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This web-based software platform allows any peer group benchmark any performance area of interest. Data is kept secure, identities are kept anonymous and results are shared in a log-in only environment with time-series visualizations and detailed views.

This web-based database is suitable for groups of competitors to benchmark individual performance against group performance. All process and performance benchmarks can be processed in this software, providing interesting analysis tools and complete benchmarking report.

and allows reams of analysing possibilities [2]. PowerStats is a highly automated platform intended to allow groups of competitors to contribute, manage and visualize data for purposes of benchmarking.

Participants load raw data on a regular basis, and PowerStats creates relevant KPIs in real-time, making them available via self-service charts and tables via its online interface. WSim simulates one or many network terminal s to load a mainframe computer system by executing programmed scripts , for functional testing , system testing , regression testing , capacity management , benchmarking and stress testing.

It is a re-packaged, subset version of IBM's Teleprocessing Network Simulator. After registering, it is self-service for survey capture and provides personalized dashboards. The idea being that you can estimate the value of a business initiative. Benchmarking can and should be used at various levels throughout the organization, but if project improvement is the goal, data will typically be entered at the project level.

Program- and department-level measures can be provided by roll-ups of the project-level data. Benchmarking can be applied during various phases of a project for different purposes.

When applied early on, such as at project authorization, it can be used to identify characteristics that may be associated with potential future problems and to identify aspects of project management e.

When applied during project execution, it can serve as a project management tool to guide project decisions.

Postproject benchmarking is usually used to assess performance of a project delivery system to provide for lessons learned and feedback that can be used to establish benchmarks for future comparisons.

Most organizations tend to begin with postproject comparisons and later progress to the earlier uses as confidence in the benchmarking process builds. Over time, when sufficient data are available, trends can be analyzed to provide insight into the performance of project management systems.

Since integrated project team IPT members will normally have moved on to new projects, trend analyses of project-level cost and schedule metrics would typically be used at program and department levels.

Benchmarking needs buy-in at various levels of an organization in order to be successful. Most often, benchmarking is driven from the top. Senior management commitment is critical if resources are to be made available for the process.

While benchmarking may succeed with senior management support alone, it is far more likely to succeed if it has the support of middle management and the project team.

Furthermore, the project team is far more likely to support the benchmarking initiative if it is understood that the goal is system improvement and not individual or team performance appraisal.

The IPT members should be confident that data submitted for benchmarking will not be used for performance appraisals if accurate data are to be obtained.

The validation of benchmarked data is a critical component of any benchmarking system. Some benchmarking services collect data through a survey instrument and then use an experienced analyst to review them. The project team is interviewed to clarify and resolve issues.

A different approach to validation is to share responsibility between the project team and an outside organization. An independent reviewer serves as an honest broker and validates the data by ensuring their completeness and accuracy. The reviewer should be a trained, independent professional with a good understanding of the data to be collected, the measures to be produced, and the project management process used.

A rigorous examination of all data is performed by the service provider as a final check. Whatever approach is used, a validation process assists in maintaining consistency across organizations.

Benchmarking processes are not easy to implement, and to be successful an organization must overcome numerous barriers. Some private-sector companies fear that they may lose their competitive advantage by sharing information, and others fear exposure of organizational weakness.

Use of an identity-blind process, whereby data are posted without attribution, can mitigate these concerns. For some organizations, arrogance is a major obstacle.

These organizations may believe they are the best, so why benchmark? As renowned management consultant W. Edwards Deming would probably ask superconfident organizations that lack performance data and comparison to other organizations: How do you know? Watson, Other organizations are unaware of the value of benchmarking and believe that benchmarking systems do not adequately address their needs.

Benchmarking agreements and training increase familiarity with the benchmarking process and can help to reduce these barriers. One of the greatest barriers to benchmarking is a lack of resources.

Most organizations are leaner today than in the past, and dedicating the essential resources can be difficult. For some organizations, project processes and computer systems are not sufficiently developed to easily support benchmarking CII, For these organizations the benchmarking process will require more manual intervention and consequently greater resources.

As project processes become automated, this barrier should shrink. Lessons learned from past benchmarking efforts can be helpful for an organization embarking on a benchmarking initiative:.

Senior management buy-in and support are vital to success, but even with this support, generating enthusiasm is difficult McCabe, Benchmarking will be successful only if made an integral part of the project process. Commonly accepted, effective metrics for assessing project performance are necessary to assess the extent to which best practices are used.

Input, process, output, and outcome performance measures are necessary, and it is possible to implement them. Performance measures should be applied through a structured benchmarking process.

Cost-effective, value-added benchmarking can be implemented through standardization of definitions and application of computer-based technologies. Camp, Robert C. Benchmarking, The Search for Industry Best Practices That Lead to Superior Performance. Portland, Ore. CII Construction Industry Institute.

Construction Industry Institute Data Report. Austin, Tex. Member Company Survey. Presentation to the Construction Industry Institute Annual Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia, July Drucker, Peter F. Managing in a Time of Great Change. New York, N. Kaplan, Robert S.

The Balanced Scorecard. Boston, Mass. McCabe, Steven. Benchmarking in Construction. Oxford, U. Mikel, Harry, and Richard Schroeder. Poister, Theodore H. Measuring Performance in Public and Nonprofit Organizations.

San Francisco, Calif. Watson, Gregory H. The Benchmarking Workbook: Adapting Best Practices for Performance Improvement. In , Congress, in the conference report, H.

The final report in that series noted that DOE lacked an objective set of measures for assessing project management quality. The department set up a committee to develop performance measures and benchmarking procedures and asked the NRC for assistance in this effort.

It provides a number of possible performance measures, an analysis of the benchmarking process, and a description ways to implement the measures and benchmarking process. You're looking at OpenBook, NAP. edu's online reading room since