8.3.1 Timing of information

Metrics can be measured at different times in the product development project and programme. They can be on information from past projects, or from the present project or they can be predicted for the future product development performance, as shown in Table 8.2.


Table 8.2 The time of using metrics in product development

Lagging metrics provide information on past performance. Real time metrics provide information on the current performance. Leading metrics provide information on the likely future performance. Learning metrics provide information on the rate at which an organisation is improving its performance.

Learning metrics or motivational metrics translate business objectives into meaningful and motivating measures that teams can work against. A specific performance gap may have been identified, and then the goal is to gradually reduce it over time. For example, in initial production runs with a new product, rejections usually lie between 10 and 20%, then the aim is to gradually reduce this until it lies near the level of standard production which is 1%; or it could be the time to market for a new product which may be 24 months and the aim is to reduce this gradually to 15 months. A reasonable time frame for these reductions needs to be set (Dimancescu and Dwenger, 1996).

Metrics are meant for continuous improvement of product development performance; historic data may set a basis but it is the continuing measurement during the development of the project and the programme that give the more useful metrics.