Rol:
At 23:06 1/6/96 EDT, you wrote:
>This creates for me a large list of questions. What is the information a
>manager provides to the system? Who is the system? Do we know what is
>'best'? Does 'best' change as the context changes? Who defines the blocks
>and impediments? How do we recognize them? What if people disagree?=20
>What if managers disagree? Can one person's block be another's enabler?=20
>Are we sure that teams are always the best way to do work? What are the
>programs to implement? How do we know which are really practical to
>implement? How, in a world with overwhelming communictions, do we
>_really_ scan for external threats? What does it mean to keep out of the
>way? How does one know when to 'get in the way'?=20
Benchmarking is an excellent means, although not the only means, to
accomplish the above. And when I say "benchmarking" I mean continuous
benchmarking, or innovative adaption, as benchmarking done once is no
better than strategic planning done once. Of the 1000 points of the
Baldridge scale, benchmarking affects 550 points, even beating out
customer satisfaction -- a Baldridge goal -- at 520 points. In fact,
"Learning" is an essential part of both benchmarking and the Baldridge.
Without a pointed means of effectively learning and adapting over time, an
organization can not learn from its benchmarking and the Baldridge
committee will drop you like as a hot rock.
A firm that is actively benchmarking would have a wide spectrum of its
employees able to meaningfully answer those questions you pose. Following
is a snippet of our introduction to Benchmarking:
Benchmarking
Benchmarking is the practice of being humble enough to admit that someone
else is better at something and being wise enough to try to learn how to
match and even surpass them at it.
OR
Benchmarking is the continuous process of measuring products, services,
and practices against strong competitors or recognized industry leaders.
It is an on-going activity, intended to improve performance; it can be
applied to all facets of operations; it requires a measurement mechanism
so that the performance "gap" can be identified; and it focuses on
comparing best practices within enterprises that are not alike.
Benchmarking tells us where we are now, shapes a vision of where we want
to be, and points to the steps needed to get there. Benchmarking differs
from a traditional planning cycle in that it=92s not done in isolation;
the firm fixes its position through performance comparison to other
companies and best practices identification of other firms. Benchmarking
is a tool in itself and does not create improvement, but it can break down
resistance to change (as well as identifying the means of that change).
Classical benchmarking involves ten nominal steps: identify what is to be
compared; identify comparative companies; determine data collection method
and collect data; determine performance "gaps;" define future performance
levels; communicate benchmark findings to others; establish goals to be
attained; develop plan; implement and monitor progress; and recalibrate
benchmarks.
Certain benchmarking programs attempt to exceed the traditional definition
of benchmarking by achieving a "break the mold" level or program redesign
(as against comparative) system. This can result in quantum performance
changes but the internal culture must be capable of absorbing the change
effort -- or must be educated to the value of the change effort --
otherwise the culture will reject both the change and the change agents.
Benchmarking enables us to:
=B7 Define world-class performance by comparing how other firms perform in a
specific process or business area.
=B7 Compare our own performance against that world-class standard.
=B7 Determine where and how to set performance targets.
=B7 Determine appropriate market placements for products and services.
=B7 Identify best practices to emulate.
=B7 Assess our competitive posture.
Benchmarking comprises three types of business comparisons: strategic,
statistical, and process. Strategic benchmarking positions us against our
competition and may affect investment or divestiture decisions. Process
benchmarking identifies and solves the operational issues masking our
strategic objectives. Statistical benchmarking provides us with a
measurable means of gauging change and progress.
Strategic benchmarking:
=B7 Determines new missions and sets new directions at the enterprise level.
=B7 Examines the external environment, competitors, customers, suppliers,=
and
regulators to other companies inside and outside our industry.=20
=B7 Evaluates how other firms have applied their core competencies and=
capital
investments.
=B7 Determines why firms have changed product or service offerings to=
maintain
competitiveness or achieve best-in-class status.
Process benchmarking:
=B7 Identifies best practices in a given business context.
=B7 Determining enablers that support those best-of-breed performance steps.
Statistical benchmarking:
=B7 Compares statistical performance data across organizations in the=
context
of measurable business processes.
Everything that affects processes is examined: our mission and strategies,
customer needs, cycle times, volumes, culture, processes, structures, and
information systems. Benchmarking helps us:
=B7 Assess current environment: Identify core business issues and build
process maps. Perform root-cause analysis to insure that we are
benchmarking the disease and not the symptom.
=20
=B7 Qualify benchmarking candidates: Identify candidates and qualify them=
for
participation. Establish working relationships with the candidates and
prepare to gather and share information. When confidentiality is an issue,
select an external facilitator to manage the relationships.
=20
=B7 Collect benchmarking information: Identify and qualify best practices
with an appropriate mixture of surveys, interviews, and site visits.
=20
=B7 Gather best-in-class process data: Identify best practices by company=
and
document in a matrix showing companies, processes and enablers.
=20
=B7 Evaluate the applicability of best practices: Develop an opportunity
matrix balancing the value of the change and the impact on the organization.
=20
=B7 Design our target environment: Set new performance targets using best
practices to change business processes to achieve those targets. Use
enabler information in the redesign of supporting capabilities and culture,
structures, and information systems and technologies.
=20
=B7 Develop a change plan: Develop an implementation plan to realistically
take change into our organization. Embed continuous improvement and
periodic benchmarking into the firm=92s ongoing performance assessment.
Once we understand our current processes and business environment, we can
look to other industries for transferable ideas, get performance data on
our own practices, prioritized improvement opportunities, and implement a
profitable improvement plan for all stakeholders.
Benchmarking becomes a venue to question everything that we do and why and
how we do it. It raises the bar on what is considered exceptional
performance, leading to quantum gains rather than incremental ones.
Best regards, Gordon Housworth
Intellectual Capital Group
ghidra@modulor.com
Tel: 810-626-1310
--Gordon Housworth <ghidra@modulor.com>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>