Posted by Harry Hertz, the Baldrige Cheermudgeon I am frequently asked about the elements of a Baldrige assessment, whether conducted as a self-assessment or externally conducted. The topic came up again during a discussion I was part of last week. In particular, what is the relationship among the various components of a Baldrige assessment. Here is my simple explanation for the three major components: The Organizational Profile (Category P in the Baldrige Criteria): This section is about what’s important to you. You describe your organization and its operating environment, key relationships, competitive environment, and strategic context. The Baldrige Criteria (Categories 1-7) responses: This section is about how you are accomplishing what’s important to you. In a systematic fashion starting with leadership and ending with results, you describe how your organization does what’s important to you for successful enterprise management and sustainability. The Scoring Guidelines: This section allows you to assess how well you are accomplishing what’s important to you. The scoring guidelines allow you to assess the maturity of your processes and their deployment, and the breadth and significance of the results you are achieving. We always speak of a systems approach to organizational performance management. The full system is a combination of all three pieces. Without all three it would be neither holistic nor a system. The most common incomplete use of the system is ignoring the Scoring Guidelines. They are the dimension that complements the seven categories of the Criteria. The Scoring Guidelines allow you to evaluate how mature your approaches are, how well you deploy them, how systematically you evaluate and improve them, and how successfully you align them with what’s important to you. For results, the Scoring Guidelines help you evaluate your current performance, your performance changes over time, how well your results compare with other organizations, and how successfully they address what’s important to you. Sustainability requires knowing what you are doing (the criteria), how well you are doing it (the scoring guidelines), and how relevant it is to your needs (the organizational profile). Organizations frequently and appropriately start with just the organizational profile, because you need to know who you are before you can add more detail. In a recent Blogrige interview with Lisa Muller from Jenks Public Schools, she describes the value of the organizational profile. But once you know who you are, assessment requires the how (criteria responses) and the how well (scoring)!

Posted by Dawn Marie Bailey What does snoring have to do with the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence? The connection has to do with the popular graphic (below) in the Baldrige Criteria depicting steps toward mature processes. The graphic shows the first step as simply reacting to problems. Operations are characterized by activities rather than processes, and they are largely responsive to immediate needs or problems. Goals are poorly defined. Snoring is caused when your breathing is partially obstructed during sleep. Due to swelled or excess throat tissues and/or nasal or other blockages, your throat can relax enough to partially block your airway and vibrate. If your airway becomes blocked and narrowed, the airflow becomes more forceful, causing tissue vibration to increase and sending the airflow in all directions. Baldrige examiner Dr. Safwan Badr, professor of medicine at the Wayne State University School of Medicine, has pointed out that the friction and turbulence during snoring are often depicted by those who study or treat sleep disorders as arrows going in multiple directions. Urologists also use a similar image to depict disorders for which they’re familiar. The friction and turbulence lead to a high effort to breathe but little airflow. In the case of the Baldrige Criteria, the arrows graphic simultaneously might depict efforts (or projects or workforce members or activities) that are all going in different directions, without any kind of a system, without alignment, and without integration. There might be friction and turbulence when activities (or people) are at cross-purposes, and there could certainly be high effort but little accomplished. Such a graphic could depict other examples of high effort and little results-whether the depiction is of disrupted air flow from an engine or a hole-covered pipe with water flowing in all directions but very little flowing through to the desired result. This graphic simply represents a lot of ineffective work, with no direction or focus. Organizations facing such challenges often turn to the Baldrige Criteria. One goal of the Criteria is to help organizations move from simply reacting to problems, to early systematic approaches, to aligned approaches, to integrated approaches. Imagine how this graphic might depict the operations in your organization. Now imagine how effective your approaches could be with the Criteria as a guide?

