Is Benchmarking Just Another Fad or Is It Really Useful

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Examlex · Accepted Answer

The Answer is Benchmarking involves learning how other successful companies do something and imitating or perhaps even improving on their techniques. Pioneered in the United States by Xerox Corporation, benchmarking is similar to the time-tested practice of "reverse engineering" in which a company buys the product of another company to take it apart in order to learn how it is made. Given that Xerox developed the concept of competitive benchmarking in the early 1980s, it appears that the concept is here to stay. It is especially useful to companies that are falling behind others in the industry. Xerox developed the concept when management realized that Japanese companies were slowly taking over the copier market by making and selling products superior to those of Xerox at a cheaper price. Because this is a situation that is bound to affect various companies in the future, benchmarking is likely to be increasingly adopted. Unlike MBO, TQM, or reengineering, almost everyone who uses benchmarking finds it to be very useful and well worth the time and money it takes to do it.

Is Benchmarking Just Another Fad or Is It Really Useful

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