RECOMMENDATIONS: TOOLS AND RESOURCES FOR
APPLYING BALDRIGE CRITERIA AND MICROSYSTEM
CONCEPTS
Several tools and techniques are available for microsystems that
wish to engage in self-assessment based on the Baldrige Award
criteria and microsystem characteristics. First, the Microsystem
Assessment Tool (MAT) can be used for a microsystem’s selfassessment.
25 26 The success characteristics emerged from our
analysis of the coded transcripts; they reflect what people
working in high-performing microsystems say about their work
and how they do it. Consequently, they provide the framework
for a microsystem-specific analysis of performance, and have
been the basis of theMAT (shown in table 4) which is designed to
help microsystems understand how they can improve their
performance. The MAT addresses the nature of the interaction
between the microsystem and the parent organisation, which is
not specifically called out by Baldrige. MAT is designed to be used
quickly and easily by microsystem members to evaluate their own
frontline unit. Although it clearly does not have the depth of a
comprehensive Baldrige assessment, it offers considerable insight
into the functioning of a microsystem. Understanding how the
success characteristics and the Baldrige criteria relate to each
other can help in doing Baldrige self-assessment and in understanding
challenges to high performance. The success characteristics,
including principles and specific processes, could be helpful
to a microsystem working to better understand the Baldrige
criteria or improve performance in a specific area.
Second, we have developed a series of ‘‘toolkits’’ and
‘‘workbooks’’ to provide a path forward for assessing one’s
microsystem. Workbooks are available for different types of
clinical microsystem, including: