Explore the top 30 project management KPIs you should be tracking in 2024. Learn how to measure success, productivity, progress, and performance.
Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) or measures is critical during a project. Without them, it’s difficult to see how you’re progressing toward your goals. But how do you know what you should measure for each project? Overwhelming your team with data won't make the project succeed, but providing the right data, at the right time, ensures the project stays on track.
While we can’t provide a definitive set of key performance metrics for every project manager to use, we can highlight some areas of significance that are typically helpful to track. Below are 30 example project management KPIs to get you heading in the right direction.
Back in the day, if a project was on time and on budget, it was considered a success. That’s no longer the case. While time and budget are still considered important factors, they aren’t the only determinants of value. You may also want to know whether the project helped you achieve the intended goals, and if the amount and types of resources you dedicated to it were appropriate and even optimal.
Today’s project managers use a variety of KPIs, which generally fall into these four categories:
Note that not every project may require measurements in all these categories. Before your organization gets down to work, it’s important for both the strategic management board and the project management office to discuss what factors will determine a project’s success and, by extension, which measures will matter most.
Project management KPI templates can be helpful, but it’s most important for KPIs to be S.M.A.R.T: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.
For example, let’s say one of the strategic objectives of a local government is to provide quality, diverse housing options that make city living attainable for a wide range of groups and income levels. An appropriate KPI for your local government might be to increase the number of affordable housing units, with a target of rehabilitating 1,000 existing structures per year to meet public needs. This KPI is SMART because it’s specific (pertaining to rehabilitating structures to create affordable housing units), measurable (it has a target number), attainable (it’s doable with the right strategies), relevant (it directly impacts goal achievement), and time-bound (it’s measured yearly).
Too many organizations track things simply because they always have, but that leads to an overabundance of questionable KPIs. We recommend tracking just a few important measures—those that are most relevant to what you’re trying to achieve. If you can’t explain why a particular KPI is important, that's a good enough reason to drop it. Keep in mind that the more KPIs you have, the more effort it takes to report on them. (Not to mention, you’ll be inundated with information that makes it harder to determine what’s important and what’s not.)
Organizations just starting out with KPIs sometimes feel they don’t have enough historical information to assign an accurate target. But working without a target adds a level of subjectivity to the measurement—how do you know if you’re doing well or not? We recommend picking KPIs for which you can make an educated guess on a target using industry research or historical information.
If you’re not using a KPI when you’re making decisions for your organization or having a strategy meeting, that may be an indicator it’s not worthwhile to track. You might be expending too much effort trying to track something that’s not providing value.
Below are four categories containing 28 sample KPIs for project management. You will not need all of these measures, but hopefully they will help you think about better ways to manage your projects. These KPIs can be applied to any project management methodology you use.
And remember: Your KPIs should be agreed upon by all involved parties before initiating a project, and then measured and monitored as a tool for decision-making during the project.
A project has many moving parts regardless of what project management methodology (like waterfall or agile) you use, and it is critical that you measure the timeliness, budget, quality, and effectiveness of the project along the way. You need to be sure you are able to execute on these projects effectively with a limited budget—because resources aren’t unlimited. (If you had unlimited resources, you’d probably do things a lot differently!)
If you need some assistance managing your project portfolio, we have just the thing for you. Our Project Management Field Guide walks you through how to differentiate between all things project-related, how to determine if you’re working on the right project, and a step-by-step process to help you prioritize projects. And once you have your project portfolio, you can easily track the KPIs for each project and automate your reporting with a tool like ClearPoint.
Ready to elevate your project management to new heights? Discover how ClearPoint Strategy can transform your approach to tracking and achieving your project KPIs. With our intuitive platform, you'll gain valuable insights, streamline your processes, and drive your projects toward success with precision and ease.
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Success in project management isn't just about crossing the finish line. It's measured by evaluating a blend of factors, including whether the project was completed on time, stayed within budget, met the quality standards, and achieved its intended goals. Success also hinges on stakeholder satisfaction—did the project fulfill the needs and expectations of everyone involved? By tracking a set of well-defined KPIs, you can paint a comprehensive picture of your project's success. Try ClearPoint Strategy for free, a strategy planning and execution tool for project management. Claim your FREE 1-on-1 DEMO now!
Measuring productivity in project management is about understanding the efficiency and effectiveness of your team's efforts. It's not just about the hours logged but the value created during those hours. You can gauge productivity by examining KPIs such as the average cost per hour, the number of project milestones completed on time, and the billable utilization rate. These metrics help you assess whether your team is using their time wisely and contributing to the project's objectives in a meaningful way.
Measuring project performance and progress involves a meticulous look at where you are versus where you should be. You must track KPIs across different dimensions—timeliness, budget, quality, and effectiveness. Are you on schedule? Is the budget on track? Is the quality up to standard? Are the resources being used efficiently? By regularly monitoring these KPIs (key performance indicators), you can assess the project's trajectory, identify deviations from the plan, and implement corrective actions to ensure the project remains aligned with its objectives. Track your KPIs in ClearPoint Strategy, a strategy planning and execution tool for project management.
Tricia manages our implementation and onboarding team to ensure the success of ClearPoint customers.