Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): 10 Definitions
“A performance measure that is indicative of the organization’s performance within a specific area.” (William A Giovinazzo, “Internet-Enabled Business Intelligence”, 2002)
“A measurement of business operations that compares a value at a specified point in time to a predetermined goal and, optionally, determines a trend direction. Often, a KPI is displayed using a graphical image such as a stoplight or a gauge using colors and relative indicators according to predetermined business rules.” (Reed Jacobsen & Stacia Misner, “Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services Step by Step”, 2006)
“A business calculation (metric) with associated target values or ranges that allows macro level insights into the business process to manage profitability and monitor strategic impact.” (DAMA International, “The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management”, 2011)
“In business intelligence, refers to quantifiable measurements (numeric or scale-based) that assess a company’s effectiveness or success in reaching strategic and operational goals. Examples of KPI are product turnovers, sales by promotion, sales by employee, earnings per share, etc.” (Carlos Coronel et al, “Database Systems: Design, Implementation, and Management” 9th Ed, 2011)
“Quantitative performance measures that define the critical success factors of an organization, help the organization measure progress toward its goals and objectives, and identify areas for organizational performance and improvement.” (Joan C Dessinger, “Fundamentals of Performance Improvement” 3rd Ed., 2012)
“A high-level measurement meant to indicate how well an individual or group is performing a set of activities that is considered critical to the overall success of an endeavor.” (Project Management Institute, “Navigating Complexity: A Practice Guide”, 2014)
“Quantitative and measurable statement used to judge whether or not a goal has been reached; linked to a measurement and to the means of evaluation.” (Gilbert Raymond & Philippe Desfray, “Modeling Enterprise Architecture with TOGAF”, 2014)
“A set of metrics directly linked to the desired corporate objective (e.g., shareholder value) and explicitly integrated into the firm’s incentive compensation system.” (Thomas C Wilson, “Value and Capital Management”, 2015)
“A key performance indicator (KPI) is a high-level measure of system output, traffic or other usage, simplified for gathering and review on a weekly, monthly or quarterly basis.” (Gartner)
“A predefined measure that is used to track performance of a strategic goal, objective, plan, initiative, or business process. A KPI is evaluated against a target. An explicit and measurable value taken directly from a data source. Key performance indicators (KPIs) are used to measure performance in a specific area, for example, revenue per customer.” (Microsoft)
For more definitions on “Key Performance Indicators” see [SQL Troubles]
Originally published at http://sql-troubles.blogspot.com.
