Benchmarking as a policy-making tool: From the private to the public sector

Theodoros Papaioannou, Howard Rush and John Bessant

Science and Public Policy, 2006, vol. 33, issue 2, 91-102

Abstract: Benchmarking has a long history in the management world. It first emerged in the private sector as an engineering tool and having passed through different stages of development, is now also a policy-making tool in the public sector. The paper argues that although typologies of benchmarks can be developed and a generic methodological approach can be formulated, these cannot be unconditionally used in the sector of public policy. A number of problems can be identified: the lack of agreement on what public policy is, the contradiction between learning and copying in public sector organizations, the dualism between top-down and bottom-up approaches, and the conflict between accountability and public trust. These problems are also reflected in the specific case of innovation policy. Copyright , Beech Tree Publishing.

Date: 2006
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