IMPACT

Select what to measure

Pick a few important measures to test how effective ideas are at creating the desired change.

Preview how this activity will happen in this two-minute video from the template. Turn on closed captioning to read instructions in your preferred language.

Having identified many different ways to measure the impact your project will have, you need to decide the best indicators of progress. 

Why decide on a shortlist of measures to use?

A well chosen set of measurements ensures everyone on the project has the same frame of reference. The team can benchmark effort over time. Success metrics are a way to update anyone with easy to digest information on progress. 

There are different ways to decide which measurements to use, you could

  • Review an existing list of measurements and take a vote

  • Rank order all the measurements according to some criteria

  • Select measurements that best support company objectives

A good approach will produce a shortlist of measurements that:

  • Matter the most

  • Can actually be measured

  • Consider both the short and long-term

  • Are easy to understand

  • Validate the project is making the difference you intended

Once you’ve generated a long list of potential measurements, our recommended approach is to:

  • Highlight outcomes your vision should deliver

  • Rank measurements by importance

  • Rank measurements by difficulty to measure

  • Select the best short-term and long-term measures you will report against

What does selecting what to measure look like?

In this example, the What Could Be product team narrowed down 23 potential success measures into the top five that would allow the team to measure success for developing a new project. Note there are three customer-specific measures along with a business measure and product development metric.

Select the best ways to manage success.

 

HOW?

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