WASHINGTON,
D.C.—In
a ceremony today in Washington, D.C., Vice President Dick
Cheney and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez presented
six U.S. organizations with the Malcolm Baldrige National
Quality Award, the nation’s highest honor for performance
excellence and quality achievement.
“With innovative practices, a strong commitment to excellence and visionary
leadership, the 2005 Baldrige Award recipients represent the best of American
business, education and health care,” said Commerce Secretary Gutierrez.
He added, “Since 1988, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award program
has gained world-wide recognition for the vital role it is playing in helping
organizations achieve and sustain excellence.”
The 2005 Baldrige Award recipients are: Sunny
Fresh Foods, Inc. (.pdf;
download Acrobat Reader), Monticello, Minn. (manufacturing); DynMcDermott
Petroleum Operations (.pdf;
download Acrobat Reader), New Orleans, La. (service); Park
Place Lexus (.pdf;
download Acrobat Reader),
Plano, Texas (small business); Richland
College (.pdf;
download Acrobat Reader), Dallas,
Texas (education); Jenks
Public Schools (.pdf;
download Acrobat Reader), Jenks, Okla. (education);
and Bronson
Methodist Hospital (.pdf;
download Acrobat Reader), Kalamazoo, Mich. (health
care).
This is the first time that a community college, an automotive
dealership and an oil industry business have received a Baldrige
Award. Sunny Fresh Foods is a two-time Baldrige Award recipient;
it received the award in the small business category in 1999.
Baldrige Award recipients can reapply after five years.
Following a six-month evaluation process, including an on-site
visit by a team of examiners, the 2005 Baldrige Award recipients
were selected from among 64 applicants. An independent board
of examiners evaluated them in seven areas: leadership; strategic
planning; customer and market focus; measurement, analysis
and knowledge management; human resource focus; process management;
and results.
The
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, managed by the
Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST) in conjunction with the private sector,
promotes organizational quality, recognizes performance excellence
achievements of U.S. organizations and publicizes these organizations’ successful
performance strategies.
As a non-regulatory agency, NIST promotes U.S. innovation
and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science,
standards and technology in ways that enhance economic security
and improve our quality of life.
Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award Background
The
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award was established
in 1987 to improve performance in U.S. organizations. Awards
are made to organizations that have substantially benefited
the economic or social well-being of the United States through
improvements resulting in performance excellence. Awards
can be given in five categories: manufacturing, service,
small business, education and health care. Starting in 2007,
non-profit organizations—including charities and government
agencies—can apply for the award.
The application process is rigorous and thorough. Applicants
for the award submit up to 50 pages of details showing processes,
improvements and results. Each applicant receives more than
400 hours of review by an independent board of business,
education and health care experts and a detailed report citing
strengths and opportunities for improvement. Since 1988,
64 organizations have received the Baldrige Award.
The Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence are used
worldwide by thousands of organizations to assess and improve
their overall performance. Annually, more than 500,000 copies
of the criteria are downloaded from the Baldrige program’s
Web site and more than 50,000 copies are mailed.
Each
Baldrige Award recipient receives a Steuben crystal stela
encasing a gold medallion engraved with the Presidential
seal and the words, “The Quest for Excellence.” The
award is named after Malcolm Baldrige, Secretary of Commerce
from 1981 until his death in a rodeo accident in July 1987.
Baldrige was a proponent of quality as a key to this country’s
prosperity and long-term growth and helped draft the act
establishing the award program.
The
act was signed into law by President Reagan in August 1987.
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