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Business performance management

Practical resources and support to help you improve the performance of your organisation. Use our selection of guides, tools, books and articles to find more information on all aspects of managing business performance.
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Latest on performance management

Read our latest features and articles on business performance management.
How to track your invoices and debtors effectively
  • Article
  • 27 Sep 2023
41% of finance leaders identify a lack of visibility over their accounts receivables as their company’s top challenge in better managing cash flow (Bottomline).
PIE audit market dynamics under the spotlight
  • Article
  • 15 Aug 2023
Amid policymaker concerns about the resilience of the market, lowering existing barriers to entry is key, alongside audit committees and shareholders being more open to PIEs using a broader field of players.
Investors remain cautious – but have money to spend
  • Article
  • 30 May 2023
Differentiation, IP, barriers to entry, market outlook and resilience are just some of the issues investors will want the lowdown on for companies seeking equity investment.
Service performance reporting in the public sector
  • Article
  • 09 Nov 2022
In New Zealand, a shift away from the terminology of inputs, outputs and outcomes to allow public sector organisations to choose how to tell their service performance stories is boosting accountability.
Taking an integrated approach to sustainability
  • Article
  • 12 Jan 2022
The impact of digitisation, water scarcity and climate change on Yara, a global fertiliser company, was the trigger for a review of its key performance indicators.
Climate risk is an “inescapable” part of chartered accountants’ remit
  • Article
  • 01 Nov 2021
For those looking to future-proof their career, being able to embed climate change and wider sustainability issues into business strategy and planning, risk management, procurement and performance management is essential.
COVID drives huge variations in business performance
  • Article
  • 19 May 2021
The UK economy can be divided into three segments, depending on how businesses have coped with the pandemic, as Metro Bank’s local director in Cambridge explains.
Exclusive What is open book management?
  • Article
  • 17 May 2021
We look at the management style that gives everyone in the business a say
Read more

Topics in depth

Business men talking about shop layout retail
Balanced scorecard
  • Hub page
Use our selection of books, articles, links and guides to find more information and guidance on the balanced scorecard.
Green yellow and red peppers at supermarket
Benchmarking
  • Hub page
Use our selection of books, articles, links and guides to find more information and guidance on using benchmarking.
Designer in studio small business
BPM tools, templates and case studies
  • Hub page
Tools, templates and case studies to help you manage your business's performance.
Smiling business women working together on contract documents
KPIs
  • Hub page
Gain insights and inform decision-making with these essential business tools.
Lorry driving down road
Purchasing and supply chain management
  • Hub page
Our resources can help you with finding and managing suppliers, purchasing, managing stock and planning for supply chain disruption.
Apple pay iphone retail shopping
Sales and marketing
  • Hub page
Increase your sales and brand impact.

Reports

Exclusive Business Ecosystems: A Guide
  • Report
  • 2021
The term ecosystem is regularly bandied about in business conversations. But what does it mean and is it a useful metaphor for improving business performance?
Performance measurement and target setting
  • Report
  • 2020
  • PDF (787kb)
This academic case study explores the role of a strategic performance measurement system in balancing stability and flexibility in a multi-divisional organisation.
Multi-dimensional performance frameworks and strategic investment decisions
  • Report
  • 2018
  • PDF (506kb)
In recent years, much attention has been paid to innovations in organisational performance management systems that balance financial and non-financial dimensions. This new academic research shows there is much potential for organisations to develop their formal strategic investment decision-making policies, guidance and procedures. This will allow for the development and resolution of more successful strategic projects.
BPM report: working with tensions
  • Thought leadership report
  • 2018
  • PDF (1,070kb)
Business Performance Management Report 2 -- working with tensions
Finance business partnering - a guide
  • Thought leadership report
  • 2018
  • PDF (2,833kb)
This report provides practical advice for those considering business partnering initiatives and those looking to improve their approach.
Business Performance Management: When not to measure
  • Report
  • 2017
  • PDF (1,936kb)
This report sets out a series of ways in which we can better understand performance management and control, extending beyond the naturally dominant themes of measurement and key performance indicators (KPIs). Sometimes we may have to confront, and accept, that not everything relevant can be measured
Finding your organisation's critical success factors
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 2015
In this practical workshop guide, David Parmenter explains how to identify the CSFs in your organisation.
Exclusive Re engineering the planning system
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 2015
Annual planning as businesses use it today is one of the greatest mistakes organisations have made since 1494.
More reports

