Lagging and leading indicators

Metrics that reflect past performance are known as lagging indicators, and they show what has already happened. Examples include revenue, test volume, and laboratory leakage. These metrics provide the historical performance data needed to assess results and measure progress over time.

Metrics that look ahead are known as leading indicators. They monitor current behaviors and trends that can influence future results. Examples include service issues, issue resolution turnaround times, provider engagement, and specimen rejection trends.

By providing early warning signs of potential risks, these metrics offer insight into where action is needed to strengthen client relationships, protect market share, reduce leakage, and drive growth.

Focus on what’s ahead

Successful outreach programs monitor and evaluate lagging indicators, but they spend even more time focusing on what lies ahead. Lagging indicators reveal what happened, but they do not explain why it happened or what may happen next. By monitoring even subtle changes in client behavior, provider engagement, and service performance, outreach teams can identify risks early and take action before declining volume appears in performance reports.

The difference is significant. Instead of discovering that a client left last month, leading indicators can reveal six months earlier that the relationship is at risk, providing an opportunity to address concerns, strengthen the partnership, and retain the client.

Create a dashboard that supports client retention

Clients rarely leave because of a single bad experience. They leave when unresolved issues accumulate over time. A dashboard that balances both lagging and leading indicators provides a powerful tool for account management, helping outreach teams identify risks early and take proactive action.

An effective dashboard includes metrics that measure growth, operational performance, client and patient satisfaction, provider engagement, and financial health, such as:

• Volume
• Leakage
• Revenue
• Service complaints by type and occurrence
• Service failure resolution times
• Specimen rejection rates and causes
• Patient wait times
• Call abandonment rate

Build in targets, threshold alerts, and actions

When laboratories consistently identify and address issues, clients feel heard and supported. This helps build trust, strengthens relationships, and reinforces your position as the laboratory of choice. Metric targets, threshold alerts, and predetermined actions make this possible.

Metric targets establish the minimally acceptable level of performance for each indicator, and threshold alerts serve as an early warning system. Much like a check engine light, they signal potential issues before they have a significant impact on performance. These alerts should trigger immediate follow-up action. Here is an example of a dashboard using this framework:

Monitor and celebrate successes

The key to being proactive is consistent monitoring. Establish a regular review cadence and celebrate successes along the way.

When metrics become part of the laboratory’s culture, staff gain a broader understanding of their impact and are empowered to engage at a higher level.

Ultimately, the purpose of metrics is not simply to report what has happened, but to identify risks early enough to influence what happens next. The most successful outreach programs use a balanced mix of lagging and leading indicators to drive growth, strengthen client relationships, reduce leakage, and stay ahead of change.