The EFQM Model has created a plan of action for the Enterprises to a culture of improvement & Innovation that help to excel overall business result.
The European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) is an international non-profit organisation that provides a management framework, criteria and learning and self-assessment tools to support organisations in improving their performance, competitiveness, and ability to deliver sustainable results.
Its goal is to provide an integrated management system that covers all areas of an organisation and supports strategic objectives. Consequently, the EFQM Excellence Model is a holistic system for driving business excellence and has been adopted by organisations globally.
The EFQM Excellence Model is a non-prescriptive framework that is used to help organizations improve their performance by providing a comprehensive set of criteria for organizational excellence.
This framework has been implemented around the world, with more than 500 major companies using it to assess their operations and put effective quality management practices into place. There are 5 Enablers and 4 Result criteria
Enablers:
- Leadership
- Policy and Strategy
- People
- Partnership and Resources
- Processes
Results:
- Customer Results
- People Results
- Society Results
- Key Performance Results
i. Leadership: Leaders create the desired culture, values and visions. They articulate objectives and goals, create change and facilitate innovation.
ii. Policy & Strategy: Policies always guide thinking and channel energy toward a particular direction where as strategies are unified, structured, and integrated plans that are designed to achieve specific objectives of an enterprise.
iii. People: People are the organisation’s most valuable asset and they should be developed, empowered and motivated. This criterion is about engaging, developing and managing people.
iv. Partnerships and Resources: This criterion is about external relationships, stakeholders, suppliers and resource management.
v. Processes: Processes are practices and procedures which drive performance and productivity. This criterion is about aligning processes, products and services with customer needs, managing risk and continuously improving processes.
vi. Society result: This criterion is about creating goals, articulating market strategy and planning to achieve the desired Society results.
vii. Key Performance Results: Key Performance result are quantifiable result of progress toward an intended result of an organisation.
viii. Customer Result: This criterion is about understanding, responding to and building relationships with customers.
ix. People Result: This criterion is about understanding and responding to the needs and expectations of people.
For each area, there is a ‘Radar’ logic diagram, which shows the relationship between Leadership, People, Partners and Resources, Quality and Results, Processes, Policy and Strategy, and Customer Satisfaction and People Satisfaction – with each area and criterion having its own set of required behaviours, as well as a set of indicators that can be used to measure performance.
As a starting point, it is recommended to perform an evaluation of the organisation’s current performance and identify areas of improvement. In order to implement the model, the organisation should create a clear vision and mission, create an overall quality policy, and develop strategic plans to achieve their goals. This should then be put into action by developing processes and systems, as well as making sure that everyone in the organisation is aware of their responsibilities.
Once the organisation’s processes, systems and strategies are in place, benchmarking the performance of the organisation regularly against the standard EFQM criteria will help ensure continuous improvement. It is also imperative to create a culture of learning and feedback in order to receive honest opinions.
Step to Implement EFQM
The first step to implementing the EFQM model is to assess the current performance of the organization to understand the current weaknesses in order to focuses on areas of improvement. This assessment also helps to identify opportunities that may be exploited or leveraged to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of the system and organization. Key performance indicators (KPIs) for all criteria should be established, ensuring that performance tracking and evaluation can be undertaken in the future.
Once the organization’s performance has been assessed, it is important to develop a future strategy to align with the EFQM model. This means that all criteria must be incorporated into the organization’s objectives and strategic plan. This is where the leadership of the organization must take the lead in this system, setting the vision and direction, creating a culture of improvement, inspiring and engaging employees, and driving performance.
Once a strategy to incorporate the EFQM model has been established, the use of quality systems and processes can help ensure that the organizations goals and objectives are achieved. The organizations processes should be clearly defined and should include the use of relevant tools and techniques that measure and monitor performance, such as a quality management system (QMS). The use of these systems contributes to the effectiveness and efficiency of the organization, as well as ensuring that key performance indicators are adhered to.
Organizational learning and development is also essential when implementing the EFQM model. All employees should be regularly trained and equipped with the necessary skills to ensure they can adhere to the criteria specified. Training and development should focus on the criteria of leadership, policy, and strategy, as well as process and procedures to ensure the efficient operation of the organization.
Finally, steps should be taken to ensure that the EFQM model is tailored to meet the needs of the organization and continuously improved. Performance tracking should regularly be evaluated to ensure that the necessary adjustments are made. The use of customer feedback is also important for the organization to understand what it is doing well, as well as identify any areas of improvement.
In summary, the successful implementation of the EFQM model requires a holistic approach from the organization’s leadership, upwards. Through an initial assessment, underpinned by strategy and guided by quality systems and processes, organizations can ensure they are continually striving towards the achievement of their objective
Challenges for EFQM Model
Maintaining the EFQM system is one of the key challenges when attempting to implement it in an organization. This involves continual tracking and updating of processes and activities in order to accurately reflect the performance of the organization and its employees. Furthermore, it demands that individuals be given access to all areas of the company and be dedicated to the model. Without the proper structure and resources, maintaining the system can be difficult.
Another key challenge of implementing the EFQM model is identifying and balancing the improvements in the organization. This requires companies to analyze the status quo of their processes, operations and employees in order to identify potential weaknesses and then devise suitable solutions to improve them. However, this could mean having to purchase new equipment, redesign processes or even restructure departments. As such, organizations need to weigh the costs and benefits of any proposed changes to ensure that they are worth the effort.
Costs are also a major challenge when implementing the Model due to the resources and funds needed to properly realize its benefits. Companies will often find that they do not have the financial resources to launch their improvement initiatives, meaning that they must spend their funds in other areas to support the drive for improvement. Furthermore, there may also be a reluctance from a company’s staff to invest in changes that they do not think are necessary or beneficial to the organization.
Finally, employee involvement and engagement is essential for the successful implementation of the EFQM model, yet it can be one of the most difficult issues to address in many organizations. In order for the model to be successful, employees need to be on board with the changes for them to be incorporated permanently. This involves persuading everyone in the organization to make the change, which can often lead to a lack of understanding, poor morale, and bad feelings. The organization must work closely with staff members to educate them and explain the need for the changes in order for the employees to be truly committed.
Conclusion
EFQM model has great utility when it comes to gaining a comprehensive picture of organizational performance and providing the tools to improve that performance. However, there are still several challenges associated with its implementation, such as maintenance of a system, balancing of improvements, cost constraints, and employee involvement. In order to be successful, companies must carefully weigh the costs and benefit.