An investigation of the adoption and implementation of benchmarking

Diagnosing patient flow issues in the emergency department: an Australasian hospital case study

PURPOSE

This study investigates how a hospital can increase the flow of patients through its emergency department by using benchmarking and process improvement techniques borrowed from the manufacturing sector.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

An in-depth case study of an Australasian public hospital utilises rigorous, multi-method data collection procedures with systems thinking to benchmark an emergency department (ED) value stream and identify the performance inhibitors.

FINDINGS

High levels of value stream uncertainty result from inefficient processes and weak controls. Reduced patient flow arises from senior management's commitment to simplistic government targets, clinical staff that lack basic operations management skills, and fragmented information systems. High junior/senior staff ratios aggravate the lack of inter-functional integration and poor use of time and material resources, increasing the risk of a critical patient incident.

RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS

This research is limited to a single case; hence, further research should assess value stream maturity and associated performance enablers and inhibitors in other emergency departments experiencing patient flow delays.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

This study illustrates how hospital managers can use systems thinking and a context-free performance benchmarking measure to identify needed interventions and transferable best practices for achieving seamless patient flow.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE

This study is the first to operationalise the theoretical concept of the seamless healthcare system to acute care as defined by Parnaby and Towill (2008). It is also the first to use the uncertainty circle model in an Australasian public healthcare setting to objectively benchmark an emergency department's value stream maturity.

The current state of benchmarking use and networks in facilities management

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address the knowledge gap on the use of benchmarking techniques as utilized by facilities management (FM) professionals for the purpose of identifying means to improve industry benchmarking practices and guide the direction of future FM benchmarking research.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through surveying 585 FM practitioners representing various countries, organization sizes, types, industries. The data were summarized and analyzed through creating frequency tables, charts, and cross-tabulations. The survey results were compared to a previously published study on benchmarking use to identify the similarities and differences between benchmarking for FM functions vs core business functions.

Findings

The findings indicate that while FM-oriented benchmarking has been adopted at similar levels as other industries, FM-oriented benchmarking tends to be simplistic, lacks a strategic position in the company, often relies upon self-report survey data, is often performed by an individual with no formal benchmarking team and does not utilize process benchmarking or benchmarking networks. These findings emphasize the need for benchmarking education, advocacy for FM as a strategic business partner, the development of verified data sources and networks specifically for the unique greater facilities management field functions.

Practical implications

These findings provide needed data on the state of FM practitioner use of benchmarking specifically for FM functions in North America. The results can be used as an assessment for the industry, to improve practitioner use and knowledge, and to identify further avenues for academic study.

Originality/value

The value of this study lies in filling in identified knowledge gaps on how FM practitioners are using benchmarking in practice. These data are absent from the research literature and offer the potential to help bridge the academic-practitioner divide to ensure that future research will focus on addressing practitioner needs for the industry.

Benchmarking the practices of flexibility with maturity models and frameworks of organizational capabilities

Purpose

Organizational capabilities are crucial to achieve the objectives. A plethora of maturity models is available to guide organizational capabilities that create a perplexing situation about what stuff to improve and what to leave. Therefore, a unified maturity model addressing a wide range of capabilities is a necessity. This paper establishes that a flexibility maturity model is an unified model containing the operational, strategic and human capabilities.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper does a comparative analysis/benchmarking studies of different maturity models/frameworks widely used in the information technology (IT) sector with respect to the flexibility maturity model to establish its comprehensiveness and application in the organization to handle multiple goals.

Findings

This study confirms that the flexibility maturity model has the crucial elements of all the maturity models. If the organizations use the flexibility maturity model, they can avoid the burden of complying with multiple ones and become objective-driven rather than compliance-driven.

Research limitations/implications

The maturity models used in information technology sectors are used. This work will inspire other maturity models to adopt flexibility phenomena.

Practical implications

The comparative analysis will give confidence in application of flexibility framework. The business environment and strategic options across organizations are inherently different that the flexibility maturity model well handles.

Social implications

A choice is put to an organization to see the comparison tables produced in this paper and choose the right framework according to the prevailing business situation.

Originality/value

This is the first study that makes a conclusion based on comparative benchmarking of existing maturity models.

Rapid benchmarking: the case of a multinational dairy company

Purpose

The purpose of the study is to investigate and document a new approach to best practice benchmarking called rapid benchmarking. Rapid benchmarking is defined by the authors as an approach to dramatically shorten the typical length of time to conduct a successful best practice benchmarking project.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology involved a case study exploration of a multinational dairy company's best practice benchmarking approach using structured interviews and data collection to examine the speed and results achieved through its benchmarking approach and whether it was justified in naming it as rapid benchmarking. A comparison of the speed of the dairy company's approach was undertaken against 24 other organisations that had utilised the same benchmarking methodology (TRADE Best Practice Benchmarking). In addition, a literature review was undertaken to search for other cases of rapid benchmarking and compare rapid benchmarking with other rapid improvement approaches.

Findings

The findings revealed that the approach used by the dairy company was unique, with best practices being identified and action plans signed off for deployment within a five-day period (far quicker than the average time of 211 days reported by other organisations). Key success factors for rapid benchmarking were found to be allocating five dedicated days for the benchmarking team to spend on the project, identifying the right team members for the project, obtaining sponsorship support for the project and providing intensive facilitation support through a benchmarking facilitator.

Research limitations/implications

Only one company was found to use a rapid benchmarking approach; therefore, the findings are from one case study. The depth of analysis presented was restricted due to commercial sensitivity.

Practical implications

The rapid benchmarking approach is likely to be of great interest to practitioners, providing them with a new way of finding solutions and best practices to address challenges that need to be solved quickly or with minimal expense. For organisations that have been using benchmarking for many years, the research will enable them to re-evaluate their own benchmarking approach and consider if rapid benchmarking could be used for some projects, particularly for internal benchmarking where it is easier to apply.

Originality/value

This research is the first to identify and document a rapid benchmarking approach and the first to provide a detailed analysis of the length of time it takes to undertake best practice benchmarking projects (and each stage of a benchmarking project).

An analysis of a structured benchmarking project

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate a benchmarking project carried out by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) as part of a structured benchmarking initiative. The project was based on the TRADE benchmarking methodology and this paper examines the tools, activities and outcomes that relate to each stage of the adopted methodology.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is based on case study methodology. Data were collected from various sources including analysis of project reports written by DEWA’s benchmarking team reporting on their activities during the project. Data were also collected from four project presentations given at different stages of the project. In addition, the research team held three meetings with the DEWA benchmarking team at different stages of the benchmarking project.

Findings

The results show the key challenges and successes faced during each stage of the benchmarking project. It indicates the actions taken to overcome the challenges and the role played by internal and external stakeholders in facilitating the success of the benchmarking project.

Practical implications

The study presents information that would guide organisations that wish to carry out a benchmarking project – and particularly those implementing benchmarking for the first time. The study provides a summary of the key lessons learnt by DEWA’s benchmarking team as a guide for other organisations.

Originality/value

Academic research has not adequately examined and analysed the stage-by-stage elements of a benchmarking project from the perspective of the implementing organisation. This study addresses this gap by detailing and analysing the experiences of a benchmarking project by tracking the stage-by-stage activities of the benchmarking team.

Service quality benchmarking via a novel approach based on fuzzy ELECTRE III and IPA: an empirical case involving the Italian public healthcare context

A novel fuzzy-based approach which combines ELECTRE III along with the Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) is proposed in the present work to comparatively evaluate the service quality in the public healthcare context. Specifically, ELECTRE III is firstly considered to compare the service performance of examined hospitals in a noncompensatory manner. Afterwards, IPA is employed to support the service quality management to point out improvement needs and their priorities. The proposed approach also incorporates features of the Fuzzy Set Theory so as to address the possible uncertainty, subjectivity and vagueness of involved experts in evaluating the service quality. The model is applied to five major Sicilian public hospitals, and strengths and criticalities of the delivered service are finally highlighted and discussed. Although several approaches combining multi-criteria methods have already been proposed in the literature to evaluate the service performance in the healthcare field, to the best of the authors' knowledge the present work represents the first attempt at comparing service performance of alternatives in a noncompensatory manner in the investigated context.

Multi-sector framework for benchmarking in facilities management

Purpose

Benchmarking in FM practice although understood and applied globally, little is known about the practice in Nigeria. The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework to guide the use of benchmarking.

Design/methodology/approach

The research adopts a cross-sectional survey design. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires on FM organizations in Lagos metropolis, Abuja and Port Harcourt. The results of the survey were supplemented with interviews with FM unit heads in the study areas. The framework was validated using a focus group discussion with ten FM industry experts.

Findings

A framework which serves as a guide for the use of best practice benchmarking was developed. It showed that there is a relationship between best practice benchmarking and location.

Research limitations/implications

The evaluation of the framework was limited by the number of participants involved and being that it has not been put to use.

Originality/value

This study develops a multi-sector framework to guide the use of best practice benchmarking in facilities management (FM). The framework explains the relationship between organizational characteristics and best practice benchmarking. In addition, there are limited empirical benchmarking frameworks in FM literature.

The emergence and evolution of benchmarking: a management fashion perspective

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to make a contribution to the benchmarking literature by examining the historical emergence and evolution of benchmarking using the management fashion perspective as a theoretical lens.

Design/methodology/approach

The research approach followed in this paper can be characterized as explorative and theoretical. Insights from different data sources have been combined to provide a rich description of the emergence and evolution of benchmarking.

Findings

This analysis casts new light on several aspects of benchmarking’s emergence and evolution pattern. The characteristics of the benchmarking idea give it potential as a fashionable management tool. The widespread popularity and longevity of benchmarking can to a large extent be explained by the efforts of various actors to turn benchmarking into an institution.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is explorative and is limited by a reliance on secondary sources.

Originality/value

Although some researchers have noted that benchmarking could be viewed as a management fashion, management fashion theory has, only to a very limited extent, been used as a theoretical lens in the context of benchmarking. This research paper demonstrates that management fashion theory can provide valuable insights for research on benchmarking.

Framework for continuous performance improvement in small drinking water systems

Continuous performance improvement (CPI) can be a useful approach to overcome water quality problems impacting small communities. Small drinking water systems (SDWSs) struggle to meet regulatory requirements and often lack the economic and human resource flexibility for immediate improvement. A CPI framework is developed to provide SDWS managers and operators an approach to gauge their current performance against similar systems and to track performance improvement from the implementation of the new technologies or innovations into the future. The proposed CPI framework incorporates the use of a water quality index (WQI) and functional performance benchmarking to evaluate and compare drinking water quality performance of an individual water utility against that of a representative benchmark. The results are then used to identify and prioritize the most vulnerable water quality indicators and subsequently identify and prioritize performance improvement strategies. The proposed CPI framework has been demonstrated using data collected from SDWSs in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador (NL), Canada and using the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) WQI.

A qualitative investigation of benchmarking barriers in Nigeria

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine benchmarking barriers among Nigerian facilities management (FM) practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collection were through semi-structured interviews with 34 FM heads from three selected cities in Nigeria. Out of this number, 16 were from Lagos, ten from Abuja while eight managers were from Port Harcourt, respectively. These managers were selected using purposive sampling based on their experience in the field of FM across the various sectors of the economy. The interviews were analysed with Nvivo 10 software qualitative computer software.

Findings

Those that do informal benchmarking face challenges with data, employees lack of confidence in new initiatives and poor support of senior management, the companies that use best practice benchmarking face constraints of access to information and employees unwillingness to change and comply to company set standards, unwillingness of benchmarking partners to understand the usefulness of the project, and problems that emanate from the quality of data obtained.

Practical implications

The results therefore suggest that to improve the practice of best practice benchmarking there is need to improve both quantity and quality of data for the exercise and enhance standard practice.

Originality/value

The study established a new category of benchmarking barriers called the market category of benchmarking barriers and further distinguished benchmarking barriers based on two forms of benchmarking which is informal and formal benchmarking. Also there are limited studies on benchmarking barriers in developing countries.

Improving SME logistics performance through benchmarking

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the applicability of current benchmarking proposals for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and to suggest a condensed process for logistics benchmarking in SMEs.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper starts by outlining why the logistics function is of increasing importance for SMEs. It discusses the benefit of logistics benchmarking and typical SME restrictions in benchmarking. Available approaches to benchmarking are discussed and their weaknesses when applied to SME logistics benchmarking are analyzed. The paper develops a new benchmarking process framework for SME logistics benchmarking and reports findings of a case application in three German SMEs.

