Get Ready to Apply for the 2016 Baldrige Awards!

Calling high-performing U.S. organizations in every sector: the 2016 Baldrige Award application forms and guidance are now available online.

Consider the helpful feedback and prestigious Presidential recognition your business, nonprofit, health care, or education organization can receive by submitting a Baldrige Award application in 2016. Here's how senior leaders of two recent Baldrige Award recipients described the benefits:

"Going through the Baldrige process has been truly transformational for us, and it continues to make us better. . . . That's really what the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award is all about. It's about measuring ourselves against the highest-performing organizations in the nation and applying what we learn along the way to help us improve." (David Huffstutler, President and CEO, St. David's HealthCare, 2014 Baldrige Award recipient)

"Using Baldrige to improve was, I think, one of the smartest things we did in our business. It really gave us a touchstone; it really gave us an opportunity ... to constantly measure ourselves and evaluate how we're doing." (Scott McIntyre, Managing Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers [PwC] Public Sector, 2014 Baldrige Award recipient)

To prepare to apply in 2016, read about the information and download the forms, which include the following:

• 2016 Award Cycle at a Glance: Applying for the 2016 Baldrige Award involves (1) submitting eligibility materials, which are due by February 22, 2016; and (2) submitting an application, which is due by May 3, 2016 (April 26 if an organization submits its application on CD only).
• 2016 Changes and Reminders: Applicants should note that the deadlines for eligibility and application packages to be submitted for consideration in 2016 are set a few days earlier than in past years, particularly since the due dates are the dates by which materials must be received (rather than the dates by which they must postmarked).
• Is Your Organization Eligible? Detailed guidance will help organizations determine if they are eligible to apply for the award in 2016. There are no new or revised eligibility rules for 2016. Changes established in 2015 remain in effect, including an alternative process for establishing eligibility as detailed in Baldrige Eligibility Frequently Asked Questions (MS Word file).
• Baldrige Award Process Fees: Fees for the 2016 Baldrige Award cycle remain at the same levels established three years ago; the fees are based on benchmarks of other national quality programs.
• Application Content and Format: In addition to downloadable instructions (PDF file) for preparing a Baldrige Award application, the 2016 versions of the Eligibility Form (MS-Word file) and the Award Application Form (MS-Word file) are available in the list of resources on the right side of the web page.

2016 Baldrige Award applications are to be written in response to the assessment questions of the 2015–2016 Criteria for Performance Excellence. Applicants in the health care sector should use the 2015–2016 Health Care Criteria for Performance Excellence, and those in education should use the 2015–2016 Education Criteria for Performance Excellence.

For more information on the Baldrige Program and the Baldrige Award, see www.nist.gov/baldrige.