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The burgeoning of benchmarking in British local government The value of “learning by looking” in the public services

The burgeoning of benchmarking in British local government The value of “learning by looking” in... This article provides an overview of the current state of play of benchmarking in local government in the UK. It traces a trajectory of development for local authorities that diverges from that of the corporate private sector, in terms of the importance of external political drivers. A number of key constraints are identified that are together blocking the further development of benchmarking in the sector. These include a lack of awareness of potential scope; problems in securing needed skills; satisficing and low aspiration levels reducing the potential gain from benchmarking; and a marked lack of formal evaluation. Notwithstanding recent growth, a legitimate degree of scepticism remains in many local authorities as to the public value to be derived from benchmarking. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Benchmarking for Quality Management & Technology Emerald Publishing

The burgeoning of benchmarking in British local government The value of “learning by looking” in the public services

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Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © 1998 MCB UP Ltd. All rights reserved.
ISSN
1351-3036
DOI
10.1108/14635779810245099
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

This article provides an overview of the current state of play of benchmarking in local government in the UK. It traces a trajectory of development for local authorities that diverges from that of the corporate private sector, in terms of the importance of external political drivers. A number of key constraints are identified that are together blocking the further development of benchmarking in the sector. These include a lack of awareness of potential scope; problems in securing needed skills; satisficing and low aspiration levels reducing the potential gain from benchmarking; and a marked lack of formal evaluation. Notwithstanding recent growth, a legitimate degree of scepticism remains in many local authorities as to the public value to be derived from benchmarking.

Journal

Benchmarking for Quality Management & Technology – Emerald Publishing

Published: Dec 1, 1998

Keywords: Benchmarking; Learning; Local government

References

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