Established by the U.S. Congress in 1987, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) recognizes United States companies that successfully implement quality management systems. The award not only shines a light on the achievements of a single company, but also raises awareness of the importance of quality management.

First awarded by President Ronald Reagan near the end of this time in office, the award ranks as the highest presidential honor an organization can receive for performance excellence.

Six Categories for MBNQA Awards

Winners of an MBNQA can receive the award in one of six categories. They include:

  • Manufacturing
  • Service Company
  • Small Business
  • Education
  • Healthcare
  • Nonprofit

Founded in February 1988, the Baldrige Foundation oversees the awards program. The foundation states that it follows the guidelines set down in Congress for the MBNQA, which are to identify and recognize role-model businesses, establish criteria for evaluating improvement efforts, and disseminate and share best practices.

Who Was Malcolm Baldrige?

Malcom Baldrige served as Secretary of Commerce under President Reagan. His tragic death helped bring congressmen from both national parties together to establish the award that bears his name.

To understand the award, it’s important to understand the context. Starting in the 1970s and into the 1980s, Asian manufacturers, especially Japanese electronics and automobile producers, began to outshine U.S. companies in the area of quality. Many members of Congress, most notably Rep. Dan Fuqua of Florida, supported creation of a national award for quality to spur companies to make improvements in this key area.

However, Congress did not vote on Fuqua’s bill in 1986 to establish the award. Then, in 1987, Baldrige died in an accident. A native of Nebraska, Baldrige had worked in rodeos his entire life. On July 25, 1987, at the age 64, Baldrige died from injuries sustained at a rodeo at Jack Roddy Ranch in Northern California when the horse he was riding fell on him while he was participating in a calf-roping competition.

While even those in business today may not remember Baldrige, he was one of the most beloved public officials in the Reagan Administration. His policies, including trade policies he helped develop with China, India, and the Soviet Union, helped spark immense growth in the U.S. economy.

Well respected around the world for his dedication to quality management, Baldridge’s death spurred Congress to create the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

The 7 MBNQA Criteria

While as many as three awards can be given each year in the six categories, that does not always happen. Nominees are judged by an independent board. Only those who meet stringent criteria are considered for an award. The board considers each based on achievements in seven areas. Collectively, these areas are known as the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence.

The seven areas of criteria include:

  • Leadership: How well leaders perform for the organization and how well the organization performs for the community.
  • Strategy: The company’s success in planning and implementing strategic goals.
  • Customers: How well the company meets the needs of customers and establishes long-term relationships with them.
  • Measurement, analysis, and knowledge management: The use of data-driven decisions to drive performance.
  • Workforce: The empowerment and level of involvement of an organization’s workforce.
  • Operations: The use of process improvement to make changes in operations.
  • Results: A measure of how well the company did against competitors, as well as in customer satisfaction, finance, human resources, supplier and partner performance, operations, social responsibility, and governance.

Reagan awarded the first MBNQAs in November 1988, near the end of his eight years as president. That year’s recipients were Motorola, Inc., Westinghouse Electric Corporation Commercial Nuclear Fuel Division and Globe Metallurgical Inc. (now Globe Specialty Metals, Inc.)

Reagan said of the award, “America’s economic strength depends on industry’s ability to improve productivity and quality and to remain on the cutting edge of technology. And that’s why the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award is so important.”