Benchmarking is a continuous, systematic process for identifying and importing best practices to improve performance. It involves a series of actions, steps, functions or activities that bring about an end result. Several types of benchmarking include the internal, competitive and functional, generic or process benchmarking. Most benchmarking processes incorporate these essential elements: planning, data collection, data analysis and reporting, and adaptations of study findings. The article enumerates examples of how benchmarking is employed in the public sector. It features the experiences derived from an Asian Development Bank's project to pilot test the use of benchmarking as a means of improving municipal service delivery in selected Asian municipalities. Although the participating municipalities had different levels of accomplishments due to varying political and cultural circumstances, the study shows that all of them agree that benchmarking offers an exciting way for municipalities to make tangible improvements in service delivery by proving that they can do better, either by studying their internal processes, or going through a friendly competition with other agencies.
