U.S. Senate Productivity and Quality Award
for Virginia, Maryland and DC
Our Mission
The mission of Virginia SPQA is to promote continual improvement strategies and to provide training, mentoring, and recognition to organizations in pursuit of performance excellence.
SPQA is charged with administering the U.S. Senate Productivity and Quality Award recognizing the highest caliber of performance excellence.
Our Work
Virginia SPQA fulfills its mission through the Award program and other lower-tier and mentoring programs. We provide Award applicants a comprehensive, low-cost organizational performance evaluation and an extensive feedback report. We train individuals to become experts at assessing and evaluating an entire organization based on the Baldrige Performance Excellence Framework and Criteria, and we conduct Baldrige-based workshops. See our Pathways to Excellence link in Services for our tiered approach to winning the award.
Our Story
Since 1982, Virginia SPQA has served organizations of all sizes from all sectors, and honored over 80 organizations with the prestigious Medallion Award in recognition of their achievement of performance excellence. We have trained hundreds of Examiners in the Baldrige criteria and methodologies to serve our Awards program and to support their own organization’s journey to performance excellence.
Featured Content
SPQA Chair Letter
The Benefits of the United States Senate Productivity and Quality Award Pathways to Excellence Program: The United States Senate Productivity and Quality Award (SPQA) Pathways to Excellence Program is a prestigious initiative designed to support organizations in their journey toward achieving operational excellence. Drawing inspiration from the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award framework, the program…
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Kindness at Work Pays Off
Excellence involves many aspects of human interaction. Kindness is a valuable attribute and characteristic in high performance organizations. It may not be an item to check off in a process or task, but it is foundational to positive outcomes for organizations. As this article highlights, “Kindness is good for everyone.” Kindness at work fosters a…
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2025 Quest for Excellence
Learn how your organization can achieve outstanding performance! Attend the premier showcase of Baldrige Award recipients March 30–April 2, 2025, at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront, Baltimore MD, the official Conference of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, brought to you by the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program at NIST. The Baldrige community will come together to…
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2024 VHHA Award
The Achievement in Performance Excellence Award is one of the highest honors bestowed by the SPQA program, recognizing organizations that demonstrate exemplary leadership, a strong commitment to continuous improvement, and a focus on delivering outstanding results. In the 2024, Pathways to Excellence Award Cycle, VHHA is recognized due to its unwavering dedication to advancing healthcare…
Read More2023 Awards
Eastern State Hospital (ESH) & Educational Employee’s Supplementary Retirement System of Fairfax County (ERFC) Thank you to our 2023 award honorees, Eastern State Hospital (ESH) and the Educational Employee’s Supplementary Retirement System of Fairfax County (ERFC). Their dedication to relentless advancement has set a benchmark in delivering superior service to customers, stakeholders, and employees alike….
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Baldrige for Beginners
Join us for an exciting two-day Baldrige for Beginners training session on December 12-13, 2024, hosted by SPQA. It’s an opportunity you won’t want to miss! Register here. In this Introductory course, SPQA offers an opportunity for individuals and organizations to learn the foundations of the Baldrige Excellence Framework using the Baldrige Excellence Builder to…
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Become an Examiner
Apply to work alongside dedicated others from a variety of sectors and positions to help improve the economic engine of the region one organization at a time. Apply to become a member of the 2025 Board of Examiners and immerse yourself in this proven methodology. More details are available in the downloadable SPQA Examiner Guide…
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2025 Application Process
SPQA uses the Baldrige Performance Excellence Framework as the basis for its award application, evaluation, scoring, and feedback methods. To apply, contact us at services@spqa-va.org. We will build a custom quote for your services. Service agreements in place: Saturday, October 19, 2024 The 2025 SPQA Award Guide provides details on how to complete your application….
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UNOS wins 2022 Award
SPQA is excited to announce UNOS winning the 2021 SPQA Achievement in Performance Excellence Award. We applaud them as they continue their journey toward implementing the Baldrige Performance Excellence Framework. About the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS)United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is the mission-driven non-profit serving as the nation’s transplant system under contract…
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