Webinars

Maximising trade efficiency: customs warehousing and special procedures
  • Webinar
  • 14 Nov 2024
In this webinar, the British Chamber of Commerce explores the benefits of customs warehousing, as well as inward and outward processing, which can help UK importers and exporters reduce costs and improve cash flow.
Supply chain cyber security series
  • Webinar
  • 22 Sep 2022
Your business is only as secure as its weakest link. Watch this series to understand and manage supply chain cyber security risk.
How to increase budgetary impact without spending more money
  • Webinar
  • 16 Nov 2021
This webinar will focus on some of the key procurement practices and mindsets essential for getting maximum value and reliability from your suppliers.
Modern Slavery Act 2015 – how to spot supply chain risk
  • Webinar
  • 07 Oct 2021
This webinar considers anticipated changes to the Modern Slavery Act and the potential implications for business and supply chain compliance and transparency.
Data analytics live Q&A: Data strategies and case applications in business
  • Webinar
  • 25 Aug 2021
In this March 2020 webinar bestselling author and strategic advisor, Bernard Marr, answers your questions on strategy, business performance and the intelligent use of data in business.
It’s time for chartered accountants to save the world
  • Video
  • 30 Apr 2021
Chartered accountants must understand their unique role in making a sustainable future happen, argues Peter Bakker, CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.
More webinars

eBooks

The ICAEW Library & Information Service provides full text access to a selection of key business and reference eBooks from leading publishers. eBooks are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users. If you are unable to access an eBook, please see our Help and support advice or contact library@icaew.com.

Exclusive Data visualization with Excel dashboards and reports
  • eBook
  • 2021
  • Dick Kusleika
  • Wiley
Large corporations like IBM and Oracle are using Excel dashboards and reports as a Business Intelligence tool, and many other smaller businesses are looking to these tools in order to cut costs for budgetary reasons.
Exclusive Analytics and big data for accountants
  • eBook
  • 2020
  • Jim Lindell
  • Wiley
This book will help accountants and financial managers better understand big data and analytics, including its history and current trends. It dives into the platforms and operating tools that will help you measure program impacts and ROI, visualize data and business processes, and uncover the relationship between key performance indicators.
Exclusive Key performance indicators: developing, implementing and using winning KPIs
  • eBook
  • 2020
  • David Parmenter
  • Wiley
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) help define and measure the organizational goals which are fundamental to an organization's current and future success. This book provides a model for simplifying the complex areas of KPIs while helping organizations avoid common mistakes and hazards.
Exclusive M is for (data) monkey: the Excel Pro's definitive guide to Power Query
  • eBook
  • 2015
  • Ken Puls, Miguel Escobar
  • Holy Macro! Books
Power Query is one component of the Power BI (Business Intelligence) product from Microsoft, and "M" is the name of the programming language created by it. This book shows how to use the Power Query tool to get difficult data sets into both Excel and Power Pivot, and is solely devoted to Power Query dashboarding and reporting.
Exclusive Cost accounting for dummies
  • eBook
  • 2013
  • Kenneth W. Boyd
  • John Wiley & Sons
This book tracks to a typical cost accounting course and provides in-depth explanations and reviews of the essential concepts you'll encounter in cost accounting.
Exclusive Mapping workflows and managing knowledge: capturing formal and tacit knowledge to improve performance
  • eBook
  • 2012
  • John L. Kmetz
  • Business Expert Press
Knowledge management for managers and supervisors.
Exclusive Lean Six Sigma for dummies
  • eBook
  • 2012
  • John Morgan, Martin Brenig-Jones
  • John Wiley and Sons
A guide to the Lean Six Sigma management model.
Exclusive Improving business performance with lean
  • eBook
  • 2012
  • James R. Bradley
  • Business Expert Press
Re-organising business processes for maximum efficiency.
Terms of use

You are permitted to access, download, copy, or print out content from eBooks for your own research or study only, subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.

