Application of the EFQM Excellence Model in a … · Application of the EFQM Excellence Model® in...

Consortium for Excellence in Higher Education

Application of the EFQM Excellence Model®

in a College of Further Education

This publication has been written as a way of sharing learningfrom practical experiences within a Further Education institute. Itdoes not review the concepts from an academic theoryperspective, but introduces the management practices andlearning which have emerged from detailed practical researchundertaken within the sector.

This is one in a series of publications that have been produced toshare the learning from our work, in both a practical andstrategic way. The other publications cover the following topics:

• Embracing Excellence in Education. A summary of the learninggained from applying the EFQM Excellence Model® in Furtherand Higher Education

• Applying self-assessment against the EFQM Excellence Model®

in Further and Higher Education• Benchmarking Methods and Experiences• Linking the Excellence Model to other Management Models

and Tools• Organisational Learning and the Future of Higher Education

Published on behalf of Dearne Valley College by Sheffield HallamUniversity. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may beproduced in any form without the permission of the copyrightowner.

© Dearne Valley College 2003

The views expressed in this publication are those of the particularcontributors concerned, and are not necessarily shared byDearne Valley College or any other contributor.

Enablers

Innovation and Learning

Results

Leadership Policy &Strategy Processes

KeyPerformance

Results

People

Partnerships& Resources

CustomerResults

PeopleResults

SocietyResults

1©Dearne Valley College 2003

Contents

Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................2

1 Overview of the Programme .........................................................................................................................................................2

Overview........................................................................................................................................................3

1 Why read this publication? ...........................................................................................................................................................3

2 So what? What impact can the EFQM Excellence Model® have? ....................................................................................................3

3 Sector context ..............................................................................................................................................................................4

Theory and Concepts ......................................................................................................................................5

1 Process management ....................................................................................................................................................................5

2 Self-assessment ............................................................................................................................................................................6

3 Informed business and development planning ................................................................................................................................7

4 Learner, customer and staff feedback.............................................................................................................................................9

5 Continuous improvement ............................................................................................................................................................10

6 Learning organisations ...............................................................................................................................................................13

7 Quality and performance monitoring ..........................................................................................................................................14

The Dearne Valley College Journey Towards ‘Excellence’..............................................................................18

1 Purpose of case study .................................................................................................................................................................18

2 Context......................................................................................................................................................................................18

3 The ‘journey’ - where did the College want to travel to? ...............................................................................................................18

4 Outcomes from the use of Excellence principles at Dearne Valley College......................................................................................19

5 Challenges that have needed to be addressed or coped with ........................................................................................................20

6 How far have we travelled? ........................................................................................................................................................20

Conclusions and Recommendations ..............................................................................................................21

1 Key learning points identified during the project ..........................................................................................................................21

2 Recommendations ......................................................................................................................................................................22

Glossary and References ..............................................................................................................................24

2 ©Dearne Valley College 2003

Introduction

1 Overview of the Programme

The Consortium for Excellence in Higher Education has been ledby Sheffield Hallam University and has included the Universitiesof Cranfield, Durham, Salford, Ulster and Dearne Valley College(FE representative). The GMP143 programme has been partfunded under the Developing Good Management Practice HEFCEinitiative (99/54). The University of Ulster was funded andsupported by the Department for Employment and Learning. Theprogramme (which contained 18 projects) had a life span ofthree years. Its main aim was to evaluate the benefits ofintroducing and implementing the EFQM Excellence Model® intothe Higher Education Sector.

Funding for the programme was awarded by HEFCE on 14 April2000. The programme commenced in May 2000 and concludedin May 2003. The 18 projects undertaken fall into four mainareas, these can be summarised as follows:

Self-assessment projectsSix projects covering each institution (Sheffield Hallam, theUniversities of Cranfield, Durham, Salford, Ulster and DearneValley College) tested the implementation of self-assessmentactivities against the EFQM Excellence Model®. Assessmentstook place in a range of areas – schools, departments, researchinstitutes, cross college and faculty wide. Each institution testeddifferent self-assessment methodologies, rather than just usingone. This added greatly to the richness of the learning. Workhas also been undertaken in some areas, to investigate theintegration and alignment potential with other aspects of qualityassurance and performance management.

