Benchmarking is the Waterboarding of the Ad Industry

Procurement and benchmarking rose to corporate prominence once "increased shareholder value" became the advertiser's mantra. Marketing declined in importance, from an investment to achieve brand growth to a cost to be optimized. Benchmarking consultants jumped on the bandwagon. 4As shamefully accepted the ANA benchmarking trend with hardly a whimper, leaving its members to fend for themselves.