Business Excellence Initiative
Singapore launched the business excellence initiative in 1994 to help organisations to know where they are on the excellence journey and what they need to do to achieve a higher level of performance. This is done by an assessment of organisational performance against the requirements of the business excellence framework.
Business Excellence Framework
The business excellence framework is internationally benchmarked with excellence frameworks adopted for the US Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management) Excellence Award, Japan Quality Award and the Australian Business Excellence Awards.
The framework addresses seven dimensions of excellence : Leadership, Planning, Information, People, Processes, Customers and Results.
Driver
Senior leaders set the organisational directions and seek future opportunities for the organisation.
Systems
The systems comprise a set of well-defined processes for meeting the organisation’s performance requirements.
Results
The results deliver ever-improving customer value and organisational performance.
Dimensions of Excellence
(1) Leadership
While it is important for an organisation to define a clear vision and mission, it is even more important for it to demonstrate visible leadership that inspires its people to work towards achieving this vision to succeed. A good leader is able to set a purpose that shapes what the organisation aspires to achieve.
(2) Planning
The organisation achieves its vision and mission through a well-defined strategy that takes into account the market or industry conditions in which it operates. Its policies, plans and processes should be aligned to this strategy.
(3) Information
Through effective management of information, the organisation is able to align its operations with its strategic objectives. A robust information management system allows the organisation to capture relevant information for performance measurement, organisational reviews, knowledge management, comparison and benchmarking and to continuously learn and innovate.
(4) People
In order to excel, the organisation must develop and tap the full potential of its employees at the individual, team-based and organisational levels. Employees at every level should be involved and empowered to make changes. They should be rewarded and recognised so that they are motivated to perform to their best and stay committed to the organisation.
(5) Processes
Effective processes ensure that the organisation’s work systems are designed to create value for its customers, prepare for potential emergencies and achieve organisational success and sustainability.
(6) Customers
The organisation should constantly seek to engage its customers to meet their needs, build relationships and ensuring customer loyalty. This engagement is an important outcome of a customer-focused culture that is important to the organisation’s sustainability in the marketplace.
(7) Results
The results focus on the organisation's customer, financial and marketplace, workforce and operational performance. Through this focus, the organisation is able to sustain the superior value of its offerings and organisational performance to achieve its vision, strategies and goals.
Business Excellence Standards
There are four business excellence standards based on the business excellence framework. These are :
- An overall business excellence standard leading to the Singapore Quality Class (SQC) certification and
- Three business excellence niche standards for people, innovation and service leading to the People Developer (PD), Singapore Innovation Class (I-Class) and Singapore Service Class (S-Class) certifications.
Each of these standards focus on management capabilities required for a key enabler of business excellence, i.e. people, innovation or service. Based on their needs and strategy, organisations can use any of these business excellence standards to enhance their capabilities.
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