Learning team objective reflection: Week Five
Learning Team D: Jill Craig, Landon Pilkey, Larry Pillow, Cristin St.John
MGT 521
Richard Bowman
April 30, 2012

Learning team objective reflection: Week Five Last week, we focused on four main topics – benchmark analysis, managerial versus financial accounting, the effects of technology on business, and the effects of globalization on business. All team members felt they gained a lot from the readings and teaching this week, despite having some areas that caused us to struggle. There were many lessons that we will be able to apply to our places of employment in the future.
Benchmarking Analyses

Last week we focused on benchmarking. "Benchmarking compares and organizations practices, processes, and products against the world's best," (Nickels, McHugh, & McHugh, 2010). Benchmarking can be used to gain a competitive advantage by allowing an organization to compare existing performance against their competitors to identify areas for improvement. If your competitor out performs you in an area, you evaluate that process and see how you can improve to become better than your competitor.

For example, "Target may compare itself to Wal-Mart to see what, if anything, Wal-Mart does better. Target will then try to improve its practices or processes to become even better than Wal-Mart" (Nickels & McHugh, 2012). So if Wal-Mart were to be better at shipping items than Target, Target would evaluate that process to see how they could be better at shipping than Wal-Mart.

In conducting a benchmark analysis this week between Sam’s Club and Costco, it is observed that Sam’s Club has a very evolved supply chain management system, making use of technology such as radio frequency identification chips. Costco, which carries far fewer items than Sam’s Club or Walmart, might be able to adapt this