Performance measurement frameworks
Popular frameworks for measuring performance on a distinct timescale from day-to-day monitoring to quarterly execution.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Track the day-to-day health of specific activities, for example open-rate, scroll depth, churn, etc. Editors and product leads review them frequently so they can tweak stories, formats or marketing tactics.
Examples and inspiration
Full funnel KPI’s by Condé Nast
Engagement score by The Wall Street Journal
The New “Pirate” Metrics Every Publisher Should Use by Pelcro
North-Star Metric (NSM)
Align every department around a single number, such as subscriptions, that best represents long-term success. This metric clarifies priorities and shows teams how their work connects to the overarching strategy.
Examples and inspiration
Reader State Model by the product team of The Atlantic
North Stars for publishers and the example of Financial Times by the Audiencers
Objectives & Key Results (OKRs)
Turn strategy into short-term Objectives that state what you want to achieve over the next quarter or half-year. Then attach three to five Key Results that spell out exactly how much progress you expect and by what date. This approach lets newsrooms aim for ambitious targets while still tracking success with clear, measurable numbers.
Examples and inspiration
Each of these frameworks serves a distinct timescale—KPIs for day-to-day monitoring, an NSM for long-term direction, and OKRs for quarterly execution—teams often use them side by side.
Adopting a structured goal-setting framework transforms a publisher's vague ambition (we should grow) into a concrete, time-bound target, for example increasing the share of engaged readers from 18% to 25% within six months, with clear ownership.
Expressing what success looks like in numbers, they give editorial, product, and commercial teams a common language and rally everyone around a single north-star outcome. Progress becomes visible early, so obstacles surface before they turn into crises, and limited resources can be steered toward the initiatives that move the metric fastest.
Unified KPIs managed by a central team or individual (is) allowing teams to work together harmoniously toward a common goal.
Sarah Marshall, Condé Nast
Because results are out in the open, teams feel accountable—and motivated—to improve them. At the same time, data-driven goals make it easy to recalibrate when audience behaviour or market conditions shift, ensuring the organisation stays focused on what matters most right now without losing sight of its long-term mission.