How to Use Baldrige

Organizations use the Baldrige model to drive systematic, continuous improvement through an assessment process. The most common types of assessment are an application, assessment, or survey. The typical process for each is shown in the diagram below.

1. Your organization can submit a formal application for the Baldrige Award, a state award, or an internal Baldrige-based award.
2. You can produce a written assessment evaluated by an examiner or team of examiners selected by the organization.
3. You can have a Baldrige-based survey completed by a select group within the organization.

Submitting an application is the most rigorous option. It requires one or more people knowledgeable about the Criteria to respond to the Criteria questions by researching what the organization does and using the findings to write the application. Depending on the size of the organization, a Baldrige application can take 300 or more hours to complete. The benefit of this process is a detailed snapshot of your management system with strengths and opportunities for improvement identified by Baldrige experts.

Organizations new to the Baldrige model frequently begin by writing an internal assessment or completing a Baldrige survey. The survey takes the least amount of time but it is also the least specific and informative.

Taking full advantage of the Baldrige process requires regular (usually annual) assessments over a period of several years, until the Baldrige management model is ingrained in how the organization operates.