Findings

The paper suggests a conceptual framework for logistics benchmarking in SMEs. The framework was tested in three German case companies. Results suggest that the suggested process together with the employed benchmarking tools and templates provide valuable support for SMEs in a logistics benchmarking project.

Research limitations/implications

The conceptual framework developed has been tested in selected case companies only. Possible adaptations to specific industry needs or cultural differences need to be integrated.

Practical implications

The process framework developed provides practical guidance for SMEs that want to embark on a logistics benchmarking exercise.

Originality/value

The paper outlines weaknesses of current SME benchmarking approaches and provides practical support by outlining an adapted process together with specific implementation tools.

Attitudes of Nigerian facilities management professionals to the benefits of benchmarking

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the benefits of benchmarking among Nigerian facilities management (FM) practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collection was through semi-structured interviews with 34 FM heads from three selected cities in Nigeria. Of this number, 16 were from Lagos, 10 from Abuja, while 8 managers were from Port Harcourt. These managers were selected using purposive sampling based on their experience in the field of FM across the various sectors of the economy. The interviews were analysed with Nvivo 10 software qualitative computer software so as to reduce manual tasks, discover tendencies and recognize themes on the practice, meaning and benefits of benchmarking. Matrix coding of the Nvivo software was used to distinguish between benefits realized by those that conduct formal and informal benchmarking.

Findings

The paper found that those that perform informal benchmarking find that the benchmarking tool helps them to improve performance, service quality and their processes. On the other hand, those that perform formal benchmarking affirmed that benchmarking helped them in making strategic plans, striving to be the best in the industry and obtaining explanations for those improvements that are made now and in the near future.

Practical implications

The results, therefore, suggest that formal benchmarking in Nigeria is needed in performing strategic role in FM, as well as in making good business case agitations. Practitioners also need to know the benefits of benchmarking to improve its usage.

Originality/value

The paper categorised FM benchmarking benefits. Also, there are limited empirical studies on benchmarking benefits in developing countries.

Deploying business excellence – success factors for high performance

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of how organisations successfully deploy business excellence (BE) by comparing the tools and strategies implemented by organisations at different levels of BE maturity.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study used a combination of a questionnaire, discussion groups and interviews with respondents including private sector organisations across India, Japan, Republic of China, Singapore and Thailand. These countries were selected due to them being considered as having the most advanced BE organisations in Asia by the Asian Productivity Organisation (APO) that commissioned the study. Once triangulated, the quantitative data were analysed through use of the IBM SPSS Statistical software package.

Findings

– The study has shown that on average, organisations with higher BE maturity outperform their less mature counterparts. The study also revealed that organisations with a high BE maturity were more likely to use specific tools and were more likely to use some of these tools more effectively. Finally, the study identified differences in strategic approaches to BE between organisations with high and low BE maturity.

Research limitations/implications

– Only five Asian countries were considered due to resource limitations. However, the study of 74 organisations represents one of the most comprehensive to date with 30 of these organisations being award winners.

Practical implications

– The findings offer guidance to those organisations wishing to progress from a low level of BE maturity to a more advanced level. The findings have already assisted the APO and its 20 member countries in the development and implementation of strategic interventions at a regional and national level.

Originality/value

– No other study in Asia has been conducted on such a large sample of BE-orientated organisations. The study was also unique in its focus on the tools and strategies that should be used for successful BE deployment. In addition, the study is one of only a few in Asia that has studied the results of BE on organisational performance.

Assessment of facility management practices in public and private buildings in Akure and Ibadan cities, south-western Nigeria

Purpose

– This paper aims to assess the facility management (FM) practices in public and private buildings, and compare the practices in both the buildings. This paper critically analysed the current FM practices and explored the range of contributions that the facility manager could offer in both public and private buildings.

Design/methodology/approach

– A case study of 19 public and 20 private buildings in Ibadan and Akure cities was carried out in this paper.

