7 organizations receive Governor’s Quality Award

The Arkansas Institute for Performance Excellence (AIPE) honored seven organizations with an Arkansas Governor’s Quality Award during the 30th Annual Governor’s Quality Award Celebration at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock.

The Governor’s Quality Award program is coordinated by the AIPE, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce.

The goal of the program is to encourage Arkansas organizations to engage in continuous quality improvement, which leads to performance excellence. The award process aligns with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and uses the Baldrige Excellence Framework.

Arkansas Lt. Governor Leslie Rutledge presented the awards at the event.

The winners included:

Springdale Water Utilities earned the program’s highest honor, the Governor’s Award for Performance Excellence. This award level requires applicants to demonstrate systematic processes and excellent results in key areas. To qualify for this award, applicants must write a 55-page application and host a two-and-a-half-day site visit for examiners to verify and validate their performance. Springdale Water Utilities became one of five Arkansas entities in the history of the program to earn this award level more than once. The utility company first earned this award in 2018.

Quadrivium, Inc., a Springdale-based information technology company, earned the Achievement Award, the third of four award levels. These award recipients demonstrate systematic processes that result in favorable performance. Additionally, these honorees complete a 45-page application and participate in a one-and-one-half day site visit.

ARORA, Arkansas’ federally designated organ recovery center, received the Commitment Award, the second of four Governor’s Quality Award levels. To qualify for this award, the applicants are required to respond to a condensed set of questions about their organization’s processes and receive a feedback report to better understand their organizations’ results, strengths and opportunities.

Four organizations received the Challenge Award, the first award level within the program. Recipients of this award included: Baptist Heath Medical Center-North Little Rock, Bio-Tech Pharmacal in Fayetteville, Easterseals Arkansas in Little Rock, and Windsor Door in Little Rock.

The Challenge Level is the starting point for organizations within the program. To qualify for the Challenge Award, these organizations define key characteristics such as mission, vision, values, customer groups and strategic challenges and advantages.