“It is not enough to know, one must apply; it is not enough to want, one must act as well.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe - (For the German version of this post, click here).
Business Excellence means top performance. The meaning
of it is the best performance that a company has the power to achieve. Excellence
drives towards the effective realization of the business potential that is “hidden”
in the company.
Top performance is
rare, but rewarding
To achieve Business Excellence is challenging, but
very profitable. Every percent of sustainable profit growth increases the
company value exponentially by a 15 to 20 multiple.
Pursuing this goal and driven by intensified
competition many manager start out on the path to excellence. Few keep up the
way and reach the desired summit.
The highly successful companies apply for prestigious awards
that confirm their top achievements. To name only the most important prizes,
these are:
·
and many more national Quality Awards.
But awards by themselves don’t guarantee sustainable
success. Firms like Motorola, Armstrong World Industries, Cadillac (GM), Dana
Corporation, Wallace Company and AT&T were Baldrige Award winners and ended
up in bankruptcy or as take-over targets.
>> This blog post is number 1 of the blog series “Business
Excellence: How to Activate Your Inner Excellence.” To be
continued….
For further information on the path to Business
Excellence contact the author Andreas Sattlberger, Executive Advisor for
Business Excellence at the firm procon in Vienna, Austria. You can reach him at
sattlberger@procon.at