Findings

– The paper revealed that the state of FM awareness is higher in private buildings than in public buildings and that FM practices in the two types of buildings are significantly related, but the extent of usage of FM methods are significantly different in the buildings. It was also observed in the research that corrective and responsive FM practices are the order of the day in both public and private buildings.

Practical implications

– The paper acknowledged that the involvement of the facility manager with the integrated design team if implemented efficiently will contribute in reducing the need for major repairs and alterations in the lifespan of the facility and that the practices of preventive, planned and immediate responsive approaches would better the life of buildings.

Social implications

– The paper recommended that stricter action should be taken to mitigate against the poor handling and misuse of buildings by users, as it affects negatively the success story of FM in the country.

Originality/value

– This paper reached out to address the lack of proper FM in the country.

Benchmarking challenges in facilities management in Nigeria

Purpose

– The paper aims to examine benchmarking challenges among Nigerian Facilities management (FM) practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

– Data collection was through self-administered questionnaires sent to 120 FM organizations in Lagos metropolis, 50 in Abuja and 15 in Port Harcourt. Also, interviews were conducted on six facilities managers to ascertain challenges faced by organizations that use best practice benchmarking. The survey achieved a total response rate of 74 per cent in Lagos, 66 per cent in Abuja and 93 per cent in Port Harcourt, respectively. Grand mean scores and relative importance index were used to ascertain ranking of the challenges. One-way analysis of variance and t-test were used to establish whether organizations’ characteristics bring about significant differences in the types of benchmarking challenges encountered.

Findings

– Overall, the top four challenges of benchmarking were “unwillingness of employees to change”, “inadequate understanding of the exercise of benchmarking”, “inadequate access to data from other organizations” and “poor execution of-the benchmarking exercise”. Also, FM organization location result in a significant difference in benchmarking challenges.

Practical implications

– The implication of the study is that it will assist in identifying impediments to benchmarking and barriers faced during benchmarking and, thus, enable recommendations to be made to minimize such challenges.

Originality/value

– There are limited empirical studies on the problems of benchmarking in developing countries.

An investigation of lead benchmarking implementation

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore current levels of lead benchmarking implementation and lead performance indicators among Malaysian organizations. Comparing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with large companies, it identifies what benefits and difficulties are present during benchmarking implementation.

Design/methodology/approach

– Descriptive analyses, one-way ANOVAs between and within groups, and parametric and non-parametric tests are used to compare responses obtained from small, medium and large Malaysian manufacturing organizations.

Findings

– Findings suggest that larger organizations have a more progressive approach to lead benchmarking. Strategy and employee development are dominant lead performance indicators of continuous improvement. Large companies experience fewer challenges when implementing benchmarking projects. Perceptions of key benchmarking implementation barriers shift from mere lack of resources toward lack of knowledge and training, information sharing, commitment and trust.

Research limitations/implications

– The sample is specific in nature (Malaysian manufacturing organizations); results should be interpreted accordingly.

Originality/value

– Little is known about lead benchmarking practices in Malaysia, particularly within the contexts of SMEs. The outcomes of this study provide a basis for further improvement and valuable knowledge for top management of manufacturing organizations to refine strategies and advance quality management approaches.

Longitudinal benchmarking studies in operations management: lessons learned

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the possibilities and pitfalls of longitudinal studies in the field of operations management (OM).

Design/methodology/approach

A longitudinal study conducted in Finland was analyzed from the methodological point of view. In the theoretical part, a framework for analyses was created by studying the literature of longitudinal studies within and without the OM field.

Findings

Longitudinal studies are important in revealing root‐cause effects. They are particularly important in generating new ideas and theories and in questioning old ones. However, longitudinal studies are somewhat difficult to conduct and some unexpected challenges may arise, such as the effect of technology development on data retrieval.

Research limitations/implications

The analyses in this study are based on the data obtained in a longitudinal study conducted in the years 1993, 2004 and 2010. The sample in the longitudinal study is quite small for real quantitative statistical analysis, and therefore the conclusions made here are only indicative. However, the purpose of this study is to give some hints and guidance, and thus the lessons learned are valuable.

Originality/value

There are only a few studies describing methodological issues in longitudinal studies in the field of OM, and most of these studies are purely theoretical and do not refer to real experiences. This appears to be one of the first studies describing real experiences from a longitudinal study.