Balanced
Scorecard and Baldrige
Balanced
Scorecard and Baldrige are the two most accepted models for
continuous improvement in higher education. The first is the Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Program and the second is the Balanced
Scorecard. Over the past decade, the Malcolm Baldrige National
Quality Award has evolved from an acute quality-focused program to
much more of a performance- and result-focused program. The Balanced
Scorecard represents one of the most popular performance- and
results-focused management methodologies. By combining these two
initiatives i.e. organizations can achieve dramatically improved
execution and can ensure better quality throughout the
organization.
The first of
the two models for continuous improvement (Balanced Scorecard and
Baldrige) is the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program.
Baldridge (Baldrige) is generally recognized as the premier
continuous improvement program in the country. It was established
over a decade ago as a program to stimulate businesses to focus on
quality and continuous improvement. Its primary objective is to
prepare businesses to meet the demanding challenges of an ever-
increasing competitive market environment. Each year, the criteria
for performance excellence are updated and refined to ensure that it
truly emphasizes the factors that will make the greatest difference
in improving an organization and achieving performance excellence.
Undoubtedly, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program has
gained much popularity in the recent past as more and more
organizations are becoming quality conscious in today’s fast
changing and competitive world.
The second
model for improvement is the Balanced Scorecard. The Balanced
Scorecard is a concept developed by Robert S. Kaplan, professor at
the Harvard Business School, and David P. Norton,
president of Renaissance Solutions, Inc. They developed it as a tool
for managers to mobilize their people for achieving organizational
goals.
The Balanced
Scorecard with its four perspectives--financial, internal business
processes, learning and growth, and customer--provides a balanced
picture of current operating performance, as well as drivers for
future performance. While the concept primarily addressed the needs
of businesses, its success and acceptance has also been growing very
rapidly in the public sector. Since the public sector is more
interested in developing organizations to meet the challenges of the
future than it is with growth, the third perspective is usually
referred to as innovation and learning.
The Balanced
Scorecard integrates financial and non-financial measures, such as
customer satisfaction and employee work environment, to show a clear
linkage to organizational goals and strategies. Goals are developed
to achieve an organization's vision for the future. They become the
roadmap to the desired outcomes. Goals established by departments
and units become more specific further down the organization's
hierarchy. They show how the units will participate in the overall
goals of the organization. Managers define and implement strategies
or action plans for accomplishing each of the goals. They also
establish performance measurements to indicate the progress obtained
in accomplishing their strategies.
The Malcolm
Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence is the basis for
organizational self-assessment, for making the award, and for giving
feedback to applicants. The core values and concepts of the program
are embodied in seven main categories and nineteen subcategories.
Baldrige takes a very comprehensive look at every aspect of an
organization. It evaluates seven major
categories:
·
Leadership
·
Strategic Planning
·
Customer and Market
·
Innovation and Analysis
·
Human Resource Focus
·
Process Management
·
Business Results
Baldrige
examiners use a set of scoring guidelines to evaluate the approach,
deployment, and results of an organization submitting an
application.
Let’s see some
more information about Balanced Scorecard and Baldrige. The Balanced
Scorecard system is customer and process-focused. It’s all about
identifying and continually improving key organizational processes
in the interests of delivering better value to customers. The
Department of Commerce is responsible for the Malcolm Baldrige
National Quality Program and Award. The National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST), Department of Commerce, manages the
program.