Mapping and research projectsThe five projects in this area sought to address the relationship,inter-relationship, synergy and gaps between the EFQMExcellence Model® and other management tools, models,concepts and auditing frameworks that are used within a HEand FE environment. These aimed to reduce confusion acrossthe sector about where each may fit within an organisationcompared to another.

Benchmarking projectsThe two benchmarking projects aimed to compare the work thatwe were undertaking, with educational institutionsinternationally who are exemplars of excellence, and with otherprivate and public sector organisations within the UK who havewon quality awards. These projects have allowed us to develop,enhance and evolve our methodologies and approaches toensure that they are as excellent as they can be, whencompared to the best.

Communication projectsThe five communication projects included Mirror of Truthconferences for each year of the programme, the developmentand maintenance of a programme website(http://excellence.shu.ac.uk), and a final programme reportwhich has brought together the findings of the programme overthe three years.

The programme overall, and each project, has been planned andmanaged using a light-touch project management method, basedon the PRINCE2 project management methodology(http://www.ogc.gov.uk/prince/). This has helped to provideclarity, direction and purpose to each of the projects, as well asenabling linkages to be made and learning to be transferredmore easily.

Overview


1 Why read this publication?

This publication is intended to offer the reader an insight intohow the EFQM Excellence Model® can be used within aneducational institution, to support and focus the qualityimprovement agenda. The experience of the model has beenoverwhelmingly positive for Dearne Valley College and thisbooklet sets out to show the scope and opportunities that areavailable to those choosing to engage with the theory andfundamental concepts. The College is the only FE College in theConsortium and this factor combined with being a substantiallysmaller organisation has, at times during the project, provided adifferent perspective and contrasting experiences. The publicationhas, as its focus, the experience of the college and the FE sectorbut draws on the experiences of the Higher Education institutionsin the Consortium and the learning from the debate, which hasbeen such a valuable part of the project.

The initial rationale for the college’s involvement was the hopethat the Model could provide a comprehensive approach toquality, which would support the College in meeting the demandsof the various inspection and monitoring regimes that furthereducation is answerable to. Hence, consideration is given to thematch with the Ofsted Common Inspection Framework and theLSC Provider Performance Review process. The QAA Reviewprocess is the subject of another publication (seehttp://excellence.shu.ac.uk). This publication also considers howthe experience of using other quality kitemarks such as ISO 9002and IiP can affect the move to using the EFQM ExcellenceModel®.

The publication is divided into three main parts, each of whichare intended to promote greater understanding of the relevanceof the model and its potential application.

Theory and Concepts

• In the first part of the next section, the focus is on the theoryand concepts that have proved particularly relevant andsupportive to the application of the EFQM Excellence Model®.In this section, the model for Quality adopted by the college isunpicked and linked to relevant concepts and theories. This‘picture’ was only very hazy when we embarked on the projectbut has gradually become more clearly defined. In addition,definite links with learning theories, their relevance atorganisational level and the potential impact of application tothe organisational development of an educational institutionhave been identified. With the monumental changes to post 16education, the need for organisations to learn, to innovate andto continuously develop have rarely been stronger.

The second part of the next section includes consideration ofthe similarities and differences between the inspection and

monitoring regimes that Further Education Colleges are subjectto and maps the model against other frequently used qualitykitemarks. This section helps place the model in context andencourage a more integrated approach. Further Educationcannot afford another quality system to overlay the alreadysubstantial demands.

The Dearne Valley College Journey Towards ‘Excellence’

• In this section, the experience of Dearne Valley College isexplored in more depth to illustrate an approach to using themodel to underpin organisational development. It is not aformulaic strategy for others to adopt but an example of theflexibility of the model. Each organisation will need todetermine their starting place based on an assessment of theirown position.