Posted by Christine Schaefer With annual training for Baldrige examiners ending this week, the kickoff of the 2014 Baldrige Award process draws nearer. I always find the annual cycle of evaluation, anticipation, and celebration exciting. And the pomp and circumstance of the official Baldrige Award ceremony is not necessarily the apex of jubilation for organizations that receive the nation’s highest award for performance excellence. Consider, for example, the following two stories of celebratory moments for last year’s Baldrige Award winners. The setting of the first story was a hotel ballroom, site of a health care symposium attended by some 1,000 managers of Sutter Health. The northern California health care system encompasses dozens of clinics and 25 hospitals, including Sutter Davis Hospital. An incoming text message interrupted the regional CEO as he was speaking on stage at the gathering. The message informed him that Sutter Davis Hospital had been selected as a 2013 Baldrige Award winner. "He stopped his presentation and made the announcement," recalled Baldrige examiner David Rasmusson, a master black belt with Sutter Health who recently described the scene during a break at Baldrige training. "Instantly, the Sutter Davis Hospital personnel at the symposium jumped out of their seats and shrieked with joy, and a standing ovation followed immediately after that." The second story of celebration took place in a classroom of young schoolchildren in the Pewaukee (Wisconsin) School District. Superintendent JoAnn Sternke was visiting the students soon after the delivery of the district’s 2013 Baldrige Award crystal. In a way that’s bound to resonate with parents of young children, the kids made merry with the bubble wrap that had been protecting the prestigious crystal. Sternke soon joined them in a gleeful scene that involved stomping on the packaging of the national prize for organizational excellence. (Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop …) Beyond the thrill of such moments, these scenes in my mind depict the variety of organizations that have successfully used the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence to improve and excel. Cheers for all of those in business, health care, education, and nonprofit sectors that are now on a journey to excellence. The Baldrige Program is here to help you reach the point where hundreds of applauding adults stand up to fete your organization’s great accomplishment and/or euphoric kids pop plastic bubbles with their feet.   

Posted by Dawn Marie Bailey The night before U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker presented the 2013 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Awards, she received an award of her own. The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) presented her with the 2014 Harry S. Truman Award for making "skills and workforce development a priority to ensure that businesses have the skilled workers they need in order to grow." Community colleges of course play a vital role in training these workers for "the jobs of today and tomorrow," per a press release. "Every day, [community colleges] help Americans find paths to good jobs—jobs that allow them to provide for their families . . . while also strengthening the local and national economy. Each of you understands that for America to compete in the 21st century, it is all of our responsibility to ensure an educated, flexible, and dynamic workforce," said Secretary Pritzker upon receiving the award. "I believe that we can do a better job of helping BOTH America’s workforce AND America’s businesses if—and only if—we build stronger partnerships across ALL stakeholder groups at the local, regional, and national levels. And I believe that community colleges are central to building the dynamic ecosystems of training that American workers need to compete in the years ahead." Graduates of Baldrige Award recipient Richland College Dr. Kathryn K. Eggleston, president of Richland College, a 2005 Baldrige Award recipient in education, underscores the essential role that the nation’s community colleges, enrolling 12.7 million students annually, serve in preparing a dynamic workforce. "Working in partnership with businesses and other stakeholder groups, community colleges are crucial to bridging the skills gap between America’s workforce and America’s businesses in order for the U.S. to restore a vital middle class and enhance our global competitiveness." At the time it received the Baldrige Award, Richland College had achieved the following results: The employment rate for students taking technical training or workforce development classes reached nearly 100%. The number of students completing the core curriculum in preparation for transfer to four-year institutions grew from 500 in 2002 to 1,660 in 2005. For classes scheduled, class-time convenience, variety of courses, and intellectual growth—measures students rated as the most important—student satisfaction surpassed the Noel Levitz national norm over four years. The college found innovative ways to keep tuition rates low and quality high when state funding dropped from 70% to 30% over three legislative sessions. According to a U.S. Department of Commerce blog, 3.9 million unfilled jobs in the United States, in fields such as health care, manufacturing, and engineering, require post-secondary training and specific skills needed for high-tech jobs—skills that many unemployed workers do not have. "Every day, community colleges provide 13 million students across the country with the education they need to be competitive in today’s economy. These two-year institutions continue to improve the quality and relevance of the education that their students receive." The Harry S. Truman Award is given to someone outside the field of education who has had a major, positive impact on community colleges. It is named for President Truman who commissioned a study on higher education in 1947 where the term "community college" was first used widely. The idea of community colleges appealed to the President, and his administration began to put in place mechanisms to foster the growth of such institutions around the country.

