| Successful businesses have attained their goals and | | | | intends to build a roadmap of the country's economy, |
| targets primarily because they have concrete metrics | | | | including how to measure the impact of innovation on |
| to measure where they are now and what exactly | | | | all sectors of the industry. |
| they need to improve in their company. This holds | | | | To simplify, innovation has five primary factors for |
| true to innovation as well. By knowing how to | | | | measurement. These factors look at the core |
| measure innovation in your business, you could | | | | processes in the company. These involve |
| measure the efficiency of your company processes | | | | performance, quality, timing, finances, and |
| and initiate sustainability in the business. | | | | development costs. |
| Traditional methods in measuring innovation have | | | | In measuring performance, you should consider what |
| entailed counting defects in the company, measuring | | | | the company can be able to do in providing solutions |
| costs, and tracking cycle times. However, this | | | | for its customers and clients. This factor in the |
| conventional method cannot be effective in today's | | | | requirements is needed to complete service. This is |
| business environment. As companies become more | | | | also needed in comparing the performance of the |
| familiar with business processes, several institutions | | | | company to that of its competitors. For quality, |
| have eventually come up with several methods in | | | | businesses can count the number of defects as well |
| measuring innovation. | | | | as delays. In knowing this, companies can further |
| Six Sigma | | | | increase or moderate the quality of the service that |
| One of the best examples of business management | | | | they deliver. |
| strategies is Six Sigma, which has risen in popularity | | | | Timing is also important, as it clearly looks at how |
| and has been used by companies all over the world | | | | fast the company can access the market. In order to |
| for a variety of applications. This has been initially | | | | measure this, the company should look at the speed |
| developed and implemented by Motorola, which is | | | | of internal development or cycle time as well as its |
| able to improve the quality output of business | | | | speed in delivering this to the client, which is known |
| processes through pinpointing the cause of errors | | | | as external market timing. |
| and looking for ways to remove them. This employs | | | | In terms of measuring finances, companies factor in |
| quality management methods such as statistical | | | | revenues, costs incurred, and margins. By knowing |
| methods. This method can then be able to create an | | | | how much and when companies can expect its |
| infrastructure where it identifies the experts who are | | | | revenues and how much money they can expect to |
| able to implement this effectively in the company. | | | | come in to the company from their projects, they |
| Additionally, the National Endowment for Science, | | | | could look at how profitable the business really is in |
| Technology, and the Arts (NESTA) will be creating an | | | | the industry. In this regard as well, businesses should |
| index that has the ability to provide an accurate | | | | look at development costs for specific projects and |
| image of the sectors in the market in which research | | | | if these would be profitable to the company. Knowing |
| and development is not a big factor. The innovation | | | | how to measure innovation greatly assists in this |
| index that NESTA is developing is due in 2010, which | | | | endeavor as well. |