New winners, new books, new challenges

Nothing lasts forever. Projects are started and completed. New insights lead to new publications and new role models. And be warned, because the EFQM Excellence Award assessment teams are on the move again…

Who will be the 2013 EFQM Excellence Award Winner?
As every year in January and February EFQM put the EEA-assessment teams together. After an individual preparation period, in March all teams met up in Brussels for the 'briefing event’. During a relaxing and inspiring get-together the groundwork for the EFQM Excellence Award assessments in May / June was completed. The big question is always which organizations will receive the honours this year. In October at the EFQM Forum in beautiful Vienna the EEA 2013 winners will be announced!

Briefing event EFQM assessment teams.

Book Launch
The role and responsibilities of companies are under discussion. The central question is: how can organizations simultaneously serve multiple stakeholders, both inside and outside the organization? The goal: a balanced use of the four forms of capital, being social, human, environmental and financial.
The new Dutch book Derde Generatie Kwaliteitsmanagement (third generation quality management) describes the search for existing and new insights in the field of quality management. As Improve4all I contributed to this book with a chapter on the role and importance of social results in the EFQM Excellence Model.
The book will be presented on 30th of May, during the 17th National Quality Congress in the Netherlands. As Improve4all I will provide a workshop on the EFQM-chapter in the book.

Sustainability Report 2012 for ASML 
Sustainability is not a one trick pony, but a continuous process. Similarly, neither was the creation of the 2012 Sustainability Report for the Dutch chip machine manufacturer ASML. The report was completed over a period of six months, a time in which many aha-moments were experienced providing a nice base to build upon.

Every beginning has an ending...
After more than two years the challenging interim management assignment at ASML as come to an end. As Corporate Sustainability Manager I have enjoyed the pleasant cooperation with people on all levels in the organisation. ASML is a vibrant company with innovation at the core of its being.
I will continue as sustainability professional looking for new challenges in the context of creating a more sustainable world. And for me too innovation, in the way we think and act, is at the top of my priority list!

From past to future

The Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius already knew: ‘Time is a sort of river of passing events, and strong is its current’. The year 2012 is already coming to an end and it is time to take stock: which sustainability successes can we show? What does this mean for next year? A bird’s eye view.

Energy-efficient

In 2012 Improve4all provided sustainability support for the business of chip machine producer ASML: the Sustainability Report 2011 was successfully completed. Eric Meurice, President and Chief Executive Officer van ASML: ‘We see it as our mission to develop machines that manufacture more efficiently integrated circuits, which themselves will enable more energy-efficient electronic products. Our sustainability strategy goes hand in hand with our business strategy.’

EFQM-training

Working together on creative & inspiring solutions,
to improve us all.

An excellent organisation requires an excellent approach. During the year Improve4all, as member of the faculty of trainers, provided various EFQM-training courses around the world. At the EFQM offices in Brussels, but also on location in Abu Dhabi for instance, managers were trained in ‘the excellence practices’: how do you determine if a business is organising its people and processes in an optimal way? How does an organisation make sure that their business results are balanced with their customer results, employee results and society results? And which part are leaders playing here?

Zero Impact Growth

The journey towards a sustainable world is not an individual journey, many, and each in their own way, work at making the world a better place. Some are very inspiring. Take John Elkington who, in his book The Zeronauts – Breaking the Sustainability Barrier, set the new standard for sustainability this year. The idea is: the world is confronted with some enormous challenges, better known as the 5 P’s: population growth, pandemics, poverty, pollution, and proliferation. The only remedy for a healthy future is to place our bets on an economy that grows without any negative impact on the planet. In short: Zero Impact Growth.

Plans for 2013

This is only a fraction of all beautiful experiences of the past year. In 2013 this path will partly be continued: several training courses and assessments are on the agenda, and for ASML the completion and publication of the Sustainability Report 2012 is on there too. Next to this some new developments can be reported: Improve4all will extend the European base (run from The Netherlands) and also set up a hub in the Middle-East. Since the capacity will be enlarged there will be room for new initiatives. So please feel free to spar and brainstorm, who knows this might lead to sustainable insights …

Firm base

Improve4all is working on their next steps with the deeply rooted belief that truly excellent organisations make the world a better place. By inspiring leaders to find innovative and sustainable solutions for their organisations Improve4all stimulates organisations to achieve and sustain outstanding levels of performance. That is why, in 2013, we will strongly focus on sustainable excellence again.

But until that time Improve4all wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!

EFQM Ambassadors

As a member of the EFQM Faculty of Trainers I regularly have the pleasure to train a group of people who have applied to become EFQM Assessors. Again I had this pleasure last week, when I worked together with my fellow faculty member Chris Hakes.

Being an assessor is a demanding task and it requires a specific set of skills and competencies to be successful. That is why the EFQM Assessor Training (EAT) is a pass or fail training. Prior to the training participants are asked to analyse a case study. Completion of this case study exercise is a pre-requisite for taking the training. The ‘open registry’ trainings are delivered in Brussels at the EFQM premises. The training takes three days and people who pass are qualified to participate in an international EFQM Excellence Award Assessment. 

The assessor training is an intense event. During the open EAT you will normally work together with a diverse group of people who you have not met before, as you would during an assessment. The training group last week was again wonderfully diverse. People came from all over Europe and from various types of organisations to receive their training in Brussels.

During the training we go through the steps in the assessment process supported by the completion of several practical individual and team exercises. Participants are explained how to use the EFQM Model and RADAR in the context of executing an effective assessment of an organisation.

Ultimately Chris and myself have again been able to deliver new additions to the EFQM pool of assessors. The participants left the training content. Now they understand more about the EFQM Model and the benefits of applying it, not only for assessment purposes, but also as a tool for management for running and improving their business.

But apart from that I feel the EAT might also have turned them into new EFQM Ambassadors, as it turned me into one several years ago!