operation.

32. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said customer care performance is calculated by:

dividing a number of customer care requests which meet predefined response and resolution criteria by the total number of customer care requests received during standard hours of operation of said business.

33. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said agreement effectiveness is calculated by:

dividing a total number of existing customers with a 90% or better service level agreement satisfaction by the total number of existing customers, said satisfaction being based on survey questions relating to said service level agreement.

34. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said transformation ratio is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of existing customer contracts and engagements and planned contracts and engagements for a future 12 month period, for which goals and benefits are projected in terms of business metrics and for which a roles and responsibilities matrix exists that holds both the business and customer responsible for achieving the projected benefits, by (ii) a total number of existing customer contracts and engagements.

35. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said supplier service performance is calculated by one of:

for a continuous request service of said supplier, dividing a percentage of hours said service is available to said business and performing adequately by total hours said service is expected to be available for the business;

or

for a discrete request service of said supplier, dividing a number of requests from said business that are adequately responded to and completed by a total number of requests made by the business during standard hours of operation.

36. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said supplier care performance is calculated by:

dividing a number of supplier care requests meeting predetermined response and resolution criteria by the total number of supplier care requests made by the business during standard hours of operation.

37. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said supplier agreement effectiveness is calculated by:

dividing a total number of existing service providers with a 90% or better service level agreement satisfaction by the total number of existing service providers, said satisfaction being based on survey questions relating to said service level agreement.

38. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said supplier transformation ratio is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of existing supplier contracts and engagements and planned contracts and engagements for a future 12 month period, for which goals and benefits are projected in terms of business metrics and for which a roles and responsibilities matrix exists that holds both the business and the supplier responsible for achieving the projected benefits, by (ii) a total number of existing supplier contracts and engagements.

39. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said recruitment effectiveness index is calculated by:

multiplying average relative recruitment time by relative recruitment cost for each employee hired during a previous 12 month period;

wherein;

said relative recruitment time is calculated by subtracting from 1 a quotient provided by a length of time, measured in days, between recruitment approval and hire date divided by 365; and

said relative recruitment cost is calculated by subtracting from 1 a quotient provided by total recruitment costs divided by committed first year compensation for said hired employees.

40. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said skills inventory index is calculated by:

dividing a total number of skills filled by existing employees by a total number of skills required by a business to complete all of said actionable activities.

41. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said employee training index is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of 8-hour working days each employee has spent in training sponsored by said business during a previous 12 month period by (ii) a product of 225 multiplied by a number of full time equivalent employee positions.

42. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said human resources advisory index is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of existing human resources projects and projects planned for a future 12 month period, for which goals and benefits are projected in terms of business metrics and for which a roles and responsibilities matrix exists that holds both a human resources department and other business functions responsible for achieving the projected benefits, by (ii) a total number of planned strategic initiatives at a corporate level.

43. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said system performance is calculated by:

dividing an amount of hours all systems are available to the business and performing adequately by total hours said systems are expected to be available.

44. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said IT support performance is calculated by:

dividing a number of IT support requests meeting predetermined response and resolution criteria by a total number of IT support requests received during standard hours of operation.

45. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said partnership ratio is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of existing IT projects and projects planned for a future 12 month period, for which goals and benefits are projected in terms of business metrics and for which a roles and responsibilities matrix exists that holds both an IT department and other business functions responsible for achieving the projected benefits, by (ii) a total number of IT projects.

46. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said service level effectiveness is calculated by:

dividing a total number of surveyed users with 90% or better service level effectiveness by a total number of surveyed users.

47. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said new projects index is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of projects that were (a) undertaken within a previous 12 month period and (b) that are currently underway, that operated or are operating on or below budget, at or ahead of schedule, and delivering at least a business value expected from an initial business case, by (ii) a total number of projects, including projects that were undertaken within said previous twelve month period and projects that are currently underway.

48. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said compliance index is calculated by:

calendaring by month a total number of legal and regulatory filings and transactions required to conduct normal business operations; and

subtracting from 1 a quotient provided by a number of extensions, late, missed or incorrect filings and transactions for a previous 12 month period divided by said total for said 12 month period.

49. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said accuracy index is calculated by:

calendaring by month a total number of documents and reports requested from all internal business operations; and

subtracting from 1 a quotient provided by a number of declined requests, missed deadlines or adjustments necessary following delivery of the document or report divided by said total number requested.

50. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said advisory index is calculated by:

dividing (i) a total number of existing finance and/or regulatory projects and projects planned for a future 12 month period, for which goals and benefits are projected in terms of business metrics and for which a roles and responsibilities matrix exists that holds both a finance and regulatory department and other business functions responsible for achieving the projected benefits, by (ii) a total number of planned strategic initiatives at a corporate level.

51. A method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising:

converting a non-index based prime measure into an index-based prime measure by subtracting from 1 a quotient provided by a value of said non-index based prime measure divided by an upper bound of said non-index based prime measure.

52. A method in accordance with claim 51, wherein:

said non-index based prime measure comprises said sales cycle index;

said sales cycle index is expressed by a number of days; and

said upper bound comprises approximately 365 days.

53. A method in accordance with claim 51, wherein:

said non-index based prime measure comprises said time to market index;

said time to market index is expressed by a number of days; and

said upper bound comprises approximately 730 days.

55. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

applying at least one of said prime measures to at least one of return on investment analysis, linking vision to action, IT to business alignment, external reporting, strategic alliances, due diligence, incentive compensation plans, business activity monitoring, monitoring service level agreements, and supplier ratings.

56. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

supporting a strategic planning method of said business using at least one of said prime measures.

57. A method in accordance with claim 56, wherein:

said strategic planning method comprises a balanced scorecard method.

58. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

externally reporting at least one of said calculated prime measures.

59. A computerized system configured to implement the method of claim 1.

54. A method in accordance with 51, wherein:

said non-index based prime measure comprises said cash-to-cash cycle time;

said cash-to-cash cycle time is expressed by a number of days; and

said upper bound comprises approximately 180 days.

60. A system for evaluation of business performance, comprising:

a database for storing;

(i) a plurality of business aspects, each of which represents a portion of actionable activities of a business;

(ii) a plurality of aggregate measures for each business aspect, each of said aggregate measures comprising a set of related actionable activities for a respective business aspect; and

(iii) a plurality of prime measures for each aggregate measure, each of said prime measures quantifying one or more actionable activities from said set of related actionable activities;

a user interface for selecting a subset of said plurality of prime measures for each respective aggregate measure which best defines that aggregate measure for said business; and

a processor for calculating a value of at least one of said prime measures from at least one of said selected subsets to provide an indication of said business performance.