Benchmarking has been gaining popularity, especially in the last five years.
The process of benchmarking is more than just a means of gathering data on
how well a company performs against others. Benchmarking can be used in a
variety of industries, both services and manufacturing. It is also a method of
identifying new ideas and new ways of improving processes and, therefore,
being better able to meet the expectations of customers. The ultimate objective
of benchmarking is process improvement that meets the attributes of customer
expectations