def METHOD_NAME(self, ref_data):
    """
    Helper function which gets the normalization values per benchmark
    by going through the reference data file.
    If ref_data is a benchmark json object, construct the YAML norm file from it.
    Otherwise, use it as-is.
    """
    assert isinstance(ref_data, dict), "The type of ref_data must be a dict object."
    # If the data contains machine_info key, it must be a benchmark json object
    if "benchmarks" in ref_data and "machine_info" in ref_data:
        ref_data = self._get_norm_from_ref_json_obj(ref_data)
    return ref_data