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In traditional importance‐performance analysis, self‐reported relative importance weights and “own” brand performance ratings are combined to yield assessments of current market standing. Discusses the pressing need for comparatives to avoid major problems in brand performance assessments within traditional importance‐performance analysis. These comparatives ideally include performance assessments of competitors′ brands, although several other possibilities exist: norms provided by “own” brand past performance, comparison to an “ideal brand”, and segment comparisons.

Considers various approaches to the study of comparative marketing, suggesting methodology that provides an adequate framework on which to base comparative domestic marketing studies. States the first objective here is to explore various definitions of the term ‘comparative marketing’ to place the area of study in its rightful place; second, is to suggest a methodology provide an adequate framework on which to base domestic comparative marketing studies. Proposes that if improvement in the state of knowledge is to take place, commonality of terminology and methodology must first be established. Concludes that information provided gives the background necessary to achieve desirable objectives.

Product performance measurements have been used to explain other business performance variables. The purpose of this paper is to propose that, regarding Mexican consumers, the “comparison-based perceived attribute performance” (CAP) approach is a better predictor of outcomes, such as satisfaction, value and loyalty, compared with the traditional measurement of “non-comparison-based perceived attribute performance” (NCAP). These two forms of assessing attribute-level performance may be considered as different constructs.

Using these two approaches, empirical tests were performed to attribute performance measurement and were conducted on products from two different categories: tequila and liquid dishwashing detergent. Regression analyses were performed using Mexican consumer samples of n=295 and n=239, respectively.

As opposed to NCAP, CAP measurements yielded higher statistical levels of satisfaction, value and loyalty for both product categories. In the case of tequila, factor analysis indicated a clear separation between the two types of measurements, suggesting that they should be considered distinct constructs. However, this was not found for the other product category.

CAP, which has better potential to predict outcomes than NCAP, could have relevant implications in brand positioning assessment and importance-performance analyses.

The purpose of this paper is to locate those entrepreneur human capital elements which significantly influence an enterprise's growth performance, within both high‐tech and traditional enterprises, thereby helping entrepreneurs understand that human capital elements will provide different impacts within different industries.

Under some necessary research assumptions, the statistical analysis described in this paper uses data collected from a questionnaire survey and is performed under the SPSS16.0 Program.

An enterprise growth model is built from the perspectives of entrepreneur human capital. Analysis shows that human capital elements of the same entrepreneur have different impacts on the performance of business growth in different industries. The theoretical model provides a better explanation of the high‐tech enterprises' growth performance. Innovation and business growth performances from a high‐tech enterprise have greater reliance on human capital of entrepreneurs than the traditional industries.

Most current studies of the human capital of entrepreneurs focus on the analysis of background characteristics, but inadequate attention has been given to the relationship between human capital and the enterprises' growth performance, as well as to the comparative analysis of entrepreneurs' human capital in high‐tech enterprises and traditional enterprises. This paper, however, compares and analyzes such relationships between high‐tech enterprises and traditional enterprises.

Local government in Australia has a complex system of accountability, part of which includes the publication of financial comparative performance measures. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how questionable financial figures not only distort the reported “bottom line” of local councils but can also be included in a number of financial key performance indicators (FKPIs) upon which council performance is judged. Valuation and depreciation of transport infrastructure assets form the basis for the evaluation.

A longitudinal study of all New South Wales (NSW) councils (170) from 1999‐2000 to 2002‐2003 was conducted using archival research combined with in‐depth case study analysis and interviews (New South Wales (NSW) is the largest of Australia's eight states and territories). This paper provides detailed analysis of 28 local government councils classified as being on “financial watch” by the Department of Local Government and a comparative sample of 28 councils not classified as at risk but reporting figures considered to be contestable (At risk, or financially challenged councils, are defined as “having issues of concern with their financial operations”).

Of the 170 councils in NSW, up to 98 per cent recorded an error in depreciation of some component of transport infrastructure during 1999‐2000 and 2002‐2003. The error margin ranged from 11 to 73,520 per cent significantly impacting on the three targeted FKPIs.

Future research will examine preparation of possible alternative policies for local government addressing the issue of internal benchmarking and external performance measures.

This research offers some reparation for the relative lack of empirical research literature on local government FKPIs and, in particular, those that do not meet the underlying accountability focus of performance measurement.

The purpose of this research is to develop a method for measuring police efficiency.

The design of this paper is to apply the technique of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), a comparative or relative efficiency measuring mechanism to police‐work‐related data from India. This application provides a rationale for identifying good performance practices. It helps in generating targets of performance, the optimum levels of operations, role models that inefficient departments can emulate and the extent to which improvements can be made over a period of time.

The paper measures the performances of State police units in India and the results suggest ways in which some State police departments can improve their overall efficiency.

The paper suggests ways in which the efficiency of any unit of criminal justice systems may be formulated and compared across different units of the system.

The value is that it introduces a new technique to police practitioners and researchers and demonstrates its efficacy by case analysis from India.

