Baldridge Application – Help!

Raj,

I’ve been an award examiner for the State of Maryland for the past three years. I strongly recommend that you get the top person in your organization to buy in (if you’re not the CEO or president) since that person will have to sign the application. Also, the application process is very time consuming. It will be very difficult (or perhaps impossible) to prepare the application without the involvement of all departments in your organizaition.
You may want to consider applying at the State level first since it is easier to get some recognition for your work. Most State Award processes include the same feedback report you’d get from the National Level. Also, most State Award programs are designed in cooperation with the National program which makes them great stepping stones towards the National Award.
Finally, a consultant may be helpful in preparing the application. However, you will learn a lot by involving a team of employees from your own organization to review the Award criteria, discuss how it applies to your organization, and discussing interpretation of the requriements. Using the award criteria to evaluate and improve your organization takes years of hard work. Do you really want to pay for a consultant year after year and miss out on a great learning opportunity?

Ken

Hi Raj

I’ve just picked up your question. There’s surprisingly little on this subject on the web, but may I point you to http://www.baldrigeplus.com (my site), and http://www.baldrige21.com (the site of senior Baldrige personality Paul Steel). I’d be more than happy to try to answer any specific questions you may have.

MM

Malcolm Macpherson PhD
macalex1@xtra.co.nz http://www.baldrigeplus.com
Voice +64 03 448 9524 Fax +64 03 448 7986

I would suggest you get involved in a state award program first if you have not already done so. I have been on the Board of Examiners of the Tennessee Quality Award program for the last 5 years and have learned more than I ever thought possible. The way our award process works is that you can become a member of the examining team, which gives you 3 days of intense training on the criteria and how applications are assessed. The Tennessee Award criteria is based on Baldridge criteria, and provides a great foundation for learning and understanding the process and linkages between categories. As an examiner, you simply agree to be a member of an examining team that assesses up to 2 organizations. In other words, you exchange your time as a volunteer to help other organizations in their ‘quality journey’ for the knowledge and experience you gain in learning more about it. You gain the ‘classroom’ knowledge as well as the practicality of how it really works. Having gone through the training will then allow you and/or your employees the expertise to apply the process to your own organization – every day, every year. Why hire an outside consultant rather than teach your own employees the guidelines and principles that will lead to them making continual improvements to your organization? (. . . ‘think about it’)