What are the two types of benchmarks?

• A. Short-term and long-term
• B. Internal and external
• C. Local and global
• D. Qualitative and quantitative

Answer: (B)

Benchmarking is the process of comparing performance against a standard to identify improvement opportunities. The two main types are internal benchmarks and external benchmarks. Internal benchmarking looks inside the organization, comparing performance across different units, teams, or time periods to find best practices that already exist internally and set realistic internal targets. External benchmarking compares performance with other organizations, industry peers, or published benchmarks to gauge where you stand in the market and to set aspirational goals. Other descriptions like short-term versus long-term, local versus global, or qualitative versus quantitative refer to different attributes (time frame, geographic scope, or data type) rather than where the benchmark data comes from.