The purpose of this research is to compare the board quality's (BQ) impacts on the financial performance (FP) of conventional and Islamic banks (IBs) after the Subprime financial crisis. The main reason is to help financial stakeholders choose the best performing and most appropriate bank type with its engagement based on the BQ index.

Based on the existing gap in previous researches and by using the GLS method (Generalized Least Squares method), the author compared the BQ's impacts on the FP of conventional and IBs. Settings of the FP and BQ were collected from 30 countries located on 4 continents. Two equal samples were tested; each of them is composed of 112 banks. The author concentrated only on the banks that have published regularly the banks' annual reports over the period 2010–2018.

Cylindrical panel results revealed that in conventional banks (CBs), the BQ has negatively affected banks' FP, while in IBs the BQ's impacts on the banks’' FP is ambiguous. Nevertheless, the positive impacts are more significant on the IBs' FP than the negative impacts on the IBs' FP.

The main practical contribution is the identification and distinction between the impacts of board determinants' quality on the shareholders' profits in the case of conventional and IBs. Hence, conventional or IBs which have a bad BQ will generate less FP and will be classified as a lender of bankruptcy danger for the bank customer. Besides, whatever the bank type, in a financial stable period, good BQ positively influences FP and provides a good impression to stakeholders. Otherwise, FP indicates that the banks suffer from the weaknesses of the board quality determinants.

Returning to the finance and banking governance literature, the author's article provides the first conditional and demonstrative analysis that detailed a logical comparative process to analyze the correlation between the board determinants' quality and the financial performance of conventional and IBs. However, previous research has always discussed the main role of the board as an internal governance mechanism on the FP separately in each bank type.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the current perceptions of company employees regarding the use and understanding of the terms “benchmark” as in performance measurement and “benchmarking” as in measurement followed by identification of best practices for improvement.

A brief review of the literature from various industries is summarized on this issue, and then related to the research question. A qualitative research study is used to examine the perceptions of 42 participants who were primarily full‐time employees at companies in the New York metropolitan area pursuing a part‐time graduate business degree.

The hypothesis is supported by the literature and the research findings that there is indeed a misunderstanding between the commonly used terms relating to performance measurement benchmarks and true benchmarking where identification of process leaders is only the first step in a complete process that then identifies best practices to be adapted.

Limitations of the study are identified such as the size and characteristics of the study population, and suggestions are made for future research endeavors to verify the findings.

This paper reveals that a more precise terminological use of true benchmarking practices should be promoted and used by management leaders, educators and writers.

This is a valuable empirical research study that examines the important issue of misunderstandings and misstatements of mere performance benchmarks for comparative analysis and real benchmarking practices that identify best practices for adapting via continuous improvement.

Comparative Public Administration (CPA) attained its greatest intellectual influence during the post World War II era, although it was utilized much earlier. In 1887, for example, Woodrow Wilson's article, considered the first articulation of public administration as a field of study, clearly emphasized the comparative approach as the foundation of developing administrative principles. Wilson argued for “putting away all prejudices against looking anywhere in the world but at home for suggestions” in the study of public administration. He emphasized that “nowhere else in the whole field of politics …, can we make use of the historical, comparative method more safely than in this province of administration” (Wilson, 1887).

This paper aims to present the findings of an empirical study that examines and compares the competitive impact of intellectual capital on enterprise performance in small innovative enterprises (SIEs) situated in four geographical regions: St Petersburg in the Russian Federation, the Black Forest region of Germany, the “Medicon Valley”, situated between Copenhagen in Denmark and Malmo in Sweden, and Silicon Valley in the USA.

The research seeks to investigate potential differences in intellectual capital practices across the four regions while comparing the impact of these relative to the firm's external factors (socio‐political, technological, and economic) for enterprise performance. To that end, the research reported builds on and extends earlier research focused on Russian SIEs.

The research findings suggest that intellectual capital practices and their impact on enterprise performance are more similar than different across the regions studied, and that the firms' intellectual capital constitutes the more important determinant of enterprise performance relative to external factors. This does not preclude differences in intellectual capital practices between the regions studied. These differences are marginal, however, and reflect socio‐economic and national cultural factors unique to those regions investigated.

The key questions of the research address the relative impact of intellectual capital practices (internal factors) and prevailing socio‐political, economic, and technological factors on the performance of small innovative enterprises. The work presents an extended sample size of Russian companies (also from St Petersburg) and an extension of the earlier study to include the three additional geographic regions. The notion of the knowledge‐based theory of the firm forms the conceptual basis of the framework that is developed to relate intellectual capital (human capital and structural capital) and key external factors (socio‐political, economic and technological) to enterprise performance in SIEs.

The study compares the perceived importance of intellectual capital and external environmental factors for enterprise competitiveness of companies in the four regions – Russia, Germany, Denmark, and the USA. The research provides evidence that intellectual capital is perceived to be the most important factor driving competitive performance in all the regions.

Similar to the research reported in an earlier paper by the same authors, the paper represents work in progress. As such, the outcomes and conclusions reported should be viewed as preliminary findings.