A programme for benchmarking.Introduction This checklist is for managers new to benchmarking or for those wishing to review their current benchmarking practice. Benchmarking is a powerful tool for organisations seeking continuous improvement. It is an essential part of many change programmes, including total quality management and business process reengineering See reengineering. . It is a challenging technique to use and requires careful management and a high level of commitment. Used effectively, it can provide organisations with a continuous competitive advantage, aid the setting or extension of performance goals, focuses on and accelerates change and can motivate staff by showing what is possible. Various types of benchmarking exist, including: * Internal benchmarking--the measurement and comparison of practices with similar practices in other parts of the organisation. * Industry or competitive benchmarking--industry-specific comparisons made either between direct competitors or with target companies making dissimilar products in the same industry. * Functional or non-competitive benchmarking--the direct comparison of a function in two or more organisations, which may or may not be in the same industry. * Generic or best practice/world class benchmarking benchmarking of the best practice of recognised world class organisations. Most organisations can use either one or a mixture of these. National Occupational Standards for Management and Leadership This checklist has relevance to the following standards: B: Providing direction, unit 2 E: Using resources, unit 4 Definition Benchmarking is the ongoing structured process of identifying, understanding and adapting outstanding practices of industry leaders to help an organisation improve its performance and achieve and sustain competitive advantage. Action checklist 1. Plan your study Identify the critical performance factors at which you wish to excel and from these select the broad areas in which to benchmark. Focus on those activities which are of real importance to your organisation, avoiding the irrelevant, or those activities chosen simply because they are easy to measure. Select a small number of related processes to benchmark. Do not be too ambitious at this stage, particularly if this is the first benchmarking project your organisation has undertaken. When selecting processes to benchmark remember the critical success factors--benchmarking must have the support of senior management, be part of organisational strategy, and be based upon a sound understanding of your own processes. Consider the legal and ethical issues of competitive benchmarking. Confidentiality and data security are important issues for benchmarking partners and groups. 2. Identifying personnel Select a benchmarking team and a team leader. Most benchmarking is done by teams to take advantage of the range of skills and knowledge that they can offer--either use an in-place work group, a cross-functional team In business, a cross-functional team is a group of people with different functional expertise working toward a common goal. It may include people from finance, marketing, operations, and human resources departments. or a functional team (six members is an average team size). Although much work will be carried out by the benchmarking team, it is advantageous to encourage the participation of all staff, as benchmarking may identify gaps in performance which will in turn require radical change anywhere within the organisation. The involvement of process owners The process owner is the person who co-ordinates the various functions and work activities at all levels of a process. This person might have the authority or ability to make changes in the process as required, and manages the entire process cycle to ensure performance ensures they are part of the evaluation process and can become the champions of change. 3. Examine the process(es) to be benchmarked Document the process(es) to be benchmarked to gain an understanding of the activities involved. Simple flow charts can be useful aids to help define the inputs to, and outputs from, the process. It is possible that a number of elements could be measured, so it is important to determine those which are true indicators of performance. 4. Data collection Data are required in order to make a comparison between organisations or parts of an organisation. This may be in the form of statistics, ratios or detailed case studies and descriptions. As the key to the success of benchmarking projects the data collection process should be carefully planned. Only collect the data required for the decision making process: collecting too much data can be as bad as collecting the wrong data. 5. Identify benchmarking partners Consider internal sources (different departments, divisions or companies within the organisation) and external partners (competitors, similar industries or best practice/world class performers). Sources that can help in identifying partners include trade and industry journals, market research reports, government studies, databases, suppliers, customers, corporate networks and study tours. Consider contacting a benchmarking clearing house or a joint interest group. Organisations interested in benchmarking are listed under "Useful addresses". Solicit the participation of partners. Organisations are often willing to become involved if they can see that they will also benefit from benchmarking--it should after all be a two-way process. You must be willing to share data and findings as well as respecting confidentiality if requested. 6. Plan and implement the comparison exercise Identify the hard and the soft issues which need to be measured. Hard issues include ratios, time and costs. Soft issues might include management style, communications, or customer focus. Prepare an action plan. Identify who will collect the data, from where and when. An appropriate survey or interview guide should be developed by the benchmarking team. Questionnaires can be sent by post, completed over the telephone or via site visits. Decide which is the most appropriate for your requirements. Collect the data. It is easy to underestimate the time needed to collect the data--err on the side of caution when arranging fact-finding interviews 7. Collate the data from your organisation and its benchmarking partners Draw up a matrix of performance indicators from your benchmarking partners (the use of spreadsheets The following is a list of spreadsheets. Freeware/open source software Online spreadsheets