Posted by Dawn Marie Bailey In the wake of General Motor’s (GM’s) recall of  millions of vehicles that have been linked to as many as 13 deaths, Industry Week ran an article on what relatively new CEO Mary Barra should do in facing this "career-defining problem." Quoting business consultant David Wilmer, tips on crisis management are offered: Maintain a balanced view on reality, be optimistic, and take action. Don’t deny the problem; your employees and probably customers and stakeholders already know about it. Don’t dabble in trial and error; seek outside advice. Make fact-based decisions (don’t trust instinct alone). Seek help to overcome your personal blind spots. Maintain an emotional investment in the organization, so that employees are inspired to engage as well. Avoid blame; be in control of the situation. Don’t ask employees to endure hardships that leaders are not enduring. Reading these tips reminded me of Winston Churchill’s quote—"Never let a good crisis go to waste"—a quote I heard a few years ago when the Baldrige Program was compelled to move forward with a business plan that focused more on cost-recovery/revenue generation than on government funding. Certainly, any crisis forces an organization to regroup, refocus, reach out, and possibly even reinvent. These tips also caused me to pull out the leadership category (category 1) of the 2013-2014 Criteria for Performance Excellence to see how they tracked with the requirements for effective leadership. At the basic level, the Criteria leadership category asks How do your senior leaders lead? Requirements for this question are associated with the vision and values promotion of legal and ethical behavior the creation of a sustainable organization communication, and a focus on action How do you govern and fulfill your societal responsibilities? Requirements for this question are associated with the governance system performance evaluation legal behavior, regulatory behavior, and accreditation ethical behavior societal well-being, and community support From my reading of these requirements, the Criteria lay out a road-map of considerations for not only leading through a crisis but leading from day to day. Certainly, every Criteria requirement might bring some thoughtful reflection to Mary Barra—or any other leader. Which Criteria requirement, concept, or core value would you highlight for Mary Barra’s reflection if you were an adviser for GM?

Posted by Christine Schaefer The community of the Baldrige Award-winning Pewaukee School District (located 21 miles outside Milwaukee, Wisconsin) dates to the 19th century. In that era, a pioneering settler from Vermont named Asa Clark taught school in his house. A middle school in Pewaukee is now named in his honor. Today the suburban school system has an enrollment of roughly 2,800 students. This population is educated within four school facilities that are co-located on one large campus. The buildings include two elementary-grade schools (one for those in prekindergarten through grade 3, the other for grades 4 through 6), a middle school (grades 7 and 8), and a high school (grades 9 through 12). Photo from Pewaukee School District; used with permission. The unique campus setting provides advantages for district operations, teachers, students, and parents alike, according to Larry Dux, five-term member and current clerk of the Pewaukee school board. "It really helps us create sense of community," said Dux. The single campus also enables the different schools to use the facility’s physical resources efficiently, share teachers, enable older student volunteers to help out in the lower schools, and make student drop-offs convenient for parents, he said. The apparent cohesiveness of the school system may also benefit its robust volunteer program. This past year, the district tracked 31,000 volunteer hours in its schools, according to Wendy Wong, public information officer of the Pewaukee School District. The district recruits community volunteers to tutor elementary students in reading and math, and some classrooms have asked that every student be assigned a volunteer, she said. Being a relatively small school district apparently has not hindered Pewaukee in using the Baldrige Education Criteria for Performance Excellence to develop continuously improving, systematic approaches to ensuring a strong focus on its customers. According to Randy Daul, principal of Asa Clark Middle School, the district’s three areas of focus in engaging its customers are electronic communication, business and community partnership, and the volunteer program. Communication and community engagement together constitute one of five strands of the district’s strategic plan, and Daul said that a theme in recent strategic planning activities is to improve communication and engagement opportunities. To this end, the district regularly collects and reviews input from stakeholders and best practices of other organizations. In response to voice-of-the-customer information gathered via surveys, the district has used technology to greatly expand key customers’ access to information in recent years. For example, according to Daul, all types of information previously requested by parents and students in surveys are now made available to them at their fingertips. As the district has made comprehensive information accessible electronically to parents and students, Daul added, creating "a one-stop shop for them as customers is the goal." One result of such access, he said, is that parent-teacher communication is no longer based mainly in parent-teacher conferences at school as parents can access anytime all the needed information they have identified. Incidentally, when asked about referring to students as customers (as the Baldrige Education Criteria do, for example, in category 3, "Customer Focus"), Daul and Dux suggested that the term customer need not pose a problem in education and instead can help a district in serving students. What’s key is "moving from a teacher focus to a focus on the learner," said Daul. "You get buy-in and synergy once you have that focus on the learner." Of the broader context of the term customer in the education sector, Larry Dux added, "A customer is someone who needs something from you." It’s important for teachers to listen to students, he said. "It’s about student-centric achievement."

