Benchmarking Your Business
    		During the past three weeks, I have visited three partner  organizations, each of varying revenue, products/services offered and  operational effectiveness. I also had a wonderful conversation with a fourth  organization discussing new-hire on-boarding issues, profitability and lead  management. All of these organizations had some  challenges  and various management frustrations in common. 
One of the great opportunities I have had  over the past 20-plus years is to work with, speak to and consult with hundreds of  organizations. This  has given me a great level of knowledge on  which to base my consulting recommendations and to create the variety of tools  that are used by thousands of individuals.
Because of my  experience, one of the fundamental  recommendations I make to clients and nonclients alike is to physically visit  other organizations and  view how other companies operate. This is  called "benchmarking," which, as the dictionary definition states, is "a point of reference for a measurement." 
There are many executive peer groups  where individuals meet and discuss common business challenges and hold each other  accountable. Some even compare financial metrics. In some peer group situations,  business leaders are from the same industry and some groups are made up of  general business leaders. All of these kinds of groups are excellent sources of  information. 
Our own Sales Management  Board of Advisors program is similar. The boards are made up of individuals -- sales managers, sales directors and VPs of sales -- who are focused on sales management issues. While all of these  groups share and learn information, the challenge that most  of these groups cannot achieve is  helping the participants truly understand how  someone else's business operates.
I like to recommend that at least once a year, the  management team from an organization visits  another company and spends the day with that company's management team and  operations staff. During the   visit, you will actually see how other organizations physically manage their  CRM systems, train salespeople, deliver their solutions and how their office is  actually  organized. You generally can't get this hands-on view simply from having executives speaking to each other at conferences or meeting in a  group environment. 
Obviously, you will see both the good and bad during these  visits. This is the important aspect of the on-site benchmark meeting. The  agenda and key topics to be covered  must be carefully planned. These  events should be coordinated with a group meeting at the beginning of the day,  with one-on-one manger-shadowing during the day and a group wrapup session  at the end of the day. 
While the  investment can be large, the payoff will be huge. In every session we have  coordinated, both organizations have benefited from the experience. Openness and  an attitude of sharing are critical. 
Your challenge for the next five months: Find your "point  of measurement" and dare to compare. It will make your business planning  for 2012 a real experience.
 
	Posted by Ken Thoreson on May 27, 2011