Compare to Compete

Benchmark member performance and culture - and give every participant instant, personalised insights. No extra workload for your organisation.

Turn member data into insight, engagement and value - at scale
Compare to Compete helps professional and trade associations deliver continuous benchmarking and personalised insights to their members, without increasing internal workload.

We focus on two complementary capabilities:

1. Performance & Culture Benchmarking

We design and run benchmarking programmes that go beyond one-off surveys. Members contribute data and receive structured, comparable insights on:

• Financial and operational performance 
• Organisational culture (based on established models) 
• Trends over time and peer group comparisons 

Results are delivered through dashboards and reports that are directly usable for decision-making - for both individual members and the association as a whole.

What makes this work:

• Automatic peer group classification based on member characteristics 
• Anonymised, GDPR-compliant aggregation 
• Multi-year benchmarking for real trend analysis 
• Flexible reporting per segment, role or outcome
• Less work for associations, more value for members

2. Personalised Participant Experiences (with XMcoach)

For conferences and member interactions, we enable personalised journeys based on participant input.

Each participating delegate receives:

• A short assessment prior to or during the event 
• Direct, tailored feedback and insights 
• Content, advices or follow-ups aligned with their profile 

This increases:

• Engagement before, during and after events 
• Perceived relevance of the association’s offering 
• Quality of interactions for sponsors and stakeholders 

Approach

• Designed for associations with large and diverse member bases 
• Scalable and repeatable (annual or continuous programmes) 
• Delivered as a structured service, not just a tool 

Outcome

• Higher member engagement 
• Stronger data-driven positioning of the association 
• Tangible, individual value for every participating member 

We don’t run surveys. We build benchmarking programmes that members come back to every year.

Our clients include -

• Dutch association of accounting and advisory firms (SRA)
  The largest Dutch association of accounting and advisory firms, supporting SME-focused firms in quality, knowledge and practice development.
  Runs multiple large-scale benchmarking programmes, including performance benchmarks and a sector-wide culture and quality study among member firms.

• Dutch Association of Secondment (VvDN)
  Industry association for secondment and staffing firms in the Netherlands.
  Runs a quarterly operational benchmark covering revenue, pricing, staffing and utilisation, delivering both a sector-wide market report and individual dashboards and benchmark reports for participants.

• Association of Energy, Environment and Water (VEMW)
  Association representing large business energy users in the Netherlands.
  Conducts a benchmark on energy procurement, providing participants with individual feedback compared to the full market and relevant peer groups based on usage.

• Builders Merchants Federation (BMF)
  Trade association for builders’ merchants and building materials distributors in the United Kingdom.
  Runs a remuneration benchmark comparing salaries and benefits across the sector, with individual participant comparisons and a comprehensive market report.

• Dutch Association of Administration and Tax Experts (NOAB)
  Conducts the “Benchmark Office Results”, focused on financial and operational performance indicators. Participants receive individual benchmark reports and dashboards, while the association gains full market insight.

• Dutch Vehicle Leasing Association (VNA)
  Industry body representing leasing companies in the Netherlands.
  Operates the VNA-Monitor, combining sector-wide market insights on leased cars and bikes with individual reports showing each participant’s development versus the market and relevant peer groups.

• Association of French Golf Contractors (GEGF)
  Association representing owners and operators of commercial golf facilities in France.
  Runs the “Benchmark GEGF”, a continuous monthly performance monitor in which participants submit a small set of operational data. This enables tracking of individual performance versus the market, while providing the sector with a reliable, ongoing view of market development.

What’s New, Better & Different?

From surveys to continuous benchmarking programmes
Over the past year, we have further developed our approach from one-off surveys to recurring, structured benchmarking programmes that associations can run annually or continuously. This delivers more reliable trends and stronger member value over time.

Sector-wide culture benchmarking module
We have introduced a dedicated module for organisation culture benchmarking at sector level. Associations can now measure and compare culture across their members, linking cultural patterns directly to performance and outcomes.

More direct value for every participant
Participants now receive more tailored outputs, including individual dashboards, benchmark reports and increasingly personalised insights based on their profile and results. For associations this results in more time to help their members excel.

Stronger support for personalised member experiences (with XMcoach)
We have expanded our collaboration with XMcoach to enable associations to offer personalised journeys during events - combining short assessments with direct, relevant feedback and personalised (video) content for each delegate.

Scalable for associations, without increasing internal workload
Associations can run complex and multiple benchmarking programmes and personalised initiatives with minimal internal effort, supported by automation and a structured delivery approach.