Overview
Organizations focus on efficiency and effectiveness in meeting their objectives and missions in a way that benefits their stakeholders, such as customers and the general community. The Baldrige Program Framework for Excellence through the National Institute of Standards and Technology offers organizations a framework to assess their efficiency and effectiveness to their stakeholders for performance improvement and to get sustainable results. The program works with firms regardless of their size, location or industry through its values such as commitment to improving organizational performance and excellence, trust, stewardship and visionary and result-oriented leadership. The excellence framework has positively impacted organizations and their customers, the community and other stakeholders (NIST, 2020). For instance, cost saving of up to $225 annually by Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control as a result of a performance improvement after conducting a Baldrige assessment (Baldrige Foundation, 2020). Further hospitals using the Baldrige criteria has experience performance improvement in patient care and services delivery of up to six times compared to those that are not using the criteria.
Critical thinking conversation
The Baldrige Excellence Framework provides the performance evaluation criteria through a series of questions drawn from leading-edge management and leadership practice. The questions are used to develop an organizational profile through the integration of strategy, leadership and customers alongside workforce, results and operations. These aspects of the organizations constitute the performance system (Baldrige Foundation, 2020). Further, core values and concepts form the basis of the assessment criteria and are drawn from organizational cultures, behaviour and beliefs from the high performing environments (NIST, 2020). Therefore, the framework and organizational assessment criteria have provided leadership at the global in promoting excellence. The framework has also promoted learning and sharing of knowledge in areas such as strategy, principles and practices.
Performance improvement and efficiency in delivering the objectives and mission to customers form the core mandate of the Malcolm Baldrige award (Baldrige Foundation, 2020). The assessment frame focuses on how best the organizations integrate the internal factors such as strategies and workforce with those from the external factors, particularly the customers (NIST, 2020). Therefore, the recipients of the award have emphasized the importance of workforce and customer engagement in attempts to improve their efficiency and performance. For instance, the 2019 award winner in education, Howard Community College has integrated the workforce needs with that of the students leading to tremendous results. The interaction between the over 2000 workforce of the college and 30,000 students has created a 200% increase in attainment of associate degrees and certificates (NIST, 2020). The organization drives success from its feedback, linkages and partnerships around the college.
The Malcolm Baldrige Award winners have similarities and differences regardless of the industries. For instance, considering the 2019 award winners in health, Mary Greeley Medical Center and the non-profit category, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, it is evident that the similarities revolve around improving the effectiveness and efficiency in service delivery to their customers (NIST, 2020). The two organizations further have engagement approaches that take into account the interest of the different groups. However, the major difference between the two organizations is the focus such that the Mary Greeley medical centre aims to be a market leader in its primary market with 43% inpatient and 48% outpatient (NIST, 2020). The Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, on the other hand, focuses on the societal wellbeing through the benefits paid to its retired members.
Debrief
Organizations are constantly implementing strategies to improve their efficiency and effectiveness in meeting their objectives to customers and stakeholders. I believe that the Malcolm Baldrige Performance Excellence Program is an excellent strategy that ensures that organizations can assess their performance in their respective industry by assessing how best they engage with the workforce and the customers. Further, I support the award and the program as an avenue for sharing knowledge and experience between different players within and across the industry, regardless of their sizes.
References
Baldrige Foundation (2020). The Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award: What We Do. Baldrigefoundation.org. Retrieved 12 October 2020, from https://baldrigefoundation.org/what-we-do/our-impact/health-care.html.
NIST (2020). Baldrige Performance Excellence Program. NIST. Retrieved 12 October 2020, from https://www.nist.gov/baldrige.