Posted by Dawn Marie Bailey A recent blog aimed at Federal government employees really caught my interest. "A Government Program That Has Withstood the Test of Time" written by Timothy J. Clark highlights how the Baldrige Criteria can be used within U.S. government agencies—with the push for their use coming not necessarily from "the top" but from American citizens themselves. "In the United States, the government’s role in society continues to expand at the same time budgets are being reduced through sequestration," writes Clark. "And citizens debate the role of government but yet expect that their tax dollars be used as effectively and efficiently as possible. So, why not try a new and proven approach to assess and improve the government’s organizational performance?" Clark lists some of the ways that the Baldrige Criteria could be used to support government agencies: To conduct an annual assessment that government agencies are efficiently and effectively utilizing all assigned resources, as required by the Federal Managers Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA) To ensure effective financial management systems (i.e., write the Statement of Assurance [SoA]) that meet the objectives of FMFIA To meet the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requirement for conducting an entity (organizational)-level assessment To gain insight on whether the agency’s own implementation strategies are resulting in real improvements (through Criteria assessments) "The Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence may be among the closest things we have in the United States to a common language and proven methodology for assessing and improving organizational performance within and across industries," writes Clark. "I would like to think the U.S. Founding Fathers would have embraced the Baldrige concept as a method for helping to ensure that the political system they built would be continually improved in pursuit of their aim for a more perfect union." Clark adds, "Application of the Baldrige criteria separates the leaders from the managers," defining effective leaders as those who Continually improve performance Accept the risks associated with implementing a method that embraces more accountability as well as transparency Introduce a higher standard of organizational performance To add to this case for U.S. government use, we know that nearly 100 international programs use the Baldrige Criteria in their entirety, translated, benchmarked, or adapted as their performance excellence models. Many of these countries also tie their performance excellence models directly to their governments in terms of recognition, funding, education, and certification. Some examples that have been recently highlighted in Blogrige are Singapore and Thailand, New Zealand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and many others. The Baldrige Program also works closely with the Global Excellence Model (GEM) Council that consists of organizations recognized globally as the guardians of premier excellence models and award programs in their geographic regions; GEM includes the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) and the Japan Quality Award, among other members. Do you think the case has been made for U.S. government agencies to learn more about how the Baldrige Criteria can lead to more effective and efficient operations? If not, how would you make the case?

