Benchmarking
Benchmarking is the process of monitoring and measuring a firm’s internal processes, such as operations, and then comparing the data with information from companies that excel in those areas. Because training programs for individual firms are unique, the training measures are necessarily broad. Common benchmarking questions focus on metrics such as training costs, the ratio of training staff to employees, and whether new or more traditional delivery systems are used. Information derived from these questions probably lacks the detail to permit specific improvements of the training curricula. However, a firm may recognize, for example, that another organization is able to deliver a lot of training for relatively little cost. This information could then trigger the firm to follow up with interviews or site visits to determine whether that phenomenon represents a “best practice.”