Final answer:
To measure and compare business processes to similar processes of other companies within the industry, the activity known as benchmarking (option b) is used. It distinguishes from internal analysis, SWOT analysis, and value chain analysis. It's also important to conduct cost/benefit analysis for rational decision-making.
Step-by-step explanation:
To measure and compare your business processes to those of other companies within your industry, you would perform benchmarking. Benchmarking is the practice of comparing your own business processes and performance metrics to industry bests and best practices from other companies. This comparison helps to identify areas where improvement is possible and necessary.
It is different from an internal analysis, which looks solely at internal operations, a SWOT analysis, which identifies strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to the organization, and a value chain analysis, which examines the activities that a firm engages in to deliver a valuable product or service to the market.
A cost/benefit analysis is a decision-making process that compares the costs and benefits of a decision. Using a T-chart, costs such as money, effort, and other sacrifices are listed on one side, contrasted against the benefits like financial gain, time saved, experience obtained, and other improvements that are listed on the other side. This analysis aids in understanding the trade-offs involved in making business decisions.