What does health care in the United States need? Well, according to a report released May 29 by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), U.S. health care organizations need "systems engineering." In their letter to President Obama, PCAST Co-Chairs John Holdren and Eric Lander state that "systems engineering, widely used in manufacturing and aviation, is an interdisciplinary approach to analyze, design, manage, and measure a complex system in order to improve its efficiency, reliability, productivity, quality, and safety." In other words, health care organizations, including hospitals and community-based providers, need to manage their operations as an integrated whole rather than as a set of discrete components. They need to design, implement, measure, analyze, and manage their operations as one system if they want to simultaneously improve their operations, finances, and patient outcomes.  Holdren and Lander go on to say, "[Systems engineering] has often produced dramatically positive results in the small number of health-care organizations that have incorporated it into their processes. But in spite of excellent examples, systems methods and tools are not yet used on a widespread basis in U.S. health care." To increase the use of systems methods and tools, they recommend that "Health and Human Services and the Department of Commerce build on the Baldrige awards to recognize health-care providers successfully applying system engineering approaches." They note that the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award provides the opportunity to raise awareness of performance excellence in U.S. health care. It is gratifying that the Council recognizes the unique role that the Baldrige Award has been playing in health care. The Baldrige Criteria, in fact, provide exactly the holistic, systems approach to excellence that the PCAST report recommends. Seventeen health care organizations have received the Baldrige Award since 1999. And these role-model organizations manage to simultaneously provide outstanding patient, operational, and financial outcomes. What may be surprising to a health care or other organization leader not familiar with the Baldrige Program is that we are more than "just" a Presidential award; in fact, Baldrige is an educational program with an award component, not the other way around. Thousands of organizations use the Baldrige criteria as their integrated performance management framework without ever applying for the award.  Health care organizations are experiencing a true sea change in expectations from their stakeholders, including the payors, patients, and workforce they depend on for their survival and financial well-being. We wholeheartedly agree with the Council that a systems approach can help any health care organization adapt and thrive despite these rapidly changing demands. The national payoff when more organizations heed the Council’s call and systematically work toward performance excellence will be healthier citizens and communities, and a healthier economy. To learn more about how Baldrige can help your organization improve leadership skills learn from role model organizations run an effective and efficient organization self-assess your organization apply for the Baldrige Award and receive detailed feedback on your organizational performance participate in a collaborative assessment of your organization’s strengths and opportunities call our customer service line at 301-975-2036 or visit our website at http://www.nist.gov/baldrige/.

Posted by Dawn Marie Bailey In 1974, University of Texas machinist Lee Brumit saw an opportunity to start his own company for precision manufacturing, so he borrowed $1,100 to buy a used machine to make parts out of his garage. That was before the advent of total quality management in the 1980s, the off-shoring of many U.S. manufacturers in the 1990s, and the "telecom tech-wreck" of the early 2000s. Forty years later, the company he founded, KARLEE remains a privately owned, family business, with his wife as the CEO and their two sons serving in leadership positions. The company now comprises 250,000 square feet of manufacturing in three locations with over 400 team members and multiple other support businesses located in Texas. "We are thankful for the many growth opportunities that have allowed us to create jobs, give back to our community, and make a positive difference in the lives of others," said CEO Jo Ann Brumit. "It is an honor to share this exciting celebration with the many team members, customers, suppliers, and community supporters who have made our success possible. We look forward to the next 40 years as we transition into a second-generation company."  KARLEE CEOJo Ann Brumit I asked Jo Ann Brumit about the secret to the company’s sustainability and about her take on the significance of U.S. manufacturing. Significance of the 40th Anniversary  We need to share "success stories about manufacturing thriving in the U.S., which is really important to the overall viability and security of our country," Brumit said. "What makes this fortieth anniversary so significant is that KARLEE, a midsize U.S. manufacturer, has survived the off-shoring of manufacturing, the great recession of 2008, in addition to the challenges of running a small business. . . . To me, that makes forty years of sustainability significant." The Team Brumit gives all of the credit to people: the KARLEE team (of which two team members are celebrating over 30 years in the company and more than 25 have over 20 years). She said leaders role model the company’s values through behaviors by showing love, respect, trust, and integrity. "It’s really all about the people and wanting to make a difference," Brumit said, "and I think that’s the sustainability piece. . . . If you want your community of people to be better, then it’s about doing the right thing.  