The Innovator – Measurement

Efficiency expert W. Edwards Deming says in his book Out of the Crisis that it was statistical control that opened the way to engineering innovation and without it the process was in chaos. By measuring, engineers were able to discern a direction in which to innovate. Deming called innovation “the foundation of the future.”

Measuring innovation is as important as measurement in total quality management or any other area of business. During the process of measuring you can find insights into your innovation process. Texas instruments studied 50 failed innovations and discovered that in every case the failed product lacked a champion. This was something that could be fixed with the process.