Negotiating the Challenges in the Forestry Sector through KPIs

Forestry is typically considered as the process of using forest resources and maintaining the forests

Its main objective revolves around the continued sustenance of natural supplies and services and it also involves the process of planting, protecting and felling trees. Quite evidently the bouquets of resources available in the forests have led to the forestry industry and it encompasses a host of activities which range from logging to silvicutlure.

However companies operating in the forestry industry need to careful that natural resources are not supposed to be exploited in a manner that they are harmful for our planet. With the advent of the industrial age, a large many natural resources have already been usurped in catastrophic proportions and such misuse needs to be actively avoided.

In the contemporary world, a lot has been invested into managing forests. Newer techniques are being developed to maintain forests. Right from the middle age, where man has been cutting wood for fire, homo-sapiens have been dependent on natural resources that have been provided by forests. The earliest dated management techniques go back to the Ming Dynasty where the kings had control over acres of land. However the entire concept of tree plantation owes it popularity to a British writer John Evelyn. By the 19th century forestry schools had been established; most of them being in Germany and France. However it wasn"t until the 20th century that the forestry laws and binding regulations had been passed by the legislature in response to conservation concerns.

Today most companies engaged in this industry are subject to numerous regulations and they need to adapt themselves to derive profits while keeping the environment in mind. Techniques like Balanced Scorecards can play a pivotal role in the success of these companies they help them to track and deal with many key factors that are prevalent in the industry today.

Forestry KPIs that deal with Compliance and Environment can help a company structure its operation in a manner that it follows the specified guidelines and still manages to derive profits. KPIs can also be built for a specific activity such as reforestation, which is a common term refers to restocking of trees in area that have been depleted of their natural resources. Although this science has gained popularity since its introduction, it comes with a lot of risks. Some of the risks known are forest fire and insect outbreak. Forest fires are known to destroy large portions of the forests and endangering the existence of animals living in it. If not controlled on time, these fires can pose a threat to the lives of the migrants settled around the forest and KPIs can be designed to track the activity.

Moving forward, it is common practice for foresters to design and exercise forest management plans, depending heavily on tree inventories, which show an area's configuration of surface and the relation between man-made and natural features. The inventories also show the species of trees and other plants. The plans also include roads within the forest, drainage system, proximity to human settlement, water and soil conditions. These all activities too can be plotted on a balanced scorecard if the company is engaged in same. Overall KPIs can form the base for the efficient functioning of an organization engaged in forestry.