If you care about your people, they will care about the customers and that leads to the bottom line; I think that’s the secret to 40 years of sustainability." As far as making a difference for the community, KARLEE’s team members take that seriously, including supporting a clinic for the medically under- and uninsured; donating time, talent, and funding to community churches, food banks, blood drives, and other charities; and even adopting families at a local elementary school. KARLEE’s team members can also donate to a fund for colleagues in need, for example, colleagues who need help with bills during an illness or a plane ticket for the death of an out-of-state family member. Brumit said KARLEE’s team member annual survey consistently reflects a rating of 95% for being a great place to work. Challenges Faced and Overcome KARLEE survived the "telecom tech-wreck" in 2002, right after receiving the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in 2000. During the "’telecom tech-wreck’ . . . everything without any warning just failed," Brumit said. KARLEE went from a $112 million company to a $18 million company in about a year and a half (read the story). Soon after the wreck, many U.S. manufacturers began moving their operations off-shore, so KARLEE had to work at defining its niche to compete in a global economy. It also become difficult to find team members with specific manufacturing skills, especially machinists; such manufacturing skills are becoming a lost art, Brumit said. "The view of manufacturing by the younger generation has not been one of innovation and excitement, thus making it even more difficult to attract the future workforce into this industry," she said, citing KARLEE’s success with developing the next generation and overall succession planning. Most Proud Moments "I’m really most proud of the difference we have made along the way in the lives of the people who have been a part of KARLEE," she said. "We call them the extended family. . . . You don’t just walk in and it’s a job; you walk in and it’s part of your family, and that makes a difference." Brumit recounts a story of a Hispanic team member who couldn’t speak English. KARLEE supported his education and skills development, and now he is a department manager at another company and his children are all English-speaking high school graduates. Several other current and former KARLEE team members have come to the company with basic accounting knowledge; some are now accomplished certified public accountants, with one a chief financial officer for another company and another running her own firm. "I think you live life with the purpose to make a difference. . . . It’s very rewarding to see people come in and be a part of the company and know that KARLEE wants them to grow to their full potential, even if that means they reach a point where KARLEE can’t provide that next opportunity and they leave us," she said. Brumit is also proud of the trust that customers have in the manufacturer, which has led to long-term relationships and referrals: "Customers trust us and know that we’re going to be honest with them. And we’re going to do everything in our power to make them a success." Advice for Senior Leaders "Perseverance is the key," she said. "You have to trust and have faith in your vision. Be very open, honest, and very appreciative of people. The team needs to feel your passion, energy, and commitment. They will follow your lead." Brumit added that seniors leaders "always have to keep the big picture in mind. Sometimes it’s not easy when you’re down in a valley struggling to see the next mountain top. . . . Our  big picture is that we always wanted to make a positive difference. We wanted our customers, our team members, our suppliers, and our community to be better because KARLEE existed. . . . So when you’re struggling in the valley, and you know that’s the big picture, it’s easy to stay the course and overcome the obstacles." Baldrige KARLEE receives 2000 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award from President George W. Bush. When it comes to recognitions, for which there have been many, Brumit said winning the Baldrige Award was the highlight. Brumit, who is also a founding member of the Baldrige-based Quality Texas Foundation, said KARLEE started using the Baldrige Criteria in the 1990s because she felt it was a "great platform to build our business on." Today, the company still uses the Criteria as its business model to help it stay agile in a changing industry. "For us, it’s the way we do business," Brumit said, referencing the Criteria for leadership development, voice-of-the-customer processes, key performance indicators, and measurements. She and several of her team members have also served as examiners for Quality Texas, a member of the Alliance for Performance Excellence and partner of the Baldrige Program. Baldrige was "never just a program for us. . . . It was really what we thought was a great model to run your business. . . . Baldrige allowed us be strategic, to manage by fact, and be process focused." She added that Baldrige also provided a community. "You should surround yourself with knowledge, whether