At most companies, KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are hard numbers: revenue growth, retention rates, profit margins, or customer acquisition cost. At Lemonade Stand, we measure those too, but we add something else to the list: serving others.
When we say “serving others,” we mean making service a measurable part of our culture. It’s not just about being nice or offering great customer support. It’s about actively finding ways to help, whether that’s going above and beyond for a client, recognizing a teammate’s hard work, or volunteering in the community.
By elevating service to KPI status, we’re saying, “This matters just as much as any other result on the spreadsheet.“
Why Is Serving Others a KPI at Lemonade Stand?
We measure it because we believe service fuels everything else. Let’s break down why.
| Traditional KPI | How Serving Others Strengthens It |
| Culture | Service builds a culture where people feel cared for. When employees experience kindness internally, they naturally extend it externally. |
| Employee Engagement | People want to be part of something meaningful. Serving others gives work a sense of purpose beyond a paycheck. |
| Retention | Employees who feel their work creates a positive impact stick around longer. Clients who feel genuinely served are loyal too. |
| Performance | When people serve with authenticity, clients notice. Reputation improves, referrals increase, and sales often follow. |
| Reputation | Brands known for service attract both talent and customers. It’s a differentiator in crowded markets. |
At its core, serving others aligns profit with purpose. That’s why it deserves a seat at the KPI table.
How Do You Measure Something Like Service?
Good question! Because if we’re calling it a KPI, it has to be measurable. Here are a few different ways you could track it:
- Customer Satisfaction Scores: Feedback surveys, testimonials, and NPS (Net Promoter Score) give us direct insight into how customers feel served.
- Peer-to-Peer Recognition: We measure how often team members recognize each other for acts of service. This creates a ripple effect of appreciation.
- Service Hours Logged: Whether volunteering in the community or spending extra time solving a client’s problem, service hours count.
- Stories & Surprise Moments: Numbers are good—but stories are better. We encourage people to share moments where service went above and beyond. We do this weekly in our company-wide meeting.
- Beneficiary Feedback: If someone was directly impacted by our service (a client, nonprofit, or coworker), we capture their words and feelings.
Put together, these metrics give us both quantitative (hours, scores, frequency) and qualitative (stories, impact) ways to measure serving others. Check out our impact map to see one way we measure serving others!
What Are Some of the Challenges?
Just like any KPI, measuring service isn’t without pitfalls.
- Avoiding Tokenism: Service can’t become a box to check. If people only “serve” to get recognition or meet a quota, the authenticity is lost.
- Balancing With Other KPIs: Service is important, but it’s not the only measure of success. Companies need to balance compassion with performance to remain sustainable.
- Subjectivity: Unlike revenue or churn rate, “service” can be hard to define consistently. What one person sees as extraordinary might feel normal to another.
- Sustaining Momentum: Serving others is inspiring, but like any initiative, it requires reinforcement. Left alone, it risks fading into the background.
The key to overcoming these challenges is staying grounded in your company’s “why.” If we’re genuinely motivated to bless others, measurement becomes a tool—not the mission itself.
Isn’t Serving Others Just “Good Business”?
Absolutely. And that’s the point. Think of it this way:
| Company A: Service as a Value | Company B: Service as a KPI |
| Has “service” listed in core values | Builds systems (like Build Then Bless) to measure it |
| Encourages employees to be kind | Recognizes and rewards service consistently |
| Provides good customer support | Creates stories of awe that spread and build reputation |
| Hope service “happens” | Ensures service happens regularly |
By making service measurable, Lemonade Stand walks the walk of our core values.
How Does Serving Others Impact Employees Directly?
When serving others is a KPI, employees feel:
- Empowered: They know service is valued, not sidelined.
- Connected: Recognizing each other strengthens peer relationships.
- Motivated: Work becomes meaningful when tied to impact.
- Appreciated: Service moments are celebrated, not overlooked.
This directly impacts engagement and retention. People don’t leave workplaces where they feel their work matters.
How Does It Impact Clients and Customers?
From a client’s perspective, serving others translates to:
- Faster, more thoughtful responses.
- Teams who truly listen and adapt.
- Surprises that go beyond the contract.
- Feeling like more than just a number.
It creates a reputation that no marketing campaign can buy: being the company people love to work with.
What Does This Look Like in Practice?
Here are some real examples of what serving others looks like when tracked:
- A developer staying late to ensure a client site doesn’t go down during launch.
- A designer volunteering to help a nonprofit with branding—outside of normal scope.
- An employee writing a thank-you note to a teammate who went the extra mile.
- Stories shared in team meetings about how clients lit up after receiving an unexpected gift during a time of need.
These are the moments we want to be known for.
How Do You Start Making Serving Others a KPI?
If you want to bring this into your own company, here are some steps:
- Define It Clearly – Decide what counts as “service” for your culture.
- Create Measurement Tools – Surveys, recognition systems, or tracking platforms.
- Celebrate It Regularly – Don’t just measure it, highlight it.
- Tie It to Purpose – Connect service to your company’s bigger mission.
- Balance With Other KPIs – Don’t drop financial goals; integrate service alongside them.
Ready to Bring Service Into Your Business?
If you want to explore how service can become a measurable, cultural force in your workplace, check out Build Then Bless. It’s employee engagement software designed to help businesses integrate gratitude, service, and meaning into their daily operations.
Because at the end of the day, KPIs matter—but serving others matters most.
