Three phrases that mean nothing has happened
"We are exploring several initiatives across the business." This is an activity report. It contains no metric, no owner, and no date.
"Early feedback has been very positive." Feedback is not evidence. Adoption measured by work completed is evidence.
"We have identified a number of high-impact opportunities." Identification is free. Triage is the work, and triage produces a rejection list.
The ninety-day scorecard
The [ninety-day scorecard](/native-framework/first-90-days) sets out what should be showable at each phase and what a weak answer sounds like at each phase. It is deliberately uncomfortable, because a board's leverage is highest before the money is spent.
Questions worth asking
Five questions that change what gets reported next quarter.
- Which single executive owns the metric, by name?
- What was the baseline, and how was it measured?
- What is the pass line, and when was it written?
- What is the fully loaded cost per unit, before and after?
- What triggers the kill switch, and who can pull it?
Next step
Send the ninety-day scorecard to whoever prepares your board pack, and ask for the day 30 column at the next meeting.