How do you compare your business administration to industry standards?

1 Identify your goals and objectives

The first step is to clarify what you want to achieve with your business administration and how you measure your success. You need to have specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals and objectives that align with your vision, mission, and values. For example, you may want to increase your profitability, customer satisfaction, productivity, innovation, or quality. You also need to have key performance indicators (KPIs) that track your progress and outcomes.

2 Research industry standards and benchmarks

The next step is to find out what are the industry standards and benchmarks for your business administration. Industry standards are the norms and expectations that define the best practices and performance levels for your sector or field. Benchmarks are the quantitative or qualitative measures that compare your performance to those of your competitors or peers. You can research industry standards and benchmarks by consulting industry reports, publications, associations, or experts. You can also use online tools, such as databases, surveys, or dashboards, that provide industry data and insights.

3 Analyze your strengths and weaknesses

The third step is to analyze your strengths and weaknesses in relation to the industry standards and benchmarks. You need to conduct a SWOT analysis that evaluates your internal and external factors that affect your business administration. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Strengths are the positive aspects of your business administration that give you an advantage over others. Weaknesses are the negative aspects of your business administration that limit your performance or potential. Opportunities are the external factors that offer you room for improvement or growth. Threats are the external factors that pose challenges or risks to your business administration.

4 Implement improvement actions

The fourth step is to implement improvement actions that address your weaknesses and leverage your strengths. You need to prioritize the most critical and feasible actions that can help you close the gap between your current and desired performance. You also need to set realistic and attainable targets and timelines for your improvement actions. Some examples of improvement actions are: adopting new technologies or systems, training or hiring staff, revising or developing policies or procedures, enhancing communication or collaboration, or launching new products or services.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?