BALDRIGE AWARD CRITERIA


1.  Leadership: The leadership category examines how the senior
executives create and sustain a clear and visible quality value
system along with a supporting management system to guide all
activities of the company toward quality excellence.  Also
examined are the senior executives' and the company's quality
leadership in the external community and how the company inte-
grates its public responsibilities with its quality values and
practices.

2.  Information and Analysis: The Information and Analysis
category examines the scope, validity, use, and management of
data and information that underlie the company's total quality
management system.  Also examined is the adequacy of data and
information to support a responsive prevention approach to
quality based on "management by fact."

3.  Strategic Quality Planning: The Strategic Quality Planning
category examines the company's planning process for retaining or
achieving quality leadership and how the company integrates
quality improvement planning into overall business planning. 
Also examined are the company's short-term and longer-term
priorities to achieve and/or sustain a quality leadership posi-
tion.

4.  Human Resource Management: The Human Resource Utilization
category examines the effectiveness of the company's efforts to
develop and realize the full potential of the work force, includ-
ing management, and to maintain an environment conducive to full
participation, quality leadership, and personal and organization-
al growth.

5.  Quality Assurance of Products and Services: The Quality
Assurance of Products and Services category examines the system-
atic approaches used by the company for total quality control of
goods and services based primarily upon process design and
control, including control of procured materials, parts and
services.  Also examined is the integration of quality control
with continuous quality improvement.

6.  Quality Results: The Quality Results category examines
quality levels and quality improvement based on objective mea-
sures derived from analysis of customer requirements and expecta-
tions and from analysis of business operations.  Also examined
are current quality levels in relation to those of competing
firms.

7.  Customer Satisfaction: The Customer Satisfaction category
examines the company's knowledge of the customer, overall custom-
er service systems, responsiveness, and its ability to meet
requirements and expectations.  Also examined are current levels
and trends in customer satisfaction.

                         quoted from 1990 Application Guidelines: 
                         Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.


Provided by Tom Glenn, TQM BBS, 301-585-1164