01 · Purpose
Why and when to use it
Why?
It connects the project’s goal to the outcomes that matter and makes trade-offs visible before measurement or solution selection.
When?
Use it in Define after gathering needs, then validate definitions and data collection in Measure.
Who takes part? Customer representatives, the process owner and relevant business functions agree requirements; the team translates them into measures.
02 · Application
How to apply it
Start with: Validated customer needs, service commitments, business constraints, scope boundaries and available measure definitions.
- List needs separately from proposed solutions.
- Classify their source as customer, business or both.
- Define a measurable output characteristic with a unit and clear rule.
- Record the target and whether it is agreed, contractual or provisional.
- Assign the requirement owner and planned data source.
- Review conflicting targets and select the measures that will establish the baseline.
03 · Example
A warehouse dispatch project
Original illustrative example. All quantities, targets, roles and timings below are fictional teaching assumptions, not findings from a real project.
| Need / source | Output measure | Target status | Owner / evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Predictable dispatch / CTC | Percentage of orders handed over by promised dispatch date | No more than 8% late; illustrative project target | Process owner; validated handover timestamps. |
| Correct fulfilment / CTC | Percentage with correct part and quantity | Maintain or improve verified baseline | Quality lead; audited order sample. |
| Affordable operation / CTB | Incremental overtime hours per week | No unapproved overtime; agreed constraint | Operations manager; time records. |
| Reliable customer information / both | Time from handover to available confirmation | Target to be agreed with users | Customer service; status records. |
04 · Interpretation
What the result tells you
A requirement with “target to be agreed” is unresolved, not failed. The timeliness goal must be evaluated alongside accuracy and overtime so that improvement in one output does not conceal deterioration elsewhere.
Completion check: A traceable set of output requirements with definitions, targets, owners and planned evidence.
05 · Judgement
Mistakes and limitations
Common mistakes
- Listing vague needs such as “good service” without an operational measure.
- Treating an internal preference as a validated customer requirement.
- Selecting targets that conflict without discussing the trade-off.
Limits of the tool
The matrix does not establish causal relationships between process inputs and outputs. It guides what to measure; later analysis investigates what determines those outcomes.
07 · Reading
Sources and further reading
Toolset backbone: Six Sigma+Lean Toolset: Mindset for Successful Implementation of Improvement Projects, second edition, edited by Stephan Lunau, with Renata Meran, Alexander John, Olin Roenpage and Christian Staudter (Springer, 2013). This reference identifies the toolset; the book text was not available for a chapter-level comparison in this development pass. The explanations, application sequence and fictional examples here are original LeanTrainingLab teaching material. Linked readings provide background; they do not prescribe every example or target.