Why does it matter how Pittsburgh compares to benchmark regions?
Comparisons matter because presenting data without context is like boxing with one arm tied behind your back. You might think that an unemployment rate of 6 percent was good, because three years ago the rate was 7.2 percent. Your opinion might change, however, if you learned that in Cleveland and Boston unemployment is 4.8 percent today. Rather than a system to rank cities, benchmarking explores the strengths, weaknesses, and connections between indicators.
