Congratulations to His Excellency Abdulrahman Saleh Al Saleh, Director General of the Department of Finance, and to the six teams that successfully completed the IBPC Best Practice Certification Programme.
While compiling the latest video montage for the International Best Practice Competition (IBPC), I had the privilege of revisiting many of the outstanding best practices shared at IBPC 2025. Bringing these presentation highlights together into one seamless showcase was a powerful reminder of the exceptional calibre of the organisations we have the opportunity to work with.
It is always inspiring to witness and celebrate the dedication of organisations and the pride of teams whose work delivers real benefits for their customers, communities, and citizens. Seeing such a diverse range of success stories presented across more than 20 IBPC webinars was a wonderful reminder that a commitment to excellence truly brings the world together.
Every year, reviewers of the International Best Practice Competition read dozens of applications. Over time, a pattern becomes clear: the strongest submissions share several common characteristics that make them stand out almost immediately.
If you are preparing an application for the International Best Practice Competition, understanding these signals can help you present your work more clearly and effectively. Below are five characteristics that consistently appear in the strongest submissions.
Applications for the 12th International Best Practice Competition (IBPC) open on 20 February 2026. This globally recognised platform invites organisations to showcase innovative strategies, benchmark against world-class standards, and receive detailed expert feedback. Discover how to structure a winning submission and achieve a 5-Star or higher certification by leveraging our expert insights and evaluation framework.
Move beyond ad-hoc problem solving and discover the path to sustained performance. This article outlines the Centre for Organisational Excellence Research (COER) roadmap, detailing how to combine structured methodologies, independent validation, and shared learning to build a robust benchmarking capability. Learn how to design excellence as a living system, not just a destination.
Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Municipality and Planning Department in Ajman, received the certificate for the 11th International Best Practices Competition (IBPC 2025).
The Department was recognised with seven stars for its innovative initiative, the Smart and Sustainable Waste Data Management Platform, which honours outstanding initiatives and innovations in management and development across various sectors.
Brilliance has found its champions in New Zealand, with two organisations being honoured for their impactful practices. At the International Best Practice Competition (IBPC) Awards Announcement Ceremony on 10 September 2025, Westpac New Zealand Limited and FMG (Farmers Mutual Group) claimed the national title as joint winners of the New Zealand Best Practice Competition (NZBPC) 2025, earning the prestigious 5 Stars ★★★★★, recognised as an International Best Practice (Excellence). The NZBPC, aligned with the IBPC, serves as New Zealand’s bridge to the global stage, where local best practices are benchmarked against international standards of excellence.
On 10 September 2025, the spotlight shone brightly as the 11th International Best Practice Competition (IBPC) 2025 and its prestigious Innovation, Benchmarking, and ESG awards reached a spectacular finale, culminating with the award winners’ announcement ceremony.
This year’s competition brought together outstanding organisations and brilliant minds from across the world to celebrate and raise the bar for best practices. These achievements reflect the power of innovation, collaboration, continuous improvement and impact in driving organisations forward.
We are delighted to celebrate this year’s 7-Star Best Practices!
In addition, we are delighted to announce that all 24 finalists achieved at least 6-Star recognition, a remarkable achievement.
Organizations often celebrate milestones like new product launches, increased sales, or expanded facilities. However, a critical question remains unasked: How do we compare with the best in our industry? This oversight isn’t due to hidden data but rather a lack of inquiry. While many organizations diligently track internal KPIs, such as on-time delivery, rejection rates, and service speed; these metrics often exist in isolation. A 90% customer satisfaction score might seem impressive until compared with a competitor’s consistent 97%. Completing a project on time may still be inefficient if others achieve the same with half the resources. Benchmarking unveils this hidden gap between ‘good enough’ and ‘world-class.’ It’s not a management or technological flaw but a perspective one. Without a comparative lens, strategies and policies risk being directionless.
Read October newsletter, in this issue, a sustainable solution for textile waste, employee suggestion schemes self-assessment, unlocking insights from Jeff Bezos, Marissa Mayer & Eric Schmidt, with Ann Hiatt, and more…
In the pursuit of excellence and innovation, the Dubai Government Excellence Programme (DGEP) has launched the 6th cycle of the “Executive Program for Benchmarking”. This initiative is empowering 10 government entities to embark on transformative projects aimed at making Dubai an even better place to live and work.