D&D News September 2007 - a selection of activities
We seem to have been to many points of the compass within the UK recently, all connected with our Excellence work in some way. Example journeys include to Devon where we undertook a Recognised for Excellence assessment, to the Isle of Man in connection with a first organisational self-assessment, to the Midlands planning another assessment, and to Ironbridge/Telford for the BQF's Sponsor meeting hosted by Ricoh. The photo below is of the iron bridge itself, the first large-scale bridge made entirely of iron in the world, and sited in Ironbridge Gorge - the heart of the industrial revolution.
Our local area got a look-in as well, when Derek carried out an Investor in Excellence assessment on a charity almost on our doorsteps. He has also been an Excellence Model/self-assessing 'mentor' for the head of another nearby organisation.
We have ventured into London a few times. Dave was, as usual, our representative at the BQF's Annual General Meeting. He also attended an interesting London Excellence meeting on the theme of sustainable recruitment, hosted by the Probation Service. Both of us spent an enjoyable morning talking to a delegation from the Thailand civil service about the Excellence Model and its uses; many thanks to Tony Lavender for the invitation to do this.
While mentioning the Excellence bodies, two 'stalwarts' have each moved on recently, and we'd like to give some deserved recognition. Caroline Buttery, Chairman of London Excellence, has put great efforts into promoting Excellence in and around London over the last few years - along with CEO Rose Viggiani. We wish her well in her new role and thank her for her efforts. The British Quality Foundation is losing the services of Will Jones, their Sponsor Member Services Executive. Will has always been supremely helpful and a role model for customer focused working. He is now moving to a post in the charity sector, and we wish him well in the future.
Last for now, but not least, we have filled a gap in our Excellence activities. Having been working on Recognised for Excellence assessments, in addition to being licensed to carry out Investor in Excellence assessments, we have now also become certified as Validators for the Committed to Excellence scheme. We don't offer these ourselves, applications have to be made through relevant Excellence bodies, but we can discuss them if you wish.
