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Quality Experts Needed for 1996 Baldrige Award Board of Examiners

The Commerce Department s National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking quality experts from all sectors of American business, as well as from non-profit health care and education organizations, to serve on the 1996 board of examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Applicants for the board must be experts in quality and business management and be able to evaluate large and small manufacturing and service businesses. In addition, quality experts from the health care and education communities are needed to participate in ongoing pilot programs to determine whether the Baldrige Quality Award should be expanded to include categories for these two sectors. Forty-six health care and 19 education organizations submitted applications in the first phase of the pilot process. A decision about whether or not to proceed with a full-scale award program in the future for health care and education will depend on many factors, including a successful trial, continuing support from these two communities, and long- term funding.

Those selected for the board must take part in a 3-day preparation course based on the Baldrige Award examination items, the scoring criteria, and the examination process. In addition, examiners are expected to spend 10 days or more reviewing applications, preparing feedback reports to applicants and, in some cases, participating in site visits.

Examiners have made an enormous contribution to the national effort to improve business performance. In addition, they have learned much through their service. This helps them and their companies.

Currently, about 260 quality experts are on the board of examiners for the business award, while about 110 are on the board of evaluators for the health care and education pilot programs.

Applications for both boards will be available in September from the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Office, A537 Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-0001, telephone: (301) 975-2036, fax: (301) 948-3716, e-mail: oqp [at] micf.nist.gov (oqp[at]micf[dot]nist[dot]gov). Applications are due Nov. 1, 1995.

The Baldrige Quality Award was established by Congress in 1987 to promote quality awareness, to recognize quality achievements of U.S. companies and to publicize successful quality strategies. The award is not given for specific products or services. Awards for 1995 are expected to be announced in October.

A non-regulatory agency of the Commerce Department s Technology Administration, NIST promotes U.S. economic growth by working with industry to develop and apply technology, measurements and standards. NIST was selected by Congress to design and manage the award program because of its role in helping U.S. companies become more competitive, its world- renowned expertise in quality control and assurance and its reputation as an impartial third party.

Released August 7, 1995, Updated November 27, 2017