Metric · Need-Based Decision Science

ICAN

Index of Concordance on Achievement of Needs.

A metric for measuring how much a specific need is being fulfilled in people’s lives.

Created by George Eich · George Eich Institute

Understand the metricSee applications
Canonical definition
ICAN is a metric that measures how much a specific need is being fulfilled in people’s lives.
ICAN · Index of Concordance on Achievement of Needs · George Eich Institute
A Change in Unit of Analysis

ICAN does not begin with the solution. It begins with the need.

Traditional metrics help explain the customer’s relationship with a company, product or experience. ICAN asks a different question: to what extent is a specific need being fulfilled in that person’s life?

Solution metrics
The customer evaluates the relationship with a company, product or experience.

NPS, CSAT and other metrics remain useful for specific questions about recommendation, satisfaction and experience.

  • Perception of the solution or brand
  • Past or current experience
  • Recommendation or satisfaction
ICAN
The person evaluates the fulfillment of a specific need.

The unit of analysis shifts from the company to the Need. This makes it possible to observe the market beyond the current solution.

  • Specific need
  • Perceived level of fulfillment
  • Independent of which solution addresses it

ICAN’s unit of analysis is not the brand. It is the need.

How It Works

One need. One agreement statement.

ICAN measures perceived need fulfillment independently of which solution addresses it.

Core question
“How much do you agree that need ‘X’ is being fulfilled in your life?”
Lower agreement
Higher agreement
01
Need
Something that needs to be solved, improved, or achieved.
→
02
ICAN
Evidence of how much that need is being fulfilled.
→
03
Create value
Improve an outcome that matters to the person.
→
04
Capture value
Convert part of that benefit into a sustainable result for the organization.
ICAN measures need fulfillment. Interpretation and decision depend on the context in which that evidence is used.
ICAN Applied

One metric. Different research contexts.

ICAN is the metric. FocusMap and ICANMetric are tools that apply it in different contexts without changing its definition.

Customer base
FOCUSMAP
ICAN applied to your own customer base.

Helps companies investigate customer needs and add fulfillment evidence to decisions in strategy, product, innovation, and positioning.

Current customersStrategyProductInnovation
Explore FocusMap ↗
Broader market
ICANMETRIC
ICAN applied beyond your customer base.

Enables investigation of needs across broader markets, audiences, and segments, independently of the current solution or any prior relationship with a company.

MarketSegmentsResearchHypotheses
Explore ICANMetric ↗

The tools operationalize the metric. Interpreting the evidence depends on the decision and context being analyzed.

Decision Applications

Evidence about a need before the decision.

ICAN does not replace strategic judgment. It makes the perceived fulfillment of a need observable before the organization decides what to do with that information.

Strategy
Add external evidence to discussions about where attention and resources should concentrate.
Product
Understand whether needs associated with the roadmap are actually well or poorly fulfilled.
Innovation
Investigate needs before turning a hypothesis into a solution or a new business front.
Marketing
Understand needs that may change promise, narrative and perceived value.
ICP
Compare patterns of needs and fulfillment across customer or market groups.
Market Research
Observe how fulfillment of the same need changes across audiences and contexts.
Authorship and Reference

ICAN is part of Need-Based Decision Science.

The metric was created by George Eich and is used as one layer of evidence within Need-Based Decision Science to support decisions based on real market needs.

Recommended reference
Eich, George. ICAN — Index of Concordance on Achievement of Needs. George Eich Institute, 2026.
About George EichNeed-Based Decision Science
FAQ

The essentials about ICAN.

What does ICAN mean?
Index of Concordance on Achievement of Needs. The metric measures how much a specific need is being fulfilled.
Is ICAN a satisfaction survey?
No. ICAN’s object is the need, not satisfaction with a company, product or experience.
Does a low ICAN mean opportunity?
No. ICAN measures fulfillment. Business interpretation depends on the need, the audience, the decision being analyzed and other contextual evidence.
How do people answer ICAN?
A person reads a specific need and chooses a position on an agreement scale to indicate how much they agree that the need is being fulfilled in their life. They do not directly assign a numeric score.
Where can ICAN be applied?
In customer bases, market research and other decisions where understanding need fulfillment adds relevant evidence.
Are FocusMap and ICANMetric the same as ICAN?
No. ICAN is the metric. FocusMap and ICANMetric are tools that operationalize its application in different contexts.

A metric becomes valuable when it improves the quality of a decision.

In the Strategic Prioritization Study, ICAN is one of the Institute’s proprietary evidence layers used to understand needs and guide decisions in the company’s specific context.

Explore the studyDiscuss ICAN