Tyler Pursues World-Class Excellence

TYLER — The City of Tyler continues the quest for continuous improvement by starting a journey toward receipt of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, according to officials. The Baldrige Award was created by Congress in 1987 and is the highest level of national recognition for performance excellence a United States organization can receive. It is a system-based model that evaluates seven categories of an organization’s makeup — leadership, strategic planning, customer focus, measurement/analysis, workforce focus, operation focus and results. The award is presented by the President of the United States. “This journey is not about getting an award, it is about examining all parts of the City and finding ways to constantly improve our organization,” said Mark McDaniel, Tyler City Manager.

To begin this process, the City will first pursue the Texas Award for Performance Excellence (TAPE). Developed in the 1990’s, the TAPE Award is based upon the Baldrige Award and promotes awareness of effectiveness, sustainability, innovation, integrated processes and world-class results as an increasingly important element in competitiveness. The process for preparing for the award audit will include engagement of the City’s Lean Sigma Green and Black Belts and refinement of the City’s strategic planning and business planning processes, as well as internal assessment by key staff trained in the Baldrige methodology.

City officials say the City of Tyler has a long history of performance excellence. According to press materials, this history was strengthened in 1997 with the adoption of the Blueprint Business Model, which officials say defined the City’s core values and commitment to a culture of continuous improvement. The Blueprint guides Tyler’s organizational culture and is what officials say differentiates Tyler from other municipal governments.