4. The role of benchmarking in strategic planning

Benchmarking serves as a critical component of strategic planning by providing data-driven insights that inform decision-making. Benchmarking is part of the ‘baseline’ phase of the DWG 'Baseline to Breakthrough' model. It involves taking a structured, data-driven approach to understand the current state of the digital workplace.

Benchmarking allows organizations to:

1. Establish a baseline of their current performance

Benchmarking helps organizations to understand where they currently stand. This serves as the foundation for informed strategic planning.

2. Identify areas for improvement

Baselining and understanding your metrics and processes, then comparing your performance against industry standards and best practices, highlights opportunities for growth and optimization.

3. Set realistic goals based on industry standards

Benchmarking provides valuable insights into industry norms, enabling organizations to set achievable and competitive targets.

4. Learn from best practices of high-performing organizations

Studying the approaches of industry leaders allows organizations to adopt proven strategies and innovative solutions.

5. Measure progress over time

Regular benchmarking ensures organizations can track improvements and adjust their strategies to stay aligned with their objectives.

DWG has been carrying out benchmarks of intranets and digital workplaces with large organizations for more than 20 years. Our benchmarks are an effective and efficient tool for organizations looking to understand how they are performing in areas such as digital workplace management, digital communications channels, digital collaboration tools, modern intranet management, and more.

Interested? Try DWG’s free diagnostic benchmarking tool