Strategy-to-KPI Alignment
Align your supply chain around the right trade-offs — so teams stop debating silo KPIs and start executing one plan.
Many supply chains aren’t “broken” — they’re misaligned. Sales pushes service, Finance pushes cash, Operations pushes cost, and Planning gets stuck mediating. I help leadership teams align on the right priorities using the Service–Cash–Cost triangle, then translate that strategy into a measurable KPI set and operating rhythm that holds under pressure.
Three capabilities that align execution
Clear strategy becomes real only when it’s measurable, repeatable, and connected to day-to-day decisions.
1) Trade-off Clarity (Service–Cash–Cost)
- Define the target service proposition (speed, availability, reliability)
- Quantify cash and cost implications of service choices
- Make constraints visible: capacity, lead times, network limits
- Create a shared “decision lens” used across functions
2) KPI Hierarchy & Decision Accountability
- Define KPI hierarchy: primary vs supporting metrics
- Translate strategy into targets and “guardrails”
- Decision logs: what changed, why, owner, due date
- Stop local optimization and metric gaming
3) Operating Rhythm that Holds Under Pressure
- Cadence: weekly execution + monthly leadership decision forum
- Scenario planning: service/cash/cost impact by option
- Exception-based management: focus on what changed
- Link strategy decisions to planning & execution
A simple alignment system (not a slide deck)
Strategy alignment works when it becomes a repeatable decision process tied to measurable outcomes.
Clarify the service proposition
What the business promises customers: speed, availability, reliability, and where it competes.
Map the trade-offs
Make Service–Cash–Cost trade-offs explicit using current data and constraints.
Set KPI hierarchy & guardrails
Define primary metrics and the “do not break” limits (inventory, cost-to-serve, expedites).
Create decision templates
Options, impact, recommendation, owner — so decisions stick beyond the meeting.
Build a rhythm
Weekly exceptions + monthly leadership decisions, linked to planning and execution.
Make it repeatable
Lightweight dashboards, a decision log, and a meeting cadence the team can maintain.
What you get (and what typically gets fixed)
Outputs are practical and usable — designed to reduce friction and create measurable execution alignment.
Typical deliverables
- Service–Cash–Cost alignment workshop (trade-off decisions documented)
- KPI hierarchy + scorecard (primary vs supporting metrics + targets)
- Cost-to-serve / service impact view (what service level costs)
- Decision log (owner, due date, rationale, follow-through)
- Scenario templates (options + impacts + recommendation)
- Cadence design (weekly exception review + monthly leadership decision forum)
Common problems I solve
- Functions optimize their own KPIs (local optimization)
- Meetings create debate but not decisions
- Targets conflict (service promises without cash/cost reality)
- Too much firefighting and expediting
- Leaders disagree on priorities, so teams stall
- No “one plan” that holds across functions
- Trade-offs are made informally with no accountability
What improves when priorities are aligned
Alignment reduces noise and accelerates execution — because everyone uses the same decision lens.
Ready to align your supply chain priorities?
If your teams are debating KPIs instead of executing one plan, let’s talk. I can support as interim help to align priorities, set a usable scorecard, and create a repeatable decision rhythm.