Executive KPI Architecture
Executive dashboards should balance outcome-based metrics (business impact) with operational metrics (delivery health). The goal is to show cause and effect between QA investments and enterprise results.
Board-ready KPI stack: Growth protection, risk reduction, and operational efficiency, each anchored to a quantifiable baseline and target.
Outcome KPIs
- Automation ROI: Savings vs. automation investment, linked to release velocity and cost of quality.
- Defect Escape Rate: Production defects per release; ties directly to customer trust and revenue risk.
- MTTR: Mean time to recovery; critical for resilience and regulatory scrutiny.
- Quality Predictability Index: Ratio of planned vs. actual quality outcomes for each release.
Operational Efficiency KPIs
- Release Readiness Score: Risk-adjusted gate indicating quality confidence.
- Cycle-Time Compression: End-to-end time from commit to production.
- Coverage-to-Risk Ratio: Test coverage weighted by business criticality.
- Defect Recurrence Rate: Repeat defects as a signal of systemic issues.
Dashboard Design Principles
Leadership dashboards should show trend lines, deltas vs. baseline, and three-tier health indicators (green/amber/red). Each KPI should map to a strategic objective and have an executive owner.
- Highlight the top 5 KPIs only; move deep metrics to drill-down layers.
- Include confidence ranges for predictive indicators.
- Show quarterly impact in both cost and risk terms.
Governance & Cadence
Run monthly operating reviews with delivery leaders and quarterly board reviews with an outcomes focus. Align OKRs to KPI improvements for clarity.