Conclusions and Recommendations

• This section covers the key learning points andrecommendations identified for consideration which may helpto inform future developments in Further Education.

2 So what? What impact can the EFQM Excellence Model® have?

For FE colleges, the ‘so what’ question has become an integralpart of the Ofsted Inspection approach. Colleges must show thattheir systems, their innovations and everyday practice have animpact on the learning experience of students. So what has beenthe impact of introducing the EFQM Excellence Model®? It is stillearly days for Dearne Valley College in what has been a veryfundamental change in emphasis, but the indications are positiveand reflected in the outcomes of a recent Ofsted Inspection. Todate, it is possible to identify significant shifts in attitude towardsthe quality agenda, a greater sense of ownership andresponsibility for both quality activities and progress towardsestablishing a ‘learning organisation’. These concepts areexplored further in the next section.

The EFQM Excellence Model® offers a comprehensive frameworkwithin which to:

• Critically analyse and evaluate current performance.• Develop and deliver ‘owned’ strategies for improvement.• Increase organisational learning.• Enhance staff understanding of the big picture and hence an

active commitment to the organisational vision and mission.• Explore the impact of action on organisational effectiveness.

The conclusions drawn by two colleagues, Anne Whitworth andGlen Ashall, on the learning that has taken place demonstratesthe impact of the model:

‘The EFQM model has helped to raise awareness of issues that

need addressing within the organisation and has highlighted the

importance of consultation and communication across all

areas/levels. The sharing of good practice is encouraged. Staff

ownership of processes and practices has led to continuous

improvement and involvement in self-assessment has enabled us

to learn more about ourselves and others.’

3 Sector context

In considering the relevance and value of the EFQM ExcellenceModel® to Further Education Colleges and Higher EducationInstitutions, it is essential to bear in mind that the post 16education sector is facing major change and fundamentalreforms. These include:

• The recent white paper on Higher Education1 further expoundsthe need to extend higher education opportunities to morestudents from disadvantaged backgrounds. It confirms that FEcolleges can and should play a significant role in achievingthis improvement, particularly in relation to the expansion ofvocational sub degree programmes. The emphasis is oncollaboration and partnership between Higher Educationinstitutions and Further Education Colleges to better serve theneeds of a wider cross-section of all communities.

• The DfES ‘Success for All’2 initiative identifies four key themesfor LSCs and Further Education Colleges. The fourth themeconcerns the development of a framework for quality andsuccess. Current proposals for this theme are out forconsultation but they envisage new planning, funding andaccountability systems based on greater partnership and trust.The relevance of the EFQM Excellence Model® to the proposalswarrants further exploration, but the model would provide asound platform for any Further Education College preparingfor the changes.

• The white paper ‘Opportunities and Excellence 14 to 19’3

revisits the curriculum with particular emphasis on achievingparity for vocational options. The proposals include a moresignificant role for Further Education Colleges with the 14 to16 age group and build on current Vocational GCSE pilots.

• The vocational/academic divide is a strong theme runningthrough all three of these initiatives. The re-invigoration of thedebate on the parity of vocational and academic qualificationincludes an emphasis on increasing work-based learning andModern Apprenticeships with challenging targets. Workforcedevelopment and greater involvement with employers areincluded as targets for Further Education Colleges in ‘Successfor All’. A 14 to 19 Working Group led by Mike Tomlinson iscurrently reviewing the qualification pathways withstrengthening vocational options as a key objective.

• The message for Further Education Colleges in the three policyinitiatives is to an extent conflicting as colleges are told toidentify and work to their strengths yet at the same time areencouraged to work with the 14 to 16 age group, developtheir HE provision and meet local employers needs.

• In addition to the policy initiatives, both QAA Reviews and theFE Inspection regimes have changed significantly within thelast two years. This has proved challenging both in ensuringthat systems meet the requirements but with the additionaltension that poor outcomes can affect future funding for the FEprovision.

