Best Practice

Best Practice is a business management concept that gained prominence in the 1990s.

Best Practice and Benchmarking

Best Practice is a term often used in the literature in ways that treat it as identical to benchmarking. Others connect benchmarking with quantitative indicators and leaves best practice in the realm of more qualitative, extended descriptions of successful firms and their processes. Benchmarking is one aspect of best practice.

Benchmarking
The method of benchmarking is to form a review team and make approaches to another likeminded organisation which may have a similar operation, but operate in a completely different field. For example, a furniture manufacturer may team with a glassware manufacturer to review their respective warehouse and distribution systems. The process includes the identification and setting of benchmarks. Another method is to involve an industry group or association to review an industry wide process and develop a standard process, eg local government

Best Practice defined

. A holistic, comprehensive, integrated and cooperative approach to the continuous improvement of all aspects of an organisations operations including leadership, planning, people, customers, suppliers, the production and supply of products and services, and the use of benchmarking as a learning tool. These practices, when effectively linked together, can be expected, to lead to sustainable world class outcomes in productivity, quality, customer service, flexibility, timeliness, innovation, cost and competitiveness.

Principles of Best Practice Performance Management Systems

A framework for effective best practice performance management includes: Clarifying performance objectives Periodic performance appraisal of individuals or teams against the achievement of these objectives Feedback from this appraisal Recognition or reward for performance, including performance pay, salary progression guided by performance or non-pay reward system

Principles continued
Team and individual development to build capabilities Counselling, or other action to deal with poor performance Establishing a link between the development of capabilities with organisational and business planning Evaluating the contribution of individual, team and organisational performance

Best Practice requires:

Communication: Frequent and detailed exchange enhanced by communication Continuous improvement: Ongoing goal formation, preparation of action plans and evaluation Culture consciousness: Constant formal and informal study aimed at a desirable organisational culture

In summary Best Practice is a comprehensive, integrated and cooperative approach to the continuous improvement of all areas of the business/service

Why adopt Best Practice?

Proven quality approach to service delivery Increased productivity Increased customer satisfaction Minimised risk Reduced costs Improved communication between IT and the business and your organisation

What are the difficulties with best practice model use? What would you need to do to implement best practice in organisations?

What are the difficulties with best practice model use? What would you need to do to implement best practice in organisations?