Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and organizational quality management

Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award

Analysis and Assessment of Its Effectiveness Globally on Product Quality

During the mid 1980s it was becoming increasingly apparent that American businesses were losing their competitive edge to foreign rivals who were transforming quality management into a potent competitive differentiator and value-creator in global markets. Many of America's top industries were increasingly being challenged on product quality and often losing to smaller yet much more quality-obsessed competitors. It was also increasingly apparent that the stronger commitment a given firm had to quality and the continual improvement of processes and products, the greater the potential for higher profitability as well (Bell, Elkins, 2004). Seeing the trending of quality in America declining and drastically increasing globally, the U.S. Congress enacted the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act of 1987 (Bell, Elkins, 2004). The intent o this analysis is to discuss the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award which is presented to the winner annual at a White House ceremony hosted by the President. Annually up to eighteen awards can be given as defined and judged by the NIST and their standards-making organizations and committees (Prybutok, Cutshall, 2004). There are also six eligibility categories that companies compete in annually to win the award. They include education, healthcare, manufacturing, service, small business and nonprofit organizations. There are very specific steps organizations in each of these industries need to follow in order to have an opportunity to win the award as well, with efforts taking nearly a year to complete in many cases (Brown, 1991).

Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award As Catalyst of Change

By the mid 1980s it was apparent that such strategically important industries as auto manufacturing, durable goods production and many areas of high technology were falling behind the global median level of quality. The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award was specifically designed to bring attention to and reward those firms in the U.S. who chose the difficult yet very rewarding path of product and process quality improvement that disrupted the status quo of their industries and set a new standard of performance (Davis, Stading, 2005). Congress gave responsibility for administering and managing the competition for the annual award to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce (Johannessen, 1997). The NIST is globally recognized for excellent in setting and maintaining quality management standards across a broad array of strategic initiatives (Lee, Zuckweiler, Trimi, 2006).

This quality award is considered the most prestigious for any company to receive globally as it recognizes mastery and excellence over five key areas the U.S. Congress mentioned in the 1987 Act. (Johannessen, 1997). These areas include the following: greater complexity and precision of products forcing an inordinately higher level of product quality management; the need for averting threats to human safety and health in addition to the environment; the continual increases in regulation fo quality; rise of consumerism and disposable products and the rapidly escalating levels of product quality-based competition globally (Bell, Elkins, 2004).

In keeping with the goal of making the award a catalyst of organizational change in companies pursuing the award, there are seven categories that entrants are judged on. These include the following and are often measured in a scorecard-based methodology (Bell, Elkins, 2004). The seven criteria include leadership, strategic planning, customer and market focus, information and analysis, human resource focus, process management and business results (Bell, Elkins, 2004). Taken together these seven categories also form the foundation of how companies are evaluated in terms of their long-term profitability and growth based on excelling in specific quality management areas (Davis, Stading, 2005).