These policy initiatives envisage major contributions from both thehigher and further education sectors. They offer enormousopportunities for individuals and institutions that are equippedand able to respond positively and proactively. The initiativesenvisage and require new ways of working. They demand thatorganisations have clear vision and mission but at the same timedevelop effective partnerships and collaborative approaches. Therelevance of the EFQM Excellence Model® to this agenda can beeasily identified, in particular its comprehensive but flexibleapproach, the inclusion of clear guidelines to consider the resultsfor society and the emphasis on innovation and learning. TheModel can make a very real contribution to the developmentsrequired to meet these opportunities and flourish.


Overview

1 The Future of Higher Education DfES, Jan 2003

2 LSC Circulars 03/01 and 03/02

3 Opportunities and Excellence 14 to 19, Government White Paper

Policies and working practices set

standards and provide guidance

1 Process management

‘Organisations perform more effectively when all inter-related

activities are understood and systematically managed.’ 4

Criterion 5 of the EFQM Excellence Model® clearly identifies therequirements of process management for excellence and duringthe HEFCE GMP143 Programme, the Programme group hasspent considerable time exploring the application of processconcepts within educational organisations. For Dearne ValleyCollege, the most visible outcome of the project is the newQuality Framework, which encompasses a process map for allactivities. This has been a major change and will now need to becontinuously improved. In ‘Improving Learning Processes’5, PhilipCox differentiates between re-engineering and continuousimprovement. The college embarked on a step change in 2001and is now moving into continuous improvement having achievedthe foundation needed for an innovative FEC.

The college achieved BS5750 in 1992, the first college in thecountry to do so, and maintained the ISO 9002 kitemark until2001 when we withdrew as part of the development associatedwith this project. As part of the ISO 9002 system, the college didhave a substantial set of procedures, but this was tightlyregulated and had to ‘fit’ with BSI regulations. For aspects ofcollege activity, this worked very effectively but for many of thelearning processes, it was both restrictive and jargonistic.

The concepts that underpinned the design and implementation ofthe college’s new Quality Framework included:

• The need for a comprehensive framework that covered bothlearning processes and the more general processes requiredby all organisations. The inclusion in the framework of both therequired standards and procedures needed for efficientrunning of the organisation and guidance on good practice.

• Ownership of the framework and the processes through theuse of responsibility charting, consultation, involvement.

• Focus on ensuring that all processes and working practices arenecessary by requiring the answer to the ‘why’ question.

• A clear and standardised format.• Criterion 5b – Processes are improved, as needed, using

innovation in order to fully satisfy and generate increasingvalue for customers and other stakeholders.

• Process not function based, in line with the differentiationbetween function and process identified in Improving LearningProcesses:

‘Processes describe the sequencing of activities undertaken for a

specific purpose (e.g. student recruitment), while functions define

the organisation of activities around given areas of knowledge

and expertise (e.g. marketing, data management).’6

The emphasis being on teamwork, shared responsibilities and theintegration of activities to achieve objectives. This concept wasshown very clearly during the development of the Enrolmentworking practice where we needed to include the widerrequirements of establishing positive relationships with learners aswell as the institutional data capture requirements.

In ‘Improving Learning Processes’, Philip Cox concludes thatprocess improvements impact on organisational culture.

‘Such a vision of organisational change might also be

represented as follows:

• Processes are aligned with customer needs and strategic goals.

• Work units change from functional departments to

process/customer-focussed teams.

• Process owners and teams are collectively responsible for

process results.

• The organisation presents a single, unified point of contact to

external customers.

• Employees become customer focused and empowered to make

their own decisions.

• Teamwork ethic replaces traditional management functions

and reporting lines.

