Why Do We Need to Measure?

Lessons Learned Handbook:

DOE-HDBK-7502-95

2. To help us understand our processes. To confirm what we know or reveal what

we don't know. Do we know where the problems are?

3. To ensure decisions are based on fact, not on emotion. Are our decisions

based upon well-documented facts and figures or on intuition and gut feelings?

4. To show where improvements need to be made. Where can we do better?

How can we improve?

5. To show if improvements actually happened. Do we have a clear picture?

6. To reveal problems that bias, emotion, and longevity cover up. (If we have

been doing our job for a long time without measurement, we might assume

incorrectly that things are going well.)

7. To identify whether suppliers are meeting our requirements. Do our suppliers

know if our requirements are being met?

In addition, methods to measure and demonstrate progress provide significant

benefits to any program. These benefits include:

Defining project or activity objectives.

Increasing managerial and financial control.

Identifying problems during the project or activity, not afterward.