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Career Development
December 2005
Malcolm Baldrige Invites Foodservice onto
World Stage—Are We Best in Class?
By Peter Langlois
First as a Malcolm Baldrige Examiner and then as a
consultant and ambassador, my eyes were truly opened by participating over
the last few years in the most-highly recognized standard of excellence
for U.S. companies, The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The
metrics used to measure companies are tough and insightful.
Designed to ferret out shortcomings and areas needing
improvement, Baldrige Criteria is an excellent framework to apply to one’s
own company. It’s like having a team of MBAs as your consulting team. It’s
a great yardstick for measuring where you are on key management
strategies, and then developing action plans to fill gaps.
As the restaurant industry has grown to prominence,
Malcolm Baldrige has recognized the need to acknowledge the performance of
such service-intensive industries, and is openly inviting participation
from our industry just as we seek validation. I believe that by joining
the evaluation process as examiners, we can face our shortcomings
vis-à-vis other industries and move forward towards excellence. I urge
industry leaders to accept this invitation. It is a personal career
development opportunity.
Most importantly, our industry belongs on this stage.
It’s not enough to compare to one another. We must dare to be compared to
all U.S. industries. You can connect with Malcolm Baldrige on
www.RestaurantU.com by clicking
on “Malcolm Baldrige” at the bottom of the welcome page, or in “Main
Attractions.” Once on their site, read about applying to be an Examiner.
One word of advice: This is the ultimate in tough love
for your company. If you’re merely seeking another award to put up in the
foyer at corporate headquarters, you can find plenty easier to get than
this one. Yet I don’t think you’ll find another that truly validates
excellence in so many business facets.
More from Malcolm Baldrige Headquarters
Are you ready for the career development opportunity of
the year?
The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's
premier award for organizational performance excellence, is seeking
experts to volunteer for the 2006 Board of Examiners.
As a Baldrige Examiner, you will:
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Conduct in-depth reviews of leading organizations.
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Network with the nation's foremost business, education,
and health care professionals.
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Receive valuable training in assessing business
operations.
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Use your expertise to improve the competitiveness of
American business
To apply today, visit the Baldrige Program's online
application at:
http://www.quality.nist.gov/Examiner_Application.htm
To learn more about being an Examiner, visit the Baldrige
Program's Web site at
http://www.quality.nist.gov/Examiner_Booklet.htm, call toll free at
877-237-9064, or email to
examappl@nist.gov.
Testimonial
Serving on the Board of Examiners offers a wide range of
opportunities for personal and professional development. As volunteers,
Examiners refine their analytical and consensus-building skills, network
with some of the nation’s foremost experts in business, health care and
education, and use their expertise to improve America’s competitive
position. In the words of Steve Lampa, Senior Vice President Lodging
Quality Assurance & Rooms Operations, a former Examiner and current member
of the Panel of Judges, “I am grateful to have had the chance to be a
Baldrige Examiner: a good deal of work is required, but the return on
investment is huge. The people you meet are top-notch, the exposure to
different industries and business models expands your horizons, and best
of all, it is a lot of fun!”
If you believe you are qualified and want to benefit from
the networking and educational experience of being an Examiner, we invite
you to apply for the Board of Examiners. The application is available
online at:
www.baldrige.nist.gov/Board_of_Examiners/htm. The application for the
2006 Board will be open until January 8, 2006.
2005 Baldrige Award Recipients (announced Nov. 22,
2005)
President George W. Bush and Commerce Secretary Carlos
Gutierrez announced six organizations as recipients of the 2005 Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest Presidential honor
for quality and organizational performance excellence. The 2005 Baldrige
Award recipients are:
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Sunny Fresh Foods, Inc., Monticello, Minn.
(manufacturing)
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DynMcDermott Petroleum Operations, New Orleans, La.
(service)
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Park Place Lexus, Plano, Texas (small business)
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Richland College, Dallas, Texas (education)
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Jenks Public Schools, Jenks, Okla. (education)
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Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo, Mich. (health
care)
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