KPIs That Actually Work: Aligning Teams, Driving Strategy, and Boosting Engagement

Most organizations have mission and vision statements—but struggle to turn them into day-to-day behavior. In this episode of The Future of Engagement, David Synder and Dr. Brian Peters (Doctorate in Industrial-Organizational Psychology; dissertation on employee engagement) breaks down how to design KPIs that matter, avoid common traps, and get every team rowing in the same direction.

You’ll learn:

• What a real strategy looks like—and why “we have a spreadsheet” isn’t it

• How to turn “intangible” roles (HR, customer support) into measurable outcomes

• Leading vs. lagging indicators and why alignment beats activity

• The unintended consequences of bad KPIs (overselling, margin erosion) and how to fix them

• Simple survey metrics to capture “how you made customers feel” without the fluff

• A first-month leadership exercise to cascade clarity across teams

• Weekly meeting systems that keep KPIs alive (not wallpaper)

Chapters 00:00 Intro 01:19 Why KPIs are essential for strategy 05:13 Measuring “intangible” work 10:48 Avoiding unintended consequences 15:20 Making feelings measurable (CSAT, post-call surveys) 18:34 Explaining the “why” behind every KPI 22:20 Leadership exercise to build KPI clarity 30:30 Meeting cadence that sustains alignment 33:55 Wrap-up

Takeaway: Clear, well-chosen KPIs turn vision into action—and engaged teams into consistent performance.

Connect: Questions or topic ideas? Send them our way and subscribe for more practical episodes on leadership, engagement, and organizational effectiveness.