More eBooks

Business press

The ICAEW Library provides access to leading business, finance and management journals. These journals are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users subject to suppliers' terms of use.
Exclusive Should AI make layoff decisions?
  • Article
  • 01 Jul 2023
  • Dave Zielinksi
Research shows more HR leaders are using algorithms to recommend workforce reductions based on employee performance. Typical algorithms might evaluate skills data, performance data, work status data (e.g., full-time, part-time or contractor), and attendance data. But researchers say HR professionals also need to have a good understanding of performance aspects that algorithms might miss.
Exclusive Traditional vs contemporary management accounting practices
  • Article
  • 01 Jun 2023
  • Lu Jiao, Kevin Baird, Abubakar Nuraddeen Nuhu
Results of a survey examining the direct and moderated effects of traditional and contemporary management accounting practices on organizational performance and competitive advantage. The survey investigated the effectiveness of several practices, including: capital budgeting, standard costing, activity-based management, balanced scorecard and strategic cost management.
Exclusive Dashboards: From performance art to decision support
  • Article
  • 01 May 2023
  • Neil Hoyne, David Reibstein, Koen Pauwels
Dashboards are a common tool for managers to monitor a company's performance. But what is the real use of these dashboards? It may be slightly astonishing that Google Chief Measurement Strategist Neil Hoyne is no fan of dashboards, but he believes they can be toxic when taken out of context. In this interview, he explains his scepticism of monitoring the same KPIs quarter after quarter and suggests different ways to make dashboards more strategically useful to companies.
Exclusive Nurturing the UK's innovation ecosystem
  • Article
  • 07 Feb 2023
  • Sebastian Klovig Skelton
Andrew Roughan, CEO of technology innovation hub Plexal, discusses how tech startups collaborate with the UK government to transform public services, the barriers to entry, and how the process can be improved.
Exclusive Scale up smarter
  • Article
  • 01 Jan 2023
  • Dave Harutian
A company's execution strategy should adapt to the circumstances. Here's how to grow your business today with an eye toward tomorrow.
Exclusive SPC software: Enables real-time process management
  • Article
  • 01 Nov 2022
  • Paul Keller
A statistical process control (SPC) control chart is a key process management tool, providing indication if a manufacturing process is predictable and consistently capable of meeting requirements. The article explains how SPC software can be used to construct and update the control chart instantaneously.
More articles

Articles and books in the ICAEW Library collection

The collection of the ICAEW Library & Information Service includes a range of articles, books and reports on business performance management. Use the links below to see what we have available to request in our Library catalogue (Libcat).
Management and cost accounting
  • Library book
  • 2024
  • C.Drury
  • Cengage Learning EMEA
Explains the fundamentals of management and cost accounting, including chapters covering activity-based costing, budgeting, sustainability and data analytics. The target audience is primarily undergraduate students who are pursuing a management accounting course, or students who are preparing for the management and cost accounting examinations of professional accountancy bodies.
Cost accounting: a managerial emphasis
  • Library book
  • 2018
  • C.T. Hongren
  • Pearson
This book focuses on how cost accounting helps managers make better decisions, with chapters on topics including activity-based costing, activity-based management, inventory costing, balanced scorecard, cost management, transfer pricing and performance measurement.
SWOT analysis: a guide to SWOT for business studies students
  • Library book
  • 2016
  • A. Sarsby
  • Spectaris
A short guide to SWOT analysis as a strategy tool, aimed at students of business studies. It includes worked examples, case studies, and practical tips.
Preparing your business for sale
  • Library book
  • 2016
  • Indicator FL Memo
  • Indicator FL Memo
Appendices include: SWOT analysis; SWOT chart; customer credit control checklist; P/E factors and company valuation data; election for entrepreneurs' relief to apply to qualifying corporate bonds; election for incorporation relief not to apply; non-disclosure agreement for a contractor; business model canvas; and due diligence checklist of questions.
Measurement madness: recognising and avoiding the pitfalls of performance management
  • Library book
  • 2014
  • D.Gray
  • John Wiley & Sons
This book should help you to recognise, correct and even avoid common performance measurement pitfalls.
Performance management
  • Library book
  • 2014
  • L. Ashdown
  • Kogan Page
This book explores the key aspects of managing performance and identifies how performance management can be used to support organisations in achievement of their goals.

To find out how you can borrow books from the Library please see our guide to borrowing books.

You can obtain copies of articles or extracts of books and reports through our document supply service.

External resources

Topic overview: SWOT analysis
  • Website
  • Atom Content Marketing
A short guide to SWOT analysis - a tool for identifying the strengths and weaknesses of your business, as well as the opportunities and threats it faces.
International Society for Performance Improvement
  • Website
  • ISPI
The ISPI website includes a wealth of information, including the full text of its online magazine PerformanceXpress and a useful online bookstore focusing on specialist titles in this area.
Centre for Business Performance
  • Website
  • Centre for Business Performance
Based at the Cranfield School of Management, the Centre for Business Performance specialises in the design, implementation, use and ongoing maintenance of performance measurement and management systems.
Be the Business - UK
  • Website
  • GOV.UK
Free mentoring and online support to help SME business leaders improve the performance of their businesses. Supported by the UK government.
Essential guide to key performance indicators
  • Website
  • Atom Content Marketing
Identifying and monitoring key performance indicators (KPIs) helps you focus on the areas that really matter to your business.
Real business stories
  • Website
  • Be The Business
Read and watch stories collated by the 'Be the Business' website, highlighting how UK businesses have faced challenges and improved performance. Find out how a wide variety of UK businesses are tackling the issues, problems and challenges central to business improvement.
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