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The United States is the world leader in terms of gross domestic product. About $46,000 in products is produced per employee in the United States each year.
That's the good news.
The bad news is that if current trends continue, seven countries will surpass the United States by the year 2010.
France will lead the world, according to information compiled by the American Productivity and Quality Center, a non-profit, Houston-based organization founded in 1977 to improve the quality of U.S. products and the competitiveness of U.S. companies.
Japan will be third and the United States will have dropped to eighth, according to the center's predictions.
APQC is determined to alter America's fate.
In February, the center launched the International Benchmarking Clearinghouse. IBC is designed to help companies learn from other companies.
"We are on the verge of an explosion," says Bill Krenek, IBC's technology coordinator. "It can destroy the U.S. economy or involve quantum leaps in product quality improvement."
Krenek says benchmarking provides the "quantum leaps" needed to keep the United States on top.
APQC defines benchmarking as "a process in which companies target key improvement areas within their firms, identify and study best practices by others in these areas and implement new processes and systems to enhance their productivity and quality."
Benchmarking is an essential part of a total quality management program.
Although the practice of total quality management has gained momentum in recent years, many companies have struggled with organizing benchmarking projects in a way...