According to research conducted by the Centre for Organisational Excellence Research there are at least 86 countries that have a National Quality or Business Excellence award, this is nearly half countries of the world.

The question that comes to mind is what is the impact of Business Excellence awards? Do they deliver a competitive advantage? Is there a real benefit that justifies the effort and cost associated with implementing and promoting Business Excellence awards?

To answer these questions COER conducted research on behalf of the Center of Excellence (COE) of the Asian Productivity Organisation (APO). The research aimed to identify the relevance of business excellence for long-term competitiveness and sustainability in Asia.

The research focused on five countries: India, Japan, Republic of China, Singapore, and Thailand. Participating organizations were from the private sector and ranged from early adopters of business excellence to award winners.

The research has made a significant contribution to the understanding of business excellence, its application, and its impact within Asia.

Following the research, COER published three guidebooks for SMEs to assist in the the uptake of Business Excellence within Asian SMEs.

• Engaging SMEs in Business Excellence: A guidebook for National Productivity Organizations (NPO)
• Understanding Business Excellence: An awareness guidebook for SMEs
• Implementing Business Excellence: A guidebook for SMEs

The full research report and the three guidebooks can be downloaded from COER’s website here.

Ahmed
BPIR.com