Developing a Global Excellence Model and a Global Excellence Award for Sport Organizations

There is a growing body of research work on the extent of Total Quality Management (TQM) and Excellence Awards (EA) and their impact on organizational effectiveness. A general finding is that TQM and EA are increasingly being adopted in the United States, in Asia, and in Europe. Most of the studies reviewed suggest that TQM and EA can add value to an organization’s competitive strategy. The majority of the studies attribute a wide range of business performance improvements to the adoption of TQM and EA.

A United States study attempted to link TQM and EA and bottom-line results. The General Accounting Office (GAO) of the United States (1991) found that companies that adopted TQM practices experienced an overall improvement in corporate performance (higher productivity, better employee relations, greater customer satisfaction, increased market share, and improved profitability). GAO analyzed data in four key areas of corporate operations and found the following:

1. Employees in the companies GAO reviewed experienced increased job satisfaction and improved attendance; employee turnover also decreased.
2. Improved quality and lower cost were attained. Companies increased the reliability and on-time delivery of their product or service and reduced errors, and their cost of quality.
3. Greater customer satisfaction was accomplished. The data on customer satisfaction was based on the results of the customers’ overall perception about a product or service, the number of complaints received, and customer retention rates.
4. Improved market share and profitability were attained. As measured by several ratios widely used in financial analysis, the impact of an organization’s quality management system improved profitability.

The purpose of this presentation is twofold: (a) to provide an overview of the three international Excellence Awards and examine their relationship with organizational effectiveness (including financial indicators), and (b) to propose a simplified Global Excellence Model accompanied by a Global Excellence Certificate and Award scheme for sport organizations. The presentation will include a detailed description of the evaluation process for a sport organization, the scoring system, the benefits, the levels of the Certificate and Award, and the options available to applicants.

References:

Davidow, W., and Uttal, B. (1989). Total customer service. New York: Harper-Collins.

European Foundation for Quality Management. (1996). Self assessment guide. Belgium: EFQM.

General Accounting Office. (1991). Management practices: U.S. companies improve performance through quality efforts. Washington D.C., USA.

Greisler, D. (1999). William Edwards Deming: the man. Journal of Management History. 5(8), 434 – 453.