• Jobs change from single task to multi-dimensional work’.7


Theory and Concepts

4 From EFQM Excellence Model® Fundamental Concepts

5 Pg 9 LSDA publication ‘Improving Learning Processes: principles, strategies and techniques’ Phil Cox pub 2002 ISBN 1 85338812 2

6 Pg 10 ‘Improving Learning Processes: principles, strategies and techniques’ Phil Cox pub 2002 ISBN 1 85338812 2

7 pg 43 LSDA publication ‘Improving Learning Processes: principles, strategies and techniques’ Phil Cox pub 2002 ISBN 1 85338812 2

• Reports are required to be self critical and objective, usinghard evidence and, in most instances, triangulating thatevidence.

• The expectations are that self-assessment is a college wideprocess with substantial involvement of all staff.

The evolution of the FE College inspection process has had amajor impact on the development of college approaches toquality. Initially the requirement was to have a quality systemwith certain policies. In the second round of inspections, theemphasis moved to consideration as to whether the qualitysystem affected performance. Now, the emphasis is on whatimpact quality processes have on learner experience i.e. a movefrom Quality Control to Quality Assurance to QualityImprovement.

An important question Further Education Colleges should beasking is the extent to which self-assessment is done purely tomeet the external requirements and how far along the road acollege is in terms of recognising the internal benefits of self-assessment and taking full ownership of the process. How manycolleges would complete annual SARs if they were not required tosend them to the LSC, what would be the format and the depth?For an organisation applying the principles of the EFQMExcellence Model®, self-assessment is an essential process alongwith well embedded commitment to reflective practice andcontinuous improvement.

As colleges have matured in their approach to self-assessment,skills in constructive and objective self criticism have developedwith targets for development becoming SMARTer. Organisationallearning has also developed with particular emphasis on sharinggood practice both within and across organisations. DVC hasmoved on from programme reviews focusing on checkingcompliance to increase the emphasis on sharing good practiceand learning from each other. Staff responses to this have beenvery positive.


Theory and Concepts

In the publication Linking the Excellence Model to otherManagement Models and Tools, Mike Pupius considers theimportant role a more strategic approach to processmanagement has had in the developments at Sheffield HallamUniversity during this project. He identifies 3 categories ofprocess: core customer facing processes, enabling processes andmanagement and governance processes. At Dearne ValleyCollege, we have not made that distinction into categories toincrease the sense of shared responsibilities and to avoiddemarcation. The college shares the emphasis Mike Pupius placeson process thinking and process improvement in terms of seeingthe process map as a living, developing entity that can deliverboth greater efficiencies and greater effectiveness.

2 Self-assessment

Self-assessment has been a mandatory activity for FE Collegessince 1997. The national standards were set out in FEFC Circular97/12. In most colleges, the first SARs (Self-Assessment Reports)were relatively basic and lacked depth and rigour but they didcover the activity of the whole organisation. The fact that thestandards were set down nationally was in contrast to the Self-Assessment documents written for QAA Subject reviews. Inaddition, Further Education Colleges had to prepare SARs on anannual basis whether any inspection or review was required ornot. Over a fairly short period, the reports became lessdescriptive and more evaluative spurred on by the fact that onedimension of the second round of FEFC inspections (1997–2001),was on validating SARs. In addition, colleges have always had topresent the reports to the Governing Board and to send a copy tothe FEFC/LSC. More recently the SAR has become a keydocument in LSC Provider Performance Reviews.

The standards now used by Further Education Colleges are setout in LSC guidelines8 distributed in March 2001. They are basedon the seven questions in the Common Inspection Frameworkused by Ofsted for post 16 Inspections with additional LSC/ESquality and financial probity requirements.

The key concepts built into the process include:

• The learner experience is central to self-assessment withincreasing emphasis placed on ensuring adequate evidence iscollected of learner views.

