In the past decade, the concept of benchmarking has been described various ways and applied to many types of industries. Now, the water industry has a manual of best practice explaining a complex topic and applying it specifically to the different demands of water and wastewater utilities. The authors of Benchmarking Water Services have illustrated the IWA framework of preparation, performance assessment and performance improvement without getting caught in the traditional trappings of metrics versus process benchmarking. In fact, the text explains the history of the two terms and converts them into the updated assessment and improvement model with layers of detail to meet the needs of a water utility of any size.
Any benchmarking project is a demanding endeavor, which needs to involve all levels of any organization and receive full support from them, including senior management. In the past 20 years, many benchmarking projects have been undertaken in the water industry all over the world. Usually the utility management, with its operational responsibility for the service, has its own drivers to benchmark which is discussed when dealing with the various stakeholders and their needs.
The author's style explains overall concepts for the beginner then dives into elemental detail for the benchmarking enthusiast. This continuous trend of conceptual to specifics throughout the book provides for an educational experience each time the book is either casually perused or carefully studied. The drive to continuously improve the organization and its products can be facilitated in benchmarking projects that provide a detailed insight into the performance and identify areas and means of improvement. The relative position of the utility against its peers can help determine the sense of urgency for taking measures in the analyzed areas. The comparison of performance assessments can help both governments and regulators introduce artificial competition in the sector which constitutes a natural monopoly. Another benefit of benchmarking for external policy makers could be to put pressure on utilities to raise efficiency and transparency. Utility stakeholders and bondholders require insight in utility performance, efficiency in the operations, financial sustainability, and proper risk assessment. Regardless of the purpose, the performance assessment system needs to be well‐designed and tailor made for its objective. The manual provides and explains these concerns while forging ahead into the actual process.
The practicality of the manual is expressed through the hands on approach of the requirements to manage a complex benchmarking project with complicated data acquisition and validation issues and the comparable difficulty with analysis and assessment reporting concerns. Managing expectations and utility objectives is also addressed through the assignment of roles and responsibilities.
The authors (Cabrera, Dane, Haskins and Fritiz) diligently pursue the focus of improvement. The myriad of international examples deliver this message through various illustrations and discussions of worldwide efforts to track and improve services which directly impact the public health of its customers and citizens. Successful workshops require a foundational understanding of the concepts and the objectives of benchmarking planning and improvement reporting. As a result, the book is a critical source for utility staffers, management, and stakeholders as a precursor to any hands on workshops.
The crowning and satisfying section of IWA performance indicators offers a comprehensive selection of both water and wastewater utility functions such as personnel, physical, operational, quality of service, economic, financial and environmental. This expressed level of indicator detail, while overwhelming to some, does provides a deep well of operational and management possibilities with the ongoing challenge of continuous improvement or just weighing the differences of indicator tradeoffs.
The new manual of best practice for Benchmarking Water Services is an in depth and practical “must have” guide for any utility currently engaged in or planning to develop a benchmarking process with a comprehensive selection of performance indicators.
