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Results-based management - Developing one′s key results areas (KRAs)

Article  in  Indian Journal of Public Health · April 2015

DOI: 10.4103/0019-557X.157533 · Source: PubMed

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Commentary

Results-Based Management - Developing one’s Key Results Areas

(KRAs)
Om Prakash Kansal1, Sonu Goel2
1
Independent Public Health Consultant, 2Assistant Professor, School of Public Health, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and
Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, India

Summary
In spite of aspiring to be a good manager, we public health experts fail to evaluate ourselves against our personal and
professional goals. The Key Result Areas (KRAs) or key performance indicators (KPIs) help us in setting our operational
(day-to-day) and/or strategic (long-term) goals followed by grading ourselves at different times of our careers. These
shall help in assessing our strengths and weaknesses. The weakest KRA should set the maximum extent to which
one should use his/her skills and abilities to have the greatest impact on his/her career.

Keywords: Key performance indicators (KPIs), Key Result Areas (KRAs), performance, public health leader, results-based
management

As public health experts, all of us aspire to be good
managers cum good leaders. For a good leader, we
must learn to add value to the teams and institutions
in which we are working. Management also teaches
us to define our individual goals for 1 year, undertake
midterm evaluation, and assess ourselves at the end of
1 year.1 However, sometimes we fail to evaluate ourselves
(against the individual goals). The famous saying “I don’t
much care which way I go” from Alice in Wonderland
does not hold true in today’s competitive world.
The Key Result Areas (KRAs) or key performance
indicators (KPIs) are the targets or goals set by an
individual or the department in his/her or its operational
(day-to-day) or strategic (long-term) plans.2 Although
used synonymously, there is a fine difference between
Corresponding Author: Dr. Om Prakash Kansal,
Flat No. 1001, Trimurti Heights, Sector - 39,
Gurgaon - 122 003, Haryana, India.
E-mail: kansalop@gmail.com
these two terms. KRAs refer to general areas of outcome
or output for which the institute or the department’s role
is responsible. A typical role targets three to five KRAs.
About 80% of the department’s work role is captured
by KRAs. The remaining role of the department is
devoted to areas of shared responsibility (e.g., helping
team members, participating in joint activities, etc.). To
manage KRAs, KPIs are set. KPIs are indicators that
help in assessing to what extent the role was achieved
by an individual.2 Simply said, these are the duties and
responsibilities that are defined (by the individual himself
or his/her boss) ahead of time (e.g., at the beginning of a
year), which need to be evaluated in a fixed time frame
(again by either the individual or his/her boss).
KPIs constitute the primary responsibilities of an
individual or the core area for which he/she is accountable.
These focus on results rather than activities, help prioritize
the activities, and communicate the activities to the
concerned individual or to others.3

Access this article online Most of the institutions/departments do not have a formal
Quick Response Code: performance evaluation system in their workplaces.
Website: www.ijph.in
Although not impossible, it is difficult to introduce a
formal evaluation system as it is not under the control of
DOI: 10.4103/0019-557X.157533
subordinates.4 However, every individual can define his/
PMID: ***
her Individual Impact Goals (IIGs) or KRAs for a year
and measure himself/herself against them irrespective of

Indian Journal of Public Health, Volume 59, Issue 2, April-June, 2015

[Downloaded free from http://www.ijph.in on Wednesday, August 26, 2015, IP: 14.139.56.194]
130 Kansal and Goel: Developing key result areas
one’s seniority or stature. It will help one in developing
himself/herself further and aim for attainment of higher
goals in his/her career. This system brings a sense of
urgency on the one hand and a feeling of satisfaction
on the other (if one was able to achieve what he/she had
planned). Moreover, better planning at the beginning
will deter one from executing mundane tasks that often
consume more time. One should be able to answer a
simple question, namely, “What have I contributed to
the community (medicine) or the public (health) in the
last 1 year and is it worth my experience, knowledge,
and position?”
A KRA is something for which one is completely
responsible. This means that if one does not do it, it does
not get done. It is an activity that is under one’s control.
It is the output of one’s work that becomes an input or a
contributing factor for the work of others.
Let us explain it by means of an example.
An example of KRA for a middle level faculty could be:
a. Empowered knowledge to 100 undergraduates in
epidemiology and biostatistics, health management,
environment, nutrition, etc. through lectures, field
visits, and case studies, amounting to at least 100 h.
b. Facilitated higher learning in public health in four
postgraduates through discussions, seminars, journal
clubs, public health news, and case studies (at least
one per month).
c. Trained x number of medical officers, nurses,
auxiliary nursing midwives (ANMs), and accredited
social health activists (ASHAs) on various national
health programs. These sessions can be based on the
needs.
d. Led one or two projects on a public health issue based
on the faculty’s interest. This shall culminate in not
just writing research papers but sharing findings with
policymakers and following up with appropriate
stakeholders for influencing policies.
e. Managed administrative control of a facility, e.g.,
rural field practice area for at least 3 months in a year.
f. Guided doctor of philosophy (PhD)/doctor of
medicine (MD)/ master of public health (MPH)
students (at least one per year).
There could be three to five of such development goals
for an individual for one calendar year.
Indian Journal of Public Health, Volume 59, Issue 2, April-June, 2015
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Once one has determined the KRAs, the next step for
him/her is to grade himself/herself on a scale of 1-10 in
each of those areas in the middle or the end of the term.
What are his/her strong areas and weak areas? In which
area is the individual getting excellent results and in
which areas is he/she underperforming? A simple rule
can be followed: one’s weakest KRA sets the maximum
extent to which one can use all his/her other skills and
abilities. One should refuse to rationalize, justify, or
defend one’s areas of weakness. Rather, one should
identify and manage these clearly. It is like the diagnosis
of a disease that leads to half the cure being done. One
should again ask himself/herself, “What would be the one
area, which if I developed, that would have the greatest
positive impact on my career?”
If one defines his/her KRAs, then he/she will be clear in
his/her thoughts (about what needs to be done). Similarly,
after defining the KRAs for a year, one shall try to split
the KRAs into smaller workable areas. In this way, one
shall be able to define KRAs for a month and even on a
weekly basis. This in turn would sharpen the focus of the
individual and s/he could be called as an effective manager.
It has been said that 3% betterment is needed in each of
the KRAs of one’s job to develop the winning edge, which
will enable one to move to the front in the race of life.5
References
1. Koontz H, Weihrich H. Essentials of planning and
management by objectives. In: Essentials of Management:
An International Perspective. 8th ed. New Delhi: Tata McGraw
Hill; 2010. p. 85-105.
2. Parmenter D. Key Performance Indicators: Developing,
Implementing, and Using Winning KPIs. 2nd ed. New Jersey,
US: Wiley Publishers; 2007. p. 1-6.
3. Grote D. How to Be Good at Performance Appraisals: Simple,
Effective, Done Right. 1st ed. Boston, USA: Harvard Business
Review Press; 2011. p. 110-16.
4. Twomey DF, Harris DL. From strategy to corporate outcomes:
Aligning human resource management systems with
entrepreneurial intent. Int J Commer Manage 2000;10:43-55.
5. Tracy B. Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life: How to
Unlock Your Full Potential for Success and Acheivement. 1st
ed. New Jersey, US: Wiley Publishers; 2005. p. 18-39.
Cite this article as: Kansal OP, Goel S. Results-based management -
Developing one's key results areas (KRAs). Indian J Public Health
2015;59:129-30.
Source of Support: Nil, Conflict of Interest: None declared.