Benchmarking and the balanced scorecard were presented. Benchmarking is defined as continuously measuring one's processes against competitors or best practices to improve. It involves planning, research, analysis and adaptation. The balanced scorecard provides a framework to measure performance across financial, customer, internal process and learning/growth perspectives to align activities with organizational strategy. Key factors for successful implementation include executive support, broad involvement, communication and viewing it as a long-term initiative rather than short-term project. Potential pitfalls can be addressed through a well-defined strategy and balanced set of leading and lagging metrics.