Regional Baldrige conference lands in N.H.

The Eastern Regional Baldrige Conference will be held for the first time in New Hampshire next month.

The conference, hosted by the Granite State Quality Council, will be held
Sept. 21 at the Sheraton Nashua Hotel.

The event will feature presentations by the recipients of the 2005 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, which is presented each year by the president to small and large business, health care, education, government and not-for-profit organizations that are judged to be outstanding in seven best practice areas: leadership; strategic planning; customer and market focus; measurement; and analysis.

Gov. John Lynch said the regional Baldrige conference should help stimulate New Hampshire businesses to improve quality and productivity.

“This conference is a valuable opportunity for New Hampshire businesses to learn nationally recognized best practices. What you learn will strengthen your own organization as well as New Hampshire’s position as a great place to work, to do business, to get health care, and to receive an education.”

Tom Raffio, CEO of Northeast Delta Dental and chair of the Granite State Quality Council, called the selection of New Hampshire as the conference site “an incredible honor” for the state.

“It’s like hosting the business Olympics. New Hampshire employers will learn from the very best companies in the country and will develop the tools to improve their organization’s performance on the critical factors that drive success. This conference also benefits the overall quality of life for New Hampshire residents. Some of the winning organizations are schools and hospitals. We all have children in schools and family members that go to hospitals. We want to make sure that we have the best practices in place to improve education and health care.”

The conference will be held from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21, at the Nashua Sheraton Hotel. An optional pre-conference workshop on the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Sept. 20 at the hotel. Price is $495 for the conference with advance registration with group and faculty discounts available. The pre-conference workshop is $100 with conference registration. – JEFF FEINGOLD