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Integrating CARF with Baldrige leads to performance excellence
Nearly a
decade ago,
United Cerebral Palsy Land of Lincoln (UCPLL) recognized
that it was essential to shift its management philosophy from nonprofit
strategies to business strategies if it were to sustain organizational growth.
Reflecting on this philosophical shift, UCPLL Chief Operating Officer Kathy
Leuelling said, "Management by what you know rather than what you think is a big
cultural change for many nonprofit organizations. Yet, in today's economy,
competition among nonprofits has intensified as a result of less money to go
around and more people in need of services. To thrive in this environment, we
recognized we needed to apply proven business principles."
UCPLL, whose programs have been
CARF accredited since 1995, sought a complementary
framework aligned with the
CARF standards to help guide the organization's
business practices. After investigating several tools, the organization selected
the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program because the Baldrige criteria
provide a model that:
- Establishes systematic processes to accomplish the work of the organization.
- Collects pertinent information and data about the effectiveness of these
processes.
- Uses the information gathered to drive positive changes.
All of these criteria were compatible with and carried out the intent of the
CARF standards.
UCPLL now uses community focus groups and employee teams to apply Baldrige
criteria in tandem with the
CARF standards. The groups and teams complete
self-assessments, develop and implement process improvement plans, collect data,
and analyze results.
Recently implemented process improvements at UCPLL include:
- A strategic framework that focuses on social impact with objectives, goals, and
action plans based on challenges, advantages, and changing customer
requirements.
- Employee Passports with individual goals linked to departmental and
organizational strategic objectives. Passports are carried by staff members
while at work as a reminder of UCPLL's mission, vision, and values.
- Lean Principles to map work processes, determine customer value, eliminate
waste, and capture workforce knowledge.
- An extensive data collection system for outcomes as well as in-process measures
that are tracked monthly on departmental and organizational scorecards. Regular
review of these data enables directors to address underperformance in real time.
The investment in these efforts has paid off for UCPLL with big dividends:
- Individuals achieving their personal outcomes increased from 75 percent in 2007
to 92 percent in 2011.
- Non-state revenue increased from 11 percent in 2005 to 24 percent in 2011.
- Customers rating UCPLL as their provider of choice increased from 76 percent to
95 percent.
- Employee turnover decreased by 43 percent since 2007.
In recognition of UCPLL's performance improvement, the Lincoln Foundation for
Performance Excellence (the Baldrige program in Illinois) recognized UCPLL with
the Bronze Award for Commitment to Excellence in both 2008 and 2010.
The most recent
CARF survey report said UCPLL's participation in the Baldrige
Performance Excellence Program demonstrates "the organization's exemplary
commitment to performance measurement and management and connecting the work
done by staff each day to the mission and vision of the organization."
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