E
ducation Criteria Response Guidelines
The guidelines given in this section are offered to assist Criteria users in responding most effectively to the requirements of the 17 process and results Criteria items. For organizations writing an application for the Baldrige Award, responding involves addressing these requirements in 50 or fewer pages.
The guidelines are presented in three parts:
(1) general guidelines regarding the Criteria booklet, including how the items are formatted
(2) guidelines for responding to process items
(3) guidelines for responding to results items
To respond most effectively to the Criteria items, your organization also will find it important to refer to the scoring guidelines (pages 70–71), which describe how organizations can demonstrate increasing accomplishment and improvement relative to the requirements of the Criteria items.
General Guidelines
1. Read the entire Criteria booklet.
The main sections of the booklet provide a full orientation to the Criteria, including how responses are to be evaluated for self-assessment or by Baldrige examiners. You should become thoroughly familiar with the following sections: