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I think it points to the fact that we can't manage what we can't measure. Therfore we need to find effective and effecient ways to measure what we need to manage.
Quality means measuring every process that we are doing from start to end. so during this process if there are some parts of this process not measurable you cannot reach quality unless you make it measurable.
You need to measure to be able to judge and manage. so if have unmeasurable issue this means that you have an impression only which will leads you to high uncertain judgment and most probably a wrong managment decision.
Measure what is measurable: When their are parameters which needs to be measured, we should establish a measuring for them. This is required for monitoring those parameters.
Make measurable what is no so: Identify parameters which must be measured and identify a way how to measure them, if there is no method to measure currently.
Dear all,
First of all, the idea of this question is smart and shows how can we apply quality in our life and in every aspect.
It is nice to quote others words, especially famous scientists or even great leaders and philosophers, but the real challenge is how can we get the benefit from those quotes and apply them in the right and true ways
Galileo, who is considered to be the Father of Modern Physics and the Science of Observation, has gone on record saying “Measure the measurable and make measurable what is not so”. This would have been about four hundred years back.
That was the beginning of systematic scientific investigations, and efforts have been steadily on ever since for quantifying parameters of consequence in all branches of science and engineering. There are units which quantify day-to-day happenings like wind, rain, humidity, temperature etc. The state of one’s health is described in terms of body temperature, blood pressure, pulse rate, RBC count etc.
Various individuals have defined what it means and what actually constitutes emergent properties of a system. My definition is initiative and straightforward; an emergent property of any controlled system would be that you desire and is a good indicator of its sustainability. I understand that desire is a very subjective measure, but that is not the sort of desire I am talking about.
Fundamental precept of such a system was given by Galileo Galilee some time ago, that is “Measure what is measurable, and make measurable what is not so” and that to me is the basis that provide sufficient grounds for objective criteria for desired result. If you don’t have that you can’t determine qualities of emergent properties and would not be able to exercise control.
Every system is composed of set of principles, its natural laws, that govern it’s close to optimal operations. Then there are derived laws these laws emerge organically to deal with exceptions and evolution. They affect existing or emergent properties of a system in various ways and it should be manager’s goal to quantify desired result, and provide a list observable/measurable criteria.
Besides, Measurements and proper documentation of the measured parameters are of extreme importance. A popular quality slogan used in engineering circles is “what gets measured gets improved”. Quality metrics are used as benchmarks for enhancing productivity, quality and reliability and reducing the cost of products and services.
The number of turn backs and rejections, efficiency in terms output upon effort, client feedback, etc. are the metrics used to monitor and thereby improve the overall quality of the product or service and to make it competitive. This philosophy, of measuring the measurable, is equally relevant in personal and home life also. For example, just a regular usage of bathroom scale will go a long way in keeping track of one’s health and taking corrective action where necessary.
- People with chronic ailments will do well to use handy home devices for monitoring sugar levels, blood pressure etc. This way it is possible to avoid visits to the doctor which would be time consuming and consequently such visits tend to become infrequent.
- There are also many advanced gadgets like pedometers which are useful in recording effort put in (a measure of calories burnt) during walking or jogging routines.
Best Regards,
Lubna Al-Sharif
Measuring tools make the deviations of specifications under control.
"Measure what is measurable" is to say use and apply appropriate measurment tools and techniques, analyse the result, identify risk and risk exposure and finaly take appropriate action.
"Make measurable what is not so" is to say there is nothing unmeasurable. What we don't have is the knowledge and models to measure the problem at hand. But if we work hard andanalyze the case it is possible to set measurment paramenters and define appropriate model and technique.
Qualitative analyses also depends on quantitative measures. Thats the reason, a numerical value is generally assigned to qualitative responses.
The Quote was written far earlier than we had any quality-management techniques existed.Most of the answers are related to quality management.People were starting to use numbers at that point of time. I had seen this quote in one of the High school mathematics textbooks where peole are around years. What would actually mean to them is in numbers. I wonder if there is any simplified reason for this quote so that even kids would understand
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