Management caveats for measuring and assessing public responsibility performance

More and more, stakeholders are demanding company performance information in the areas of public responsibility. Unfortunately, as companies report these activities, stakeholders, rather than being satisfied, are increasingly demanding additional information. Management is then left wondering why actions meant to satisfy lead instead to greater dissatisfaction. Often, managers do not understand what steps to take in developing good measurement and assessment plans and communicating performance results. This article presents fourteen caveats in a checklist for managers to use as they go through this process. Recommendations for deciding what to measure, developing and interpreting appropriate metrics, setting benchmark standards, building learning systems, developing policies for inclusion of external stakeholders, and communication are given.