• The primary purpose of self-assessment and the associateddevelopment plans is self improvement. Assessments arerequired to be ‘carried out with rigour, irrespective of whetherthe provider has 20 or 200 learners.’ 9

Self-assessment of effectiveness

8 Self-assessment and Development Plans, DfEE 2001

9 Pg 3 Self-assessment and Development Plans, DfEE 2001

• Policy and strategy are based on present and future needs and

expectations of stakeholders

• Policy and strategy are based on information from

performance, measurement, research, learning and external

related activities.11

Throughout the EFQM Excellence Model®, the requirement tohave and use information from a variety of sources isemphasised. ‘Management by processes and facts’ is one of thefundamental concepts of the Model. The Model builds instructured analysis of ‘Results’ as part of critical self-assessmentwith consideration of trends, comparative data and cause andeffect. New technologies have significantly affected theavailability of information for planning and decision making.

Mick Hides (Salford University) has developed an approach tousing the RADAR logic to give structure to a project, which setsout clear linkages between Results (measuring excellence) and theApproach (planning for excellence) which in turn links toDeployment (working towards excellence) and finally to anidentified method of Assessment and Review. (Refer RADAR Logicapplied to Benchmarking Project)

Underpinning the EFQM Excellence Model® are the principles ofknowing where the organisation is at, where it wants to go andhow it can get there. The model links self-assessment to informedplanning and to implementation, through ‘a framework of keyprocesses’ 12, and finally to results. Self-assessment can be seenas a catalyst for driving business improvement and henceachieving business goals.

At Dearne Valley College, the application of the RADAR logic10 toself-assessment is introducing a greater rigour than waspreviously the case. The results dimension of RADAR provides anexcellent framework for self-assessment and preparation forinspection against the Common Inspection Framework standards.FE colleges and other post 16 providers are expected to considertrends, targets, comparisons, causes and the scope of areasaddressed in their self-assessments. Hence the RADAR modelcan provide a helpful checklist. Particular mention should bemade of the assessment regarding the extent to which results arecaused by an approach. Ofsted/ALI Inspections are looking forthe impact of policies. Have policies, improvements etc. made adifference to the learner experience/achievement? If there is noimpact, no credit is given. The deployment dimension is also ofrelevance, as a key question in inspection is the consistency withwhich policies and practices are implemented.

The objectives of self-assessment in FE are:

• To critically review the provision in order to improve the qualityof the learners’ experiences.

• To secure improvements in provision not just to review andreport on it.

Self-assessment for Further Education Colleges is now anestablished annual process and to varying degrees, is integratedwith strategic planning and the quality assurance cycles. Thisintegration is likely to be taken further by current plannedchanges under ‘Success for All’ with a 3 year Development Planbased on targets negotiated and agreed with the LSC.

3 Informed business and development planning

The third piece of the jigsaw focuses on information as the basisfor planning. Much has been written about planning as aprocess to achieve organisation goals and increaseorganisational effectiveness. The saying ‘Fail to plan, plan to fail’is often quoted. The emphasis on planning in education has neverbeen stronger both for staff and students. Schemes of work,lesson plans, individual learning plans, action plans, developmentplans are everyday tasks in FE. Students are encouraged todevelop planning skills through assignment work and markingschemes where the highest grades are often dependent onevidence of planning and evaluation. Planning is a critical featureof the three Wider Key Skills: improving own learning andperformance; working with others; and problem solving.

Within the EFQM Excellence Model®, the concept of planning ispicked up in Criterion 2 ‘Policy and Strategy’ with therequirement for information being strongly stated in the first twocriterion parts:


Theory and Concepts

Informed business and development

planning

10 EFQM Excellence Model®

11 Pg 14 EFQM Excellence Model®: Public and Voluntary Sectors

12 Pg 15 EFQM Excellence Model®: Public and Voluntary Sectors

8

Theory and Concepts

RADAR Logic applied to Benchmarking Project (Source: Mick Hides, Salford University)Results (Measuring Excellence)

Description of Result Linked toApproach

R1 Identified and captured the British Metrics of Social Academic Enterprise A1

R2 Identified and captured the European Metrics of Social Academic Enterprise A2

R3 A set of European Metrics of Social Academic Enterprise have been established A3

