Use of performance measurement methods in engineering organizations — An empirical study

Introduction: Performance measurement supports engineering organizations to effectively design, implement and control engineering improvement activities. Purpose: This contribution analyzes which performance measurement methods are used in industrial practice. The focus lies on methods used for the evaluation of investments (such as efficiency improvement programs) in engineering departments. Approach: The contribution is based on an empirical study. 56 persons working in project business were asked via a web-based questionnaire. Findings: Although the meaningfulness of holistic performance measurement is undisputed, traditional non-holistic methods prevail in industrial practice. Most engineering organizations use cost-oriented methods which do not consider the influence of engineering in the company in an adequate way. However, holistic and multi-dimensional approaches for performance measurement in engineering have gained a foothold in industrial practice. Originality: Performance measurement in engineering has been topic of very few publications yet, while studies focusing on R&D departments are numerous. Since R&D and engineering functions share some characteristics, research on R&D is also considered in this contribution.