Investors in Excellence is a mark of achievement that will allow organisations
to demonstrate their performance against the Excellence Model.

ALAN JONES explains how …


Investors in Excellence (IIE) is designed for the organisation which has adopted the Excellence Model, and has perhaps won an award and is saying, what next?

IIE is demanding and cannot be achieved without meeting a defined standard against each criterion of the Excellence Model.

In each case there is a set of indicators and for each indicator the applicant must provide evidence of achievement. Because the Excellence Model deals with every aspect of an organisation, IIE recognition will be the most powerful evidence of an organisation’s capabilities and performance.

IIE was developed by Midlands Excellence and launched in 2003. Response has been so impressive that the UK Excellence Federation will introduce it throughout the UK early in 2004. The members of the UK Excellence Federation that will provide the IIE service are the BQF, the Centre for Competitiveness (Northern Ireland), East of England Excellence, Excellence North East, Excellence North West, Excellence South West, Excellence Yorkshire, London Excellence, Midlands Excellence, Quality Scotland and in Wales the Wales Quality Centre.

WHO IS IIE FOR?
IIE will be attractive to a wide range of organisations in both private and public sectors. For example, companies tendering for business are invariably asked to give evidence of their quality standards. IIE is also the perfect solution for large companies with many sites, offices or business units, each of which may want to achieve a certain level of performance against the Excellence Model. The same advantage applies to local or central government organisations.

HOW DOES IIE WORK?
IIE accreditation is based on the nine criteria of the Excellence Model and the process for its achievement will have four phases:

1. COMMITMENT
An applicant formally commits to becoming an Investor in Excellence.

2. DIAGNOSIS
The applicant undertakes a systematic self-assessment using the Excellence Model which leads to a gap analysis against the IIE standard. The preferred, but not mandatory, diagnostic tool is the UK Excellence Federation’s beta service.

3. DELIVERY
The applicant works to close the identified gaps, either alone or using services offered by a member of the UK Excellence Federation.

4. CERTIFICATION
When the applicant decides that they are ready to be assessed for IIE, they make a written submission. A licensed assessor undertakes a desktop assessment of the submission and a site visit. Based upon the results of the assessment, the assessor will recommend whether or not the applicant meets the IIE requirements and should be certified. Successful organisations will receive a certificate and plaque to mark their achievement. Recertification is required after two years.
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Full details including prices, will be announced in April 2004. In the meantime, please contact Wales Quality Centre if you are interested or would like to know more about IIE.