R4 Learning has been disseminated A4, A5

R5 A Social Academic Enterprise Benchmarking Club has been established and continues to add value (e.g. bycontinuing to meet, follow on activities)

A4

R6 Project managed effectively A5


A1 Identify a series of Social Academic Enterprise Case Studies from the British Partners D1

A2 Identify a series of Social Academic Enterprise Case Studies from the European Partners D2

A3 Identify and organise an appropriate Benchmarking methodology D3

A4 Plan dissemination activities (e.g. Conference, website, network meetings) D4,D5,D6

A5 Plan resources for running project D7,D8


D1 Capture Social Academic Enterprise Case Studies from the British Partners AR1

D2 Capture Social Academic Enterprise Case Studies from the European Partners AR1

D3 Benchmark Social Academic Enterprise AR2

D4 Run major conference AR2

D5 Establish and manage website AR2

D6 Prepare and share final report AR2,AR3

D7 Gain funding for resources AR2

D8 Appoint Project Manager to use resources effectively AR2


AR1 Peer Review R1,R5

AR2 Project Management Audit R6

AR3 HEFCE/University Audits R1,R2,R3

Approach (Planning for Excellence)

Deployment (Working towards Excellence)

Assessment and Review

Notes:RADAR Logic used to give structure to the project without removing the culture of enterpriseAllows checking of methodology to establish if all aspects have been coveredIf the establishment of a sustainable networking club is a required result, the subsequent ADAR, at present may not be sufficient


Theory and Concepts

realisation of individual potential in a culture of trust andempowerment. This view is reflected in much management theorybut often in a relatively paternalistic manner of looking after staffrather than a more equal empowered relationship. Theencouragement to actively seek feedback from staff is not wellembedded. The greatest challenge in many organisations is toestablish a climate in which staff will speak freely and responsiblyabout their experience and ideas. The work of Daniel Goldmanon Emotional Intelligence is relevant in this context and hasbecome an integral part of the FE Senior Manager training runby Hay McBeer. This programme also includes consideration ofthe Burk Litwin Model15, which identifies culture as atransformational factor affecting effort and performance, andclimate and processes as transactional factors. The definition ofclimate is ‘the collective current impressions, expectations andfeelings of the members of local work units’. Culture picks up thebigger picture in terms of the way things are done and theorganisational values. The Model recognises the importance ofstaff perception in securing the ‘discretionary effort’ needed forbest performance.

Customer and staff perceptions are a crucial element of theinformation needed for both self-assessment and informedbusiness and development planning. The encouragement of theEFQM Excellence Model® to gather data over a period of years,to look at trends and comparisons with ‘best in class’ increase thevalue of this data to those processes and help translate the datainto useful information.

4 Learner, customer and staff feedback

Customer focus is one of the fundamental concepts that underpinthe EFQM Excellence Model® and is explained as follows:

‘The customer is the final arbiter of product and service quality

and customer loyalty, retention and market share gain are best

optimised through a clear focus on the needs of current and

potential customers.’ 13

The importance placed on this area is reflected in CustomerResults having the highest weighting of any criteria at 20% in self-assessment.

Over recent years, increasing emphasis has been placed onlistening to the customer. Peters and Waterman identify being‘close to the customer: learning from the people they serve’ asone of the eight characteristics of excellent companies14. The focusmarks a move to a more egalitarian less paternalistic approachto life in which there is recognition that the customer does knowwhat s/he wants and has definite opinions on the servicereceived.

The concept includes the need to think carefully about who thecustomer is and often needs wider definition than the simplistic‘person who buys’. In many companies, there is recognition ofthe ‘internal customer’ who uses the service of another section inthe same company. For example, within a college, MIS and ICSfunctions may develop service level agreements and carry outcustomer satisfaction surveys with other departments. For aCollege or University, the learner is generally regarded as thecustomer but in reality it may be a parent, or a company whopays the fees. In this context the ‘customer status’ of the LSC andHEFCE should not be ignored. Colleges and Universities have arange of other customers who purchase services or products suchas businesses, government departments etc. Criterion 5c of theExcellence Model states: ‘Products and Services are designed anddeveloped based on customer needs and expectations’. For FE,the emphasis in an Ofsted Inspection is on the learner experienceand satisfaction with key questions focusing on whether theprogrammes provided meet learner needs and offer choice.

