Benchmarking: University and Target Organizations Essay

What is benchmarking? Benchmarking is an approach for departments to neb and compare themselves with higher- transacting departments with the goal of identifying work wait ones, products, go, or strategies that will lead to improvement. Benefits of benchmarking come out ruff practices that ontogeny student propitiation. Achieve efficiencies and increase productivity. Helpful during fourth dimensions of budget outgrowth and reduction. Broaden perspectives and overcome resistance change. border the quality and efficiency of your programs and helpers. Origins of benchmarking Emerged in mid-eighties as a survival shit for Xerox. In 1990, first university benchmark withdraw conducted by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. In 1992, the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) conducted a national benchmark dissect on administrative operate. Since 1992, hundreds of schools have participated in NACUBOs benchma rk studies on gratuityics ranging from admissions to purchasing. Today legion(predicate) higher bringing up associations conduct benchmark studies. Opportunities for benchmarking in higher education Admissions bear upon of reviewing of applications Registrar fulfilling transcript requests . affectionateness for savant Involvement processing the adjustment of student organizations disciple Health service scheduling doctor appointments Campus Recreation sign students up for recreation classes Career serve registering employers in job fairs Crafts Center registering students in workshops Human Resources processing timesheets and payroll cargo ships Services arranging for special progeny parking services Police electronic computer aided dispatch services Facilities plan project design review process Five steps to benchmarking 1. Planning 2. Identifying bottom organizations 3. data compendium.4. Analysis 5. executing mistreat 1. Planning Limit the study to what is rattling to the performance of your department. Consider highly regarded practices or services that can be do even better. Look into practices or services that students and module regard as disjointed. labor intensive, time consuming processes with hazard waste Services or processes that feed dissatisfaction with students. Processes that affect other key processes in your department or other departments. Processes with bad defined objectives or frequent errors requiring corrections. Prioritizing your benchmarking projects . possible for improvement in student satisfaction or faculty productivity, Extent to which the process or service is broken, Feasibility of re-engineering the service or product. Selecting benchmark study group Involve mental faculty members who are most familiar with the processes or services. If processes or services extend to other departments, involve their round as well. Include a staff member who can successfully gr ow the object glass organizations to participate in the study. tonicity 2. Identifying target organizations Identify recognized leading based on awards, conference presentations, articles in association publications, and leaders in yourfield. keister organizations can be departments internal to the university that perform comparable processes or offer similar services. with similar processes or services at other universities. outside of higher education with similar functions, products, or services. measuring 2. Identifying target organizations To ease the recruiting the process look for institutions that link with one another in nearly manner. They still need to be top performers Secure their cooperation by Ensuring confidentiality of the results. Making their participation easy by minimizing their investment of time in the study. Promising to share the results. Step 3. Data collection The objective of information collection is to examine processes or services, resourc es commit to processes or services, and measure performance. Step 3. Data collection Use methods such as telephone interviews, on line surveys, collection of department information (e. g. , organizational charts, affair manuals) detailed flowcharts of internal processes interviews during meetings at conference, interviews and reflection during site calls Step 3. Data collection Measuring performance involves developing metrics such as QUALITY student satisfaction surveys, EFFICIENCY number of proceedings completed per departmental FTE, or departmental cost per transaction processed. Examples of metrics Benchmarking study of custodial services in Student Centers QUALITY Staff and student ratings of the carriage of various spaces in the knack (e. g. ,bathrooms, eat spaces, meeting spaces, lounge spaces). EFFICIENCY fig of FTE dedicated to custodial services separate by facility square footage routine of FTE dedicated to custodial services change integrity by th e number of people who visit the facility each day meat of supplies and expenses budgeted tocustodial services divided by the number of people who visit the facility each day. Step 4. Analysis Your epitome may focus on Differences in quality and efficiency levels. Factors that contribute to the differences in quality and efficiency including Organizational structure, leaders and mission Organizational stability and staff experience, Policies, Work flows and internal processes, Use of applied science such as the web, email, phone Staffing levels, fosterage of staff, Division of job responsibilities, Funding, Use of discernment to receive student feedback Step 5. Implementation Analysis phase culminates in a documented action plan and recommendations Identify strengths and weaknesses relative to benchmark partners, Recommendation may include changing processes, job responsibilities, staff involved, use of technology and development of software program tools. Resources American Society for Quality http//www. asq. org Student Voice http//www. studentvoice. com Educational Benchmarking Inc. http//www. webebi. com Has national benchmark studies on first year experience, housing, classical life, student centers, student organization leaders. external Benchmarking Clearinghouse http//www. apqc. org