The Performance Excellence Network (PEN), formerly the Minnesota Council for Quality, honored four recipients of the 2015 Performance Excellence Award (formerly the MN Quality Award) at the at PENworks 2016 Conference. The Award is based on the Baldrige Framework and is the culmination of a rigorous evaluation of an organization’s management system. The evaluation criteria include leadership, strategic planning, customer-related processes, measurement and information systems, workforce engagement, and operations and recognize organizations that are systematically improving results.
The organizations Awarded include: Cardinal of Minnesota (Rochester), at the highest (Excellence) Level; LifeSource (Minneapolis), at the Achievement Level; Johnson Memorial health Services (Dawson), at the Advancement Level; and Southeast Service Cooperative (Rochester), at the Commitment Level. These four organizations join 133 others recognized since 1991 for their systematic improvement efforts and superior outcomes.
Johnson Memorial health Services (JMHS) was extremely pleased to be recognized at the Advancement Level with their first PEN assessment. JMHS COO Lori Andreas said “this award truly speaks to the commitment and dedication of our staff. They are continually focused on care and quality aimed at improving patient outcomes.”
The PEN Assessment process begins with an in-depth application, followed by an independent review, a consensus & site visit and lastly an improvement planning session. The comprehensive feedback report helps organizations to identify strengths and improvement opportunities and also build networks that bring information, resources, knowledge, and best practices to organizations, individuals, and communities desiring to improve.
Said Brian Lassiter, president/CEO of the Performance Excellence Network: “as in sports, you don’t win in organizations by focusing on winning. You win by having a strong game plan and by finding and executing the next best play during the game. These organizations are working to improve their game plans and to find and execute improvement opportunities in their enterprises. Because, as the saying goes, if you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse.”
JMHS was also among the 31 local, regional, and national speakers featured at the PENworks conference. From large complex organizations like Cargill and the State of MN to smaller companies like Southeast Service Cooperative and Punch Pizza each shared best practices and insights to improve organizational performance and personal and leadership effectiveness.
The conference also recognized the 2015 Board of Evaluators, a group of over 60 volunteers supporting PEN’s mission of advancing performance excellence in the region. Evaluators include CEOs, business managers and professionals, physicians and surgeons, school superintendents and school teachers from throughout the Upper Midwest, each giving over 100 hours of volunteer service to help other organizations reach higher levels of performance.
Myron Frans, Commissioner of Minnesota Management and Budget for the State of Minnesota, offered remarks on behalf of Governor Dayton: “I congratulate the recipients of this year’s Performance Excellence Award…Your efforts are helping to improve productivity and efficiency and the quality of health, education, competitiveness, and livability in Minnesota.”
About Johnson Memorial Health Services
Johnson Memorial Health Services, located in Dawson, MN, is a small rural healthcare facility that provides Hospital, Clinic, Care Center, Assisted Living, Home Health and Ambulance services. They employ more than 240 full and part-time staff and have been awarded and recognized at both the state and national levels for the exceptional quality of care and environment of collegiality. For more information visit www.jmhsmn.org.
About Performance Excellence Network
The Performance Excellence Network was founded in 1987 by the Minnesota Legislature and Governor Rudy Perpich, and was spun off into a private 501(c)3 nonprofit two years later. PEN advances improvement and performance excellence within organizations, individuals and communities. It helps leaders identify strengths and improvement opportunities, and it builds networks that bring information, resources, knowledge and best practices to organizations desiring to improve. PEN serves members and organizations in Minnesota and the Dakotas. For more information, go to www.performanceexcellencenetwork.org.
