Marketing is no longer solely defined by visibility. It now centers on building authentic relationships and consistently addressing the shifting needs and values of consumers. Organizations nowadays are required to implement strategies that are both evidence-based and adaptable. A well-structured marketing function, when aligned with long-term business objectives, plays a critical role in strengthening trust, enhancing operational effectiveness, and supporting sustainable growth.

To support professionals in measuring marketing performance more effectively, The KPI Institute has released the Top 25 Marketing KPIs – 2025 Edition. This edition highlights the most impactful key performance indicators (KPIs), selected based on real-world usage and relevance across industries. Covering metrics such as customer retention, brand awareness, and customer acquisition cost, the report serves as a reliable resource for organizations aiming to align marketing efforts with performance management best practices.

To provide a glimpse into the report, here are five of the top KPIs included in the 2025 edition:

1. # Net Promoter Score – Measures how likely customers are to recommend the company’s products or services to others.
2. % Customer retention – Measures the proportion of customers an organization retains over a specific time period.
3. % Brand awareness – Measures the level of brand recognition and recall among the target audience.
4. $ Customer acquisition cost – Measures the average expense incurred to acquire a new customer.
5. % Customer satisfaction with new products and services – Measures the percentage of satisfied customers with new products and services generated through innovation initiatives.

The Top 25 Marketing KPIs – 2025 Edition goes beyond listing metrics. It provides strategic guidance for enhancing performance measurement practices in today’s complex marketing environment. This edition includes in-depth articles that explore the KPI conceptual framework, common challenges in KPI usage, and ten practical tactics for improving implementation. 

Additionally, it features enhanced documentation templates with updated formats that emphasize the most critical information for each KPI, making them easier to understand, communicate, and integrate into existing performance systems. All KPIs in this report have been carefully reviewed and updated to reflect the latest business trends, ensuring that the resource remains relevant and actionable for today’s marketing professionals.

To explore the complete list of KPIs and discover how they can support your organization’s strategic and operational objectives, download the Top 25 Marketing KPIs – 2025 Edition from the TKI Marketplace. A printed edition is also available for purchase via Amazon. Secure your copy today and stay ahead in marketing performance management.

Created by The KPI Institute, a global leader in strategy and performance research and education, smartKPIs is the most comprehensive online resource of its kind. With over 21,000 real KPIs collected from organizations worldwide, the platform helps organizations and professionals define, compare, and select the right metrics faster and with greater confidence. Whether you’re setting key performance indicators (KPIs) for the first time or refining an existing performance framework, knowing where to look and what to look for makes a difference. Here are 10 things to know about smartKPIs:

1. Massive KPI database: smartKPIs is home to over 21,000 documented KPIs, making it the world’s largest searchable repository for real-world key performance indicators. These metrics are drawn from published reports, internal dashboards, and on-the-ground case studies.
2. Structured by domains and industries: The database is organized by industry, functional area, and even departmental level, helping users find context-relevant KPIs in seconds. This makes it ideal for benchmarking, performance system design, or refreshing outdated metrics.
3. Professionally documented format: Each KPI is described using a standardized structure that includes definition, calculation formula, data source, and usage recommendations. This eliminates ambiguity and makes it easier for teams to implement indicators consistently.
4. Quality assured by research analysts: Every entry is reviewed by a team of research analysts with expertise in measurement and performance management. This curation ensures the data stays reliable, relevant, and aligned with evolving business practices.
5. Updated with real-world insights: The platform is continuously updated with indicators from actual business scorecards, public reports, and newly published research. This gives users access to trends as they unfold across industries and geographies.
6. Supports KPI selection and cascading: smartKPIs helps users identify KPIs that align with strategic objectives and cascade them across organizational levels. Whether you’re managing enterprise strategy or tracking individual performance, it offers examples that scale.
7. Enables benchmarking across sectors: With thousands of KPIs covering both common and niche sectors, users can compare metrics across industries to see how others measure similar goals. It’s especially useful for organizations looking to innovate or localize best practices.
8. Integrates with learning tools and guides: Each KPI links to additional resources, such as toolkits, implementation guides, and online training offered by The KPI Institute. This creates a more complete support system for users looking to build internal capability.
9. Trusted by global users: From Fortune 500 companies to government agencies and non-profits, the database is used by strategy, HR, finance, and operations teams around the world. It’s a preferred reference for those designing performance systems from scratch or improving legacy setups.
10. Accessible with flexible plans: The platform offers a range of subscription options depending on organizational needs, from individual licenses to enterprise access. Users can also explore free samples before committing to full access.

For anyone working in performance design or KPI reporting, smartKPIs is more than a database—it’s a decision support tool. Visit the platform to explore real indicators, save time, and sharpen your measurement approach!

Employee performance is a constant focus for organizations that expect results. But achieving strong individual outcomes takes more than periodic reviews or general encouragement. It requires clear targets, regular feedback, relevant data, and well-defined processes.

This roundup brings together a full set of tools, guides, and learning materials from The KPI Institute. These references remain relevant across roles and time because they focus on practical action—planning, evaluating, developing, and following up on performance. Whether you’re an HR professional, manager, or business leader, you’ll find clear ways to align employees with goals, track progress, and improve results.

1. Employee Performance Evaluation: This session explains how to assess employee performance using objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs), competencies, and behaviors. It includes techniques for linking performance results with compensation and recognition.
2. Performance Improvement Essentials: Gain practical techniques for managing performance through data, structured follow-up, and clear accountability. The webinar introduces methods for tracking actions and reviewing progress across business units.
3. Understanding Personal Performance: This webinar focuses on individual performance tracking. It provides principles for setting personal goals and using tools and apps for measuring activity, effort, and progress.
4. Cross-Cultural Management: Explore key concepts for leading diverse teams, with guidance on navigating cultural dimensions, work style differences, and communication barriers.
5. Performance Magazine Issue No. 32, 2025 – Employee Performance Edition: Available as a FREE digital edition, this issue focuses on how culture connects to performance. It explores how systems, behaviors, and everyday practices contribute to consistent outcomes across teams and departments.
6. The Employee Performance Management Playbook: In this article, you’ll discover how to integrate individual goals, KPIs, and development plans into daily work through a structured performance planning approach.
7. The Human Resources KPI Dictionary: This dictionary presents a detailed structure of KPIs used across major HR areas. It helps with both setting up and refining performance measurement frameworks for departments and roles.
8. Top 25 Compensation and Benefits KPIs of 2011–2012: This collection of KPIs remains a valuable reference for anyone designing or refining compensation frameworks. Find some of the most viewed and widely used metrics for pay and benefits—complete with standard definitions, formulas, and practical suggestions.
9. Top 25 Retention KPIs of 2011–2012: These retention and engagement metrics continue to offer timeless insights for building long-term staff continuity. The report features key indicators used to track turnover, engagement, and related costs—ideal for guiding or benchmarking today’s HR strategies.
10. Individual Performance Management System – Guide: Access a comprehensive framework for building employee performance systems, featuring 15 editable templates like job descriptions, scorecards, and evaluation forms.
11. Individual Performance Evaluation and Follow-Up Templates: These templates help track performance activities and support review discussions. Tools include a daily activity log, feedback guide, initiative tracker, development plan, and rewards policy.
12. Quick Guides for Developing an IPM System: Support your implementation of performance processes with these step-by-step resources on behavior selection, objective setting, role assignments, and evaluation planning.

These resources give you the structure to plan, track, and improve employee performance across any department or team. Consistent output starts with consistent management!

The Global Performance Audit Unit (GPA Unit) has formally recognized the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission (LPTC) for achieving Maturity Level IV – Integrated in the Performance Measurement capability, following a maturity assessment conducted using the GPA Unit’s Integrated Performance Maturity Model Framework. This recognition reflects the Commission’s commitment to advancing its internal performance measurement practices and supporting its strategic objectives through reliable, structured, and data-driven approaches.

As the national body responsible for shaping Saudi Arabia’s literary and publishing ecosystem, LPTC operates at the intersection of culture, innovation, and policy. Its recent efforts to strengthen performance measurement mark an important step in aligning internal systems with its strategic and cultural objectives.

The evaluation followed a comprehensive methodology that combined evidence-based, perception-based and interview-based analysis. Evidence was collected through detailed reviews of internal documentation, frameworks, and procedures. Perception-based insights were obtained via internal quantitative surveys, complemented by qualitative interviews with staff and stakeholders during the interview phase. This approach enabled a well-rounded assessment across six key dimensions: KPI selection, KPI documentation, target setting, data gathering, data visualization, and governance.

The findings confirmed that LPTC has developed a cohesive and well-integrated performance measurement system. KPIs are clearly defined and aligned with strategic priorities, supported by strong practices in target setting, data collection, and visualization. These efforts are reinforced by committed leadership and a clear focus on continuous improvement. Effective governance structures and well-defined roles promote accountability and execution, laying a solid foundation for sustained progress.

“LPTC’s recognition is a demonstration of what disciplined performance stewardship looks like in the public sector.” Said Teodora Gorski, Head of Strategic Partnerships & Growth at the GPA Unit. ” The ability to define what matters, measure it with consistency, and act on it with purpose reflects operational strength and institutional clarity. At this level, performance measurement is no longer a function; it becomes a leadership instrument. It enables alignment, drives accountability, and positions the Commission as a reference point for excellence in public sector performance.”

The assessment was conducted as part of the GPA Unit’s ongoing work with public sector institutions in Saudi Arabia, supporting the national direction under Vision 2030 to strengthen transparency, strategic alignment, and performance across government entities. By reaching Level IV in Performance Measurement, the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission joins a growing group of entities recognized for their structured and forward-looking approach to managing performance.

The GPA Unit commends the Commission’s leadership and teams for their openness, professionalism, and dedication throughout the assessment process. This milestone not only validates existing practices but also provides a solid foundation for future development and continuous improvement.

Just as individuals must adapt to changes in their personal lives, such as shifting priorities and new tools, organizations must also respond to broader shifts in the environment in which they operate. Today, sociocultural changes and technological advancements are playing a pivotal role in redefining how strategy is crafted and how performance is managed. 

The 2025 Global Trends Brief, by The KPI Institute, emerges as a vital resource, offering comprehensive insights into the forces set to shape the strategic direction of organizations worldwide. Drawing from an extensive analysis of over 100 industry publications, expert commentaries, and in-depth studies, the report highlights the primary drivers of change across six critical dimensions: Geopolitical, Economic, Socio-Cultural, Environmental, Technological, and Legal.

In our previous article, we explored the Geopolitical and Economic drivers, where we highlighted how global power shifts, inflation, and supply chain instability are influencing organizational strategy, risk management, and performance.

In this follow-up, we now explore the Sociocultural and Technological trends that are redefining the workforce and transforming business operations. From artificial intelligence (AI) integration and cybersecurity to shifting workplace values and talent models, these forces are reshaping how organizations operate and compete in a modern business world.

Sociocultural advancements reshape workforce strategies

According to the 2025 Global Trends Brief, organizations are no longer relying solely on traditional methods to attract and retain talent. Instead, skills-first hiring has gained momentum, signaling a shift away from degree-based qualifications. Companies are placing higher value on practical capabilities, real-world experience, and adaptability.

Meanwhile, employee experience, mental health, and professional development have emerged as critical priorities. With hybrid work environments now the norm, businesses are addressing the challenges of talent shortages, workforce engagement, and well-being. In this evolving landscape, AI integration is also redefining talent strategies, enabling more targeted hiring, upskilling programs, and reduced turnover.

Notably, women-led businesses are expected to lead innovation across high-growth sectors such as healthcare and technology, signaling a sociocultural shift toward more inclusive and resilient leadership models.

However, as older generations retire in large numbers, many industries are facing a looming talent gap. This trend is pushing organizations to invest in internal development, cross-training, and more flexible working models to future-proof their workforce.

Technology continues to disrupt and empower

On the technological front, AI’s evolving ecosystem is transforming business operations across industries. One major development is the rapid advancement of DeepSeek, which has raised national security concerns in the U.S., emphasizing the growing complexity of international AI competition.

At the organizational level, cybersecurity has become a top priority. As autonomous and agentic AI systems begin to carry out tasks with minimal human input, ensuring safe and ethical deployment is paramount. Businesses are now exploring how these AI agents can handle routine tasks, enabling employees to focus on high-value work.

Generative AI (GenAI) is also set to revolutionize operations, particularly in supply chain management, by automating decision-making, improving forecasting accuracy, and streamlining logistics. Meanwhile, the convergence of quantum computing and AI is opening new frontiers in data processing and problem-solving, with implications for industries ranging from pharmaceuticals to finance.

After years of software dominance, hardware innovation is staging a comeback. From advanced chips designed for AI workloads to energy-efficient processors, the renewed focus on physical infrastructure is enabling AI systems to operate at higher speeds and lower costs.

As sociocultural and technological trends continue to evolve, they’re not just shaping operations. But they are also redefining the core of strategy, leadership, and performance. Explore the full insights, including key figures, referenced studies, and detailed analysis on how each component impacts strategy and performance management practices. Download the full 2025 Global Trends Brief, available on the TKI Marketplace. Stay tuned for our upcoming articles as we unpack the remaining two drivers in detail.