Study the tools that help a business to direct its efforts to achieve its strategic goals with this free online course.

Every organisation sets out to create value for its customers and shareholders. Management defines this goal in its mission statement and writes out strategic objectives to ensure the overall purpose of the business is attained. The essential steps to achieving the strategic objectives are the critical success factors (CSF); they are monitored using performance measures at organisational, process output, and in-process levels so that management can gauge progress towards goals and drive improvement.

The course will begin with a history of performance management in business from the fifteenth century to the present and discuss several different models. Modern approaches to management focus on a mix of measures covering different aspects of performance. You will learn performance measures that are linked to a strategic objective. Each measure is clearly and simply defined so that data can be collected consistently and performance interpreted easily. Next, you will study the methods of reporting that will best present progress towards goals, and also support analysis to find the root cause of problems, then identify and evaluate possible solutions.

Business performance management is concerned with devising corrective action when necessary and you will learn that improvement is best done as a team exercise because a mix of experience and thinking styles will lead to better solutions. The 'best' solutions to performance problems are those which are practical and that deliver benefits for all stakeholders - particularly customers. The course contains practical exercises and business scenarios so you can immediately apply the tools and lessons learned. It will benefit managers, entrepreneurs and those with an interest in improving performance in their organisations so register, enrol and start today!