Compare your current performance against the data. Identify where your organisation misses certain elements, fails to match the targets of others and generally needs to improve. The benchmarking team should try to identify the causes of these failures and, with relevant additional staff, plan to remedy them. It is useful to research case studies of best practice, as they can form useful aids to help communicate the objectives of change. Involve process owners in setting goals to close, meet and exceed the gaps in performance. The benchmarking team should develop detailed action plans, ensuring measures of success are included. 8. Plan and action improvements When business benefits resulting from change have been identified, communicate the benchmarking findings. By demonstrating benefits, support for change will be greater. Implement the plan, making use of 'process champions' throughout the organisation as catalysts for change. It is at this stage that resources will need to be committed, so it is essential to have senior management support for the project. 9. Monitor and review Monitor whether the study met its objectives; the impact of the improvements on the organisation; the evidence of a change in the process; the value of the changes to the organisation; the willingness and the barriers to change. Evaluate the success of the project. Decide if further change is required. Select the next process to benchmark. Maintaining momentum is one of the most challenging problems in benchmarking. How not to manage benchmarking * don't be too ambitious at the start, nor underestimate the need for willingness to change and openness for new ideas "New Ideas" is the debut single by Scottish New Wave/Indie Rock act The Dykeenies. It was first released as a Double A-side with "Will It Happen Tonight?" on July 17, 2006. The band also recorded a video for the track. * do not view benchmarking as a tool for providing short-term gains Short-term gain (or loss) A profit or loss realized from the sale of securities held for less than a year that is taxed at normal income tax rates if the net total is positive. * remember that benchmarking can fail for a number of reasons, including a lack of commitment, focus or resources. Additional resources Books Best practices in planning and management reporting: from data to decisions, David A J Axson Hoboken NJ: John Wiley John Wiley may refer to:
Effective knowledge management: a best practice blueprint blueprint, white-on-blue photographic print, commonly of a working drawing used during building or manufacturing. The plan is first drawn to scale on a special paper or tracing cloth through which light can penetrate. Sultan SULTAN. The title of the Turkish sovereign and other Mahometan princes. Kermally Confederation of British Industry The Confederation of British Industry is a not for profit organisation incorporated by Royal charter[1] which promotes the interests of its members, some 200,000 British businesses, a figure which includes some 80% of FTSE 100 companies and around 50% of FTSE 350 Chichester: John Wiley, 2002 Identifying best practices in benchmarking, Jacky Holloway and others Chartered Institute of Management Accountants The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) is a UK based professional body offering training and qualification in management accountancy and related subjects, focused on accounting for business; together with ongoing support for members. London: CIMA Publishing; 1999 Benchmarking best practice, Rachel Gooch and Paul Suff Industrial Relations industrial relations pl.n. Relations between the management of an industrial enterprise and its employees. industrial relations Noun, pl the relations between management and workers Services London: Eclipse Group, 1999 Effective management of benchmarking projects: practical guidelines guidelines, n.pl a set of standards, criteria, or specifications to be used or followed in the performance of certain tasks. and examples of best practice, Mohamed Zairi Professor Mohamed Zairi BSc MSc (Aston) PhD (CNAA) is a British academic and expert in Total Quality Management (TQM). He is Professor of Best Practice Management and Director of the European Centre for TQM at the University of Bradford School of Management in Bradford, Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann, 1998 Benchmarking textbook textbook Informatics A treatise on a particular subject. See Bible. , Sylvia Codling cod·ling 1 also cod·lin n. 1. A greenish elongated English apple used for cooking. 2. A small unripe apple. Aldershot: Gower, 1998 The benchmarking sourcebook: how to find the right benchmarking partners, Michael Cross Group Captain Michael Cross OBE RAFR is the Chief of Staff of the Air Cadet Organisation. Trek to the South Pole On 17 January 2003 Mike Cross, aged 60, became the eldest person to travel to the South Pole and, along with his son William Cross, became the first diabetes London: Batsford, 1998 This is a selection of books available for loan to members from the Management Information Centre. More information at: www.managers.org.uk/mic Internet Internet Publicly accessible computer network connecting many smaller networks from around the world. It grew out of a U.S. Defense Department program called ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), established in 1969 with connections between computers at the resources The European European emanating from or pertaining to Europe. European bat lyssavirus see lyssavirus. European beech tree fagussylvaticus. European blastomycosis see cryptococcosis. Benchmarking Code of Conduct www.benchmarking.gov.uk/content/documents/codeofconduct.doc The European Code of Conduct has been produced to guide benchmarking encounters and to advance the professionalism professionalism the upholding by individuals of the principles, laws, ethics and conventions of their profession. and effectiveness of benchmarking in Europe. Adherence adherence /ad·her·ence/ (ad-her´ens) the act or condition of sticking to something. immune adherence to the Code will contribute to efficient, effective and ethical benchmarking The Benchmarking Network in the United Kingdom www.benchmarkingnetwork.com/uk/UK.html The Benchmarking Network website contains details of the services offered by the network who work in collaboration with organisations throughout the world in undertaking benchmarking studies. This comprehensive website covers the application of benchmarking within many sectors of business. Organisations Best Practice Club 39 Cambridge Place, Cambridge, CB2 1NS Tel: 01223 355955 www.bpclub.com Centre for Interfirm Comparison interfirm comparison a technique for assessing the financial profitability of a veterinary practice by comparing it on the basis of a number of criteria with other practices in similar situations. The practices are rated according to their performance in each area, e.g. 32 Thomas Street This article is about an English astronomer, for the street in central Dublin, Ireland, see Thomas Street. For the street in central Perth, Australia, see Thomas Street. Thomas Street (also spelled Streete) (1621—1689) was an English astronomer. , Winchester, Hampshire Hampshire, county (1991 pop. 1,511,900), 1,503 sq mi (3,893 sq km), S central England. Winchester is the county town. The terrain is undulating and is crossed by two chalk downs, rising in places to more than 800 ft (244 m). , SO23 9HJ Tel: 01962 844144 www.cifc.co.uk |
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