The CEO uses 16 key performance indicators (KPIs) to judge progress towards strategic objectives. They are grouped within three categories: Colleagues, Customers and Shareholders. The group’s progress against these KPIs is shown below.

 

Colleagues

Goals Results
2011 		2010
Engagement/Enablement 72%/69% 70%/68%
Sales colleague retention 65% 64%
Service colleague retention 72% 76%
Health and safety (H&S) lost time through accidents (LTA) 1.44 1.72

Customers

Goals Results
2011 		2010
Gross sales % of opening portfolio 15% 16%
Customer retention 83.9% 83.9%
Net gain % of opening portfolio 1.6% 1.8%
State of service 98% 97%
Customer satisfaction (Customer Voice Counts) 6% 19%

Shareholders

Goals Results
2011 		2010
Organic revenue growth -0.5% -2.1%
Total revenue growth (inc. acquisitions) 1.2% -1.2%
APBITA margin (%) 8.8% 9.6%
Debtors (days sales outstanding – DSO) 45 47
Cost savings delivered in year £44m £60m
Cash conversion as % of operating profit 92% 114%
Gross capex as % of depreciation 103% 87%

Explanation of 2011 KPIs

Colleague engagement – ‘Your Voice Counts’ – an employee engagement survey representing aggregate engagement rating from these reports.

Sales colleague retention – the reciprocal of total sales heads leaving in year as percentage of sales head count at start of year.

Service colleague retention – the reciprocal of total service heads leaving in year as percentage of service head count at start of year.

H&S lost time through accidents (LTA) – defined as work-related injury/illness resulting in employee absenteeism for one day/shift or more (excluding day/shift in which the accident occurred). Number of lost time accidents expressed as rate per 100,000 standard working hours.

Gross sales percentage of opening portfolio – additions to portfolio (new business and additions to existing business but excluding price increases) expressed as percentage of opening portfolio.

Customer retention percentage – the reciprocal of total terminations (reductions and terminations) expressed as percentage of opening portfolio.

Net gain percentage of opening portfolio – movement in portfolio expressed as percentage of opening portfolio.

State of service – total number of service visits performed divided by total number of visits due.

“Customer Voice Counts” (“CVC” i.e. net promoter score) – measured by average net promoter score rating across all branches. The CVC score represents the net balance of those customers promoting our service compared with those neutral or not promoting. CVC score for 2011 is based on a more extended measurement (incl. City Link and Initial Facilities) than for 2010.

Organic revenue growth – revenue growth (excl. acquisitions and disposals).

Total revenue growth (incl. acquisitions) – year on year increase in total revenue expressed as percentage of prior year revenue (at CER).

APBITA margin (%) – adjusted profit before interest, tax and amortisation (“APBITA”) expressed as percentage of total revenue.

Debtors days sales outstanding (DSO) – trade debtors gross of provisions calculated on the exhaust basis (i.e. going back over relevant number of preceding days’ invoicing until debt balance is zero). Number of days taken = debtor days.

Cost savings – savings delivered in year related to permanent cost reductions.

Cash conversion targets as percentage of operating profit – operating cash flow expressed as a percentage of APBITA.

Gross capex as percentage of depreciation – cash capital additions (net of proceeds from disposals) expressed as percentage of depreciation.