In a time when economic uncertainty is putting pressure on budgets and time, organisations are increasingly relying upon technology to help improve learning results, efficiency, and business performance. However, Towards Maturity's benchmark research over the last eight years clearly shows that some are more successful than others in achieving this.

Towards Maturity leverages the wealth of data provided by its ongoing Benchmark Study - an internationally recognised, vendor-neutral, longitudinal review based on the input of over 1200 organisations and 3000 learners since 2003. The study has identified six work streams of implementation activity that support performance improvement and these power an authoritative standard of measurement: the Towards Maturity Index.

The Towards Maturity 2011 Benchmark Study now provides three simple steps to help organisations use these findings to improve their own results.

Organisations are first invited to confidentially review their current implementation processes and plans. The next step is to compare their results and actions with top performers to identify strengths and weaknesses. Ultimately, they can act on the findings to improve performance.

The Benchmark Study process requires an investment of approximately 40 minutes of time. But this is time well spent as over 70% of organisations who completed the review step alone in 2010 found new ideas to help drive their strategy forward.

"The Towards Maturity Benchmark Study isn't just an industry survey; it is a performance-improvement tool", says Laura Overton, MD of Towards Maturity. "Our benchmark supporters and ambassadors help us to ensure that the benchmark itself constantly evolves to reflect the changing industry. Every participant will receive their own Towards Maturity Index within a few weeks of completion to help them monitor ongoing improvements against evolving good practice."

All participants who take part in this free, confidential benchmark service during June and July will receive a personalised online report providing them with their Towards Maturity Index as a baseline for benchmarking and improvement, feedback on key performance indicators, and recommendations for further actions. They will also receive a new white paper: Time for Action - 101 tips for success containing practical advice gathered from previous benchmark participants.

The consolidated industry report following the Towards Maturity 2011 Benchmark Study will be launched in November and will be available to download free of charge. This is thanks to the ongoing support of the Towards Maturity Ambassadors, which Information Transfer recently joined.

Owen Rose, joint Managing Partner at Information Transfer comments, "We are dedicated to delivering outstanding learning solutions for our clients. We share the commitment of Towards Maturity to spreading best practice and embedding learning technologies at the heart of enterprise, and so we're delighted to have the opportunity to support the Ambassador Programme."