it’s gained through relationships, or by study, but be a continuous learner. And I think Baldrige did that for us as well. . . . Being strong here in the Texas area, we had a great network of go-to people when we needed to consult experts about something or we just needed reinforcement." Being a Female Manufacturing CEO Brumit said as a female manufacturing CEO she was quite the novelty in the 1980s and 1990s. She was able to play that to her advantage to get in the door; however, she quickly learned that once in the door she had to prove that the company could perform to expectations. As a woman in manufacturing, Brumit said it had always been difficult to get support from the financial institutes, especially after the telecom industry collapse in the early 2000s. She recounted one negative experience where she felt a banker didn’t have any trust or confidence in the company because it was woman-owned (a rare thing for a manufacturer). Brumit said things have changed, and she’s often asked to serve on boards and other entities because of the diversity and experience that she brings to the table. Where Does KARLEE Go From Here? At KARLEE, succession planning is taken seriously, and Brumit said she’s blessed to have the next generation of leaders already in place, with mentors and coaches (herself included) in the wings. "I think . . . some companies don’t have that succession in place," she said. "They don’t think about their sustainability and what it takes to reach the next mountain top? Where do you want to go?" Brumit said the company has always done strategic planning, with both long- and short-term plans to keep up with the rapidly changing industry and customer expectations. KARLEE is always looking to see where the markets are moving/changing and where it needs to add capabilities. Brumit said she is especially excited that U.S. manufacturers are bringing their operations back to the United States (i.e., on-shoring). "The U.S. is regaining its global competitiveness. Manufacturing is important, and it’s coming back, and it does make a difference. . . .  Leaders and influencers in America realize that manufacturing is critical for our country. It makes us stronger and secure, creates jobs, and protects our future." Celebration In honor of its 40th anniversary, KARLEE invites past and present team members, customers, suppliers, and the business community to its Garland, TX, headquarters on Friday, June 13, 2014, to enjoy a day of fun and celebration. For information, contact rsvp@karlee.com. In addition, KARLEE will present at the 21st annual Texas Quest for Excellence Conference on June 23-24.

Posted by Harry Hertz, the Baldrige Cheermudgeon A question I frequently get asked is whether the use of the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence has to start with adoption at the senior leader level of the whole organization. The simple answer is that it is wonderful if it starts there, but that is not necessary. A Baldrige effort (journey) frequently starts with a single business unit or department. If that department has cross-functional responsibilities, it is even better because then partners need to get involved. While initial results may not impact the whole organization, the results certainly can benefit the organization and many of its customers. This is all background for discussing a recent article by Brett Simon (a current Baldrige Executive Fellow) and Sharon Muret-Wagstaff (a current Baldrige Judge), entitled, "Leading Departmental Change to Advance Perioperative Quality." The article is about organizational learning and improving performance outcomes. The work initiated in the anesthesia department at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center of Harvard Medical School. The research by Muret-Wagstaff and Simon relied on a model with three building blocks: (1) Leadership that reinforces learning; (2) A supportive learning environment; and, (3) Effective, concrete learning processes and practices. The anesthesia department used these building blocks to establish a cross-functional partnership to achieve perioperative performance excellence, a goal that serves both departmental and interdepartmental goals. The authors established a leadership team comprised of senior members from anesthesiology, surgery, nursing, orthopedics, and obstetrics and gynecology. Recognizing a need for leadership and spread across facilities, the program leaders created a pilot course in Leadership in Anesthesiology with the Sloan School of Management faculty at MIT. Leaders draw on the Baldrige Criteria and the balanced scorecard to align strategy and goals and to balance focus on patients and other stakeholders. Chartered teams are used to address individual 90-day improvement plans. In the first three years, this performance improvement model has achieved process improvements in quality, safety, and patient and family experiences. Furthermore this approach to infrastructure, systematic processes, and interdisciplinary learning and improvement engendered an increasingly receptive culture. The outcomes provide a compelling case proof to the success that can be achieved by building a Baldrige-based performance management system from within an organization with opportunities, in this case, for patient-centered improvements and organizational spread. As one participating anesthesiologist noted, "Instead of pointing fingers at each other we are sitting down and saying, ‘We can figure out how to improve this together.’ It’s a mindshift."