3.11 Although there may be access to in-house technical, financial and legal resources, even to respond to a straightforward benchmarking exercise the public body may want to consider external advisory assistance, particularly across the more complicated process of negotiating change or conducting a market test. Appropriate procurement rules must be followed in undertaking advisor appointments. Other available support avenues should be considered (PUK Operational PFI Taskforce and NAO studies on implementing benchmarking).