Congratulations, you have taken the first step to organizational excellence! Your desire to improve and to challenge the assumption that the way we have always done things is the best way, is perhaps the most difficult step. SPQA provides a systematic three-step process to help you on your improvement journey.
Training
The first step is learning about the Baldrige Excellence Framework and Criteria. The framework is packed with questions to help you reflect on how well your organization functions and a rubric to help you analyze the quality of your responses to the questions. SPQA provides a variety of training opportunities which can be tailored to your specific needs. Learn more…
Discovery
The second step is our Discovery program. In Discovery you provide a written response to the most important questions in the framework and a team of experienced SPQA examiners provides you with a written report on how well your organization aligns with the framework. We will also provide a mentor to help guide you through the process. Learn more…
Award
The final step is completing an Award application. In this step you provide a written response to all of the questions in the framework. A team of experienced examiners will both review your written response and visit your organization to deepen their understanding of your processes. The team will provide a detailed feedback report and a panel of judges will determine your award. To apply for the national Baldrige Quality Award, organizations have to have won their state’s top level award. In Virginia and DC, that is the SPQA Medallion award. Learn more…
SPQA also partnered with the Virginia Department of Commerce and Trade to support small businesses through our Ones to Watch program. This unique program combined the training and the Discovery offerings with strong support from an SPQA mentor and knowledge from our partners.