Overview

Each morning sees some task begin, Each evening sees it close; Something attempted, something done, Has earned a night's repose.

H.W. Longfellow, The Village Blacksmith

Many organizations start the improvement programme without going through the earlier stages of identifying the real requirements. This is usually the result of accepting the latest management fads without thinking through all the steps described in previous chapters. Change programmes that are not carefully planned and managed are doomed to failure, because not only is it likely that the improvement strategy will be wrong but also the necessary commitment and culture will not have been developed.

Many benchmarking projects have been well carried out and produced excellent reports and action plans, but due to poor implementation planning and a real will to make things happen little has been achieved. The knowledge gained through benchmarking of your own strengths and weakness can only lead to disillusionment of those involved, if no improvements are made or attempted. Disillusionment among a few key staff will be contagious and will result in a lowering of morale which will spread throughout the organization. Thus a benchmarking exercise, no matter how well carried out, if no follow up action is taken, will lead to negative results.

Therefore both benchmarking and implementation should be considered as one, and not as separate initiatives. Both are phases of a common continuous improvement process. As Bogan and English (1994) say, Segregating benchmarking planning and implementation planning is like separating Siamese twins who share vital...