Survey Compares Financial and Operational Norms, Provides Participants with Invaluable Competitive Insight
Boulder, CO. – As a new decade dawns and businesses examine costs and productivity with increasing scrutiny, information relating to financial and operational norms becomes ever more important to remain competitive. Outdoor product manufacturers have even more variables to take into account, as the industry deepens its commitment to sustainability and grapples with international import and export issues. A critical tool to evaluate profitability in outdoor product manufacturing is the Outdoor Industry Association® (OIA) Manufacturer Financial & Operations Benchmarking survey, which evaluates cost norms and profitability ratios for businesses across the outdoor industry. The 2011 survey, which will update benchmarks to 2010 levels, is now fielding all firms wanting to participate, with consolidated results released in second quarter 2011.
Outdoor industry manufacturers rely on the detailed industry financial and operating metrics in the benchmarking study to rank their performance against the industry at large. Participating manufacturers receive the full analysis, which details comprehensive industry-wide profitability groups, and participants can compare their own metrics against the norms to uncover opportunistic areas for improvement. Participants also receive a customized profit improvement report, comparing their individual performance against the performance of "typical" firms, "high profit" firms, and firms in relevant peer groups. The opportunity to receive a customized report, which would otherwise cost tens of thousands of dollars, is what drives participation in this valuable study. All responses are held confidential and collected by an independent third party.
“Identifying how manufacturing costs and infrastructure compare against a field of competitive firms is an invaluable business tool as today’s marketplace boundaries and policies continue to shift,” said LaRae Marsik, Vice President of Business Intelligence for OIA. “Contributed information is completely confidential, and the collective knowledge gained from the update reveals which direction outdoor-involved businesses are currently heading and where industry-wide profitability and performance benchmarks lie.”
Administered and managed by the Profit Planning Group, the Manufacturer Financial & Operations Benchmark survey is available online for downloading at http://www.profitplanninggroup.com/pages/profit/oiaq11.xls. Surveys are also being distributed by OIA via e-mail or standard mail, and companies wishing to receive the survey directly should e-mail [email protected] with their request. Any company is eligible to participate, though OIA non-member participants are assessed a nominal fee for the customized report package (which is provided free of charge to OIA member participants) should they choose to receive it.
All participant data sets are treated with complete confidentially by Profit Planning Group. Data are aggregated in a way that prevents identification of any individual firm and all survey forms are destroyed after processing.
Completes surveys are due April 30, 2011, and should be submitted via e-mail to [email protected].