Free tool · No sign-up
Benchmarking Analysis
Compare your performance against a defensible peer set, and see which gap is worth closing first.
Run a Benchmarking Analysis
Describe the engagement and what you need. We will turn it into a structured document.
Name competitors or peers you already have in mind, and any metric you care about most.
Who should we benchmark against? is required to enable Generate.
- Analysis (completed)
- Context (completed)
- Inputs
- Review
- Generate
- Result
- Export
What this tool does
Benchmarking compares your performance on specific measures against a defined peer set, reporting the peer median, the best-in-class result and the gap in the metric's own units. Its quality depends almost entirely on the peer set, which is why this tool defines and justifies the peer set before it reports a single number — a set you cannot defend produces averages that mean nothing for either side. Where a figure is a directional industry rule of thumb rather than a sourced data point, it says so in the value. Where your own baseline is unknown it is marked [to be validated] with a note on how to establish it in thirty days, rather than quietly filled in. The output is deliberately unflattering when you are below median, because a benchmark that flatters the client is useless to it.
How to use it
- 1Name competitors or peers you already have in mind. An existing competitive set is the most defensible starting point.
- 2List the metrics that matter most for your industry, or leave it blank and let the tool choose them.
- 3Run it, then check the peer-set rationale before reading the gaps. If the rationale does not hold, the comparison does not either.
- 4Use the strengths-to-defend section as well as the gaps. Knowing which dimension to protect is as valuable as knowing which to fix.
A worked example
What a real run looks like
Input — a mid-sized operator, not a generic prompt
60-person UK market research agency competing with Kantar, Ipsos and four independent shops. Metrics that matter: gross margin, revenue per consultant, utilisation.
What comes back
A named peer set with the reasoning for size, model, geography and customer. Ten to twelve dimensions compared, each showing your value, the peer median, best-in-class and the gap in the metric’s own units, rated below median / at median / above median / top quartile. Closes with the three to five highest-value gaps and a specific action for each, the dimensions where you lead, and prioritised actions with the expected movement in each metric.
Frequently asked questions
What is a benchmarking analysis?
Benchmarking compares a company's performance on specific measures against a defined peer set — reporting the peer median, the best-in-class result and the gap in the metric's own units. The quality of the result depends almost entirely on whether the peer set can be defended.
How do you choose a peer set?
By size, business model, geography and customer profile. A peer set that mixes a ten-person consultancy with a ten-thousand-person corporation produces averages that mean nothing for either.
Are the peer figures sourced?
Where a figure is a directional industry rule of thumb rather than a sourced data point, it says so inside the value. Where a peer median is genuinely unknown it is marked [to be validated] and the source that would establish it is named, rather than a plausible number being presented as fact.
Is this benchmarking tool free?
Yes. The ConsultantAI benchmarking tool is free and requires no sign-up.
Need this on your own engagement?
The free tool covers the framework. A full ConsultantAI project turns it into a cited, board-ready deliverable built from your documents — market sizing, a financial model, or a complete deck, with every figure sourced.