Industry Headlines

America Needs Baldrige Campaign Launches September 8

MILWAUKEE- As part of the America Needs Baldrige! campaign, supporters of the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program are reaching out to Congress on Thursday, Sept. 8, to encourage continuing federal funding for the program.

Earlier this year, two committees in the U.S. House of Representatives voted to eliminate federal funding for the Baldrige Program for the fiscal year 2012. The campaign, organized by the America Needs Baldrige committee, asks supporters to call, fax, email, or visit their Congressional representatives on Sept. 8. The goal is to build a critical mass of awareness in Congress of the Baldrige Program’s importance to America and to restore $10 million in federal funding for fiscal year 2012. Federal funding is matched with funds from the Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, along with applicant fees and the service of nearly 1,000 volunteers.

“Baldrige is about helping organizations in all sectors of the economy by driving economic development and job creation,” says Debbie J. Collard, chair of the Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. “That’s a vital message in today’s economic climate. This campaign breaks through the noise by issuing a call to action to Congressional members on the same day and sharing one simple message: America needs Baldrige.”

The Baldrige Program provides leadership for the learning and sharing of successful strategies and performance improvement practices, principles, and methodologies to strengthen U.S. organizations. This program is the only U.S. public-private partnership dedicated to improving U.S. organizations so they can compete globally. It educates business, education, healthcare, and nonprofit organizations on best practices in organizational management and business excellence. The federal funding is only a small portion of the total amount of hours, funding, and value contributing to the Baldrige Program.

On Sept. 8, supporters will emphasize ways in which the Baldrige Program improves the efficiency and competitiveness of America’s businesses, schools, and healthcare; increases tax revenue; creates jobs; saves taxpayer dollars; and keeps America competitive. For example:

  • In 2010, the 83 Baldrige program award applicants represented almost 300,000 jobs, $38 billion in revenues, and more than 80 million customers.
  • Baldrige award recipients that used program methodology for six continuous years showed a median growth of 57%, revenue growth of 93% in profit, and job growth of 63% (in comparison, job growth was 3.2% on average for the same period of time in industries from which the recipients came).

    Supporters will also share personal experiences as award applicants and examiners for the Baldrige Program.

  • Did you enjoy this article? Click here to subscribe to Quality Magazine. 

    You must login or register in order to post a comment.

    Multimedia

    Videos

    Podcasts

    Bill Arbogast explains his perspective on quality, ISO 9001, and how to manage inevitable business changes.


    Read: The 2013 Quality Professional of the Year

     
    More Podcasts

    THE MAGAZINE

    Quality Magazine

    magazine quality cover 2013 may audits

    2013 May

    Check out the May 2013 edition of Quality Magazine for features about Measurement, Software and Test & Inspection.
    Table Of Contents Subscribe

    Plant of the Year

    Which is the most important factor in considering a Quality plant of the Year?
    View Results Poll Archive

    THE QUALITY MAGAZINE STORE

    M:\General Shared\__AEC Store Katie Z\AEC Store\Images\Quality\prac-field-guide-for-iso.gif
    A Practical Field Guide for ISO 9001:2008

    The purpose of this field guide is to assist organizations, step by step, in implementing a quality management system (QMS) in conformance with ISO 9001:2008, whether from scratch or by transitioning from ISO 9001:2000. It examines each sub-clause of Sections 4–8 of ISO 9001:2008, which contain the requirements, and gives a list of the documentation/documents required, internal audit questions, a summary of management’s responsibilities, and a flowchart of the steps that need to be undertaken to satisfy the requirements.

    More Products

    Clear Seas Research

    qcast_ClearSeas_logo.gifWith access to over one million professionals and more than 60 industry-specific publications,Clear Seas Research offers relevant insights from those who know your industry best. Let us customize a market research solution that exceeds your marketing goals.

    eNewsletters

    STAY CONNECTED

    facebook_40.png twitter_40px.png  youtube_40px.pnglinkedin_40px.png