It all comes from "if you can't measure it you can't improve it". The job of management is to improve things, and that means they need to measure it and in turn look for measures. When working on an assembly line there are lots of things to measure and improve, and improving many of those things have shown great value.

They want to expand that value into engineering and so are looking for something they can measure. I haven't seen anyone answer what can be measured to make a useful improvement though. I have a good "feeling" that some people I work with are better than others, but most are not so bad that we should fire them - but I don't know how to put that into something objective.

All evidence continues to point towards NO.

They seem better at working in finance and managing money.

Most models of productivity look like factories with inputs, outputs, and processes. This is just not how engineering or craftsmanship happen.

No man, it's in the title, master bullshit artist