The EFQM Excellence Model® also emphasises staff/peopleresults in terms of their motivation, satisfaction and achievements.Staff views are picked up in Investors in People but substantiallyignored in other inspection and quality systems, except in termsof staff development for the job. The EFQM Excellence Model®

makes the direct link between organisational success and the

Learner, Customer & Staff feedback

13 EFQM Fundamental Concepts

14 Peters T and Waterman RH (1982) in Search of Excellence

15 Hay McBeer Senior Management Team Programme: Participants’ Guide 2001


Theory and Concepts

The research behind Sustaining Excellence identified that the highperforming colleges

‘had moved beyond developing sound QA systems to a self-

critical, improvement culture’ with the following features: valuing

feedback; bottom up systems; owned targets; high quality data

allowing early diagnosis and intervention; and constant review of

systems to ensure they are rigorous and reflect changing

situations.’17

Considerable overlap was identified between the EFQMExcellence Model® and the factors seen as essential for reachingand maintaining high performance. The factors identified forenabling high performance included high quality staff, clarityabout core business, sound quality assurance systems,management information and communication systems with themaintenance of staff motivation, renewal and change, culture ofcontinuous improvement critical to sustaining that performance.

The work of Charlotte Mackenzie and Peter Starling providefurther useful insights through looking at two contrastingapproaches to leadership and governance18:

• ‘Leadership promotes self critical culture of professional

responsibility, understanding and learning to raise standards.’

• ‘Compliance – focus on meeting external requirements; may

foster a short term focus and unrelated serial response to

requests for information from different bodies without

promoting internal qualitative review/maximising the potential

benefits of self-assessment for organisational learning.’

5 Continuous improvement

The final piece in our jigsaw concerns the maintenance of highstandards combined with continuous improvement. This isunderpinned by an understanding that this is not just abouthaving appropriate systems in place but more about the mindsetof staff and establishing both the culture and climate in which thiswill flourish with full support from the majority of staff. The link tothe previous section is clear. Motivation is crucial to establishingan improvement culture and maintaining high standards. Thepsychological dimension and drive is often what differentiatesbetween a good and an outstanding organisation or unit withinthat organisation.

Continuous improvement is linked to self-assessment but worthy ofseparate consideration. It also leads into the final section on theconcept of learning organisations.

One of the key challenges for any organisation is achieving theappropriate balance between stability and responsiveness. Toomuch change can be destabilising but, equally, the death knell formany organisations has been complacency and not recognisingthat the world outside has moved on and past. The followingdiagram from ‘Sustaining Excellence’16 provides a useful visualmodel. The publication talks about sustaining excellence but inreality, excellence in education is unlikely to be achieved, as thegoals continue to be enhanced or moved. Excellence is probablybetter viewed as the ‘holy grail’ or the pot of gold at the end ofthe rainbow.

16 Sustaining Excellence pg 21 LSDA publication by Rosemary Moorse and Anna Reisenberger 2001 ISBN 1 85338 613 8

17 Sustaining Excellence pg 21 LSDA publication by Rosemary Moorse and Anna Reisenberger 2001 ISBN 1 85338 613 8

18 Quality Leadership and Management in Post 16 Learning - Charlotte Mackenzie and Peter Starling - LSDA website paper as part of the Quality Leadership andManagement Toolkit Feb 2003

"If the balance is not maintained, stability can turn into complacency; responding to every new requirement, on the other hand, can lead to neglect of core business"

Balancing stability and responsivenessFormula that works

Moving on

Stability Responsive development

Complacency "Eye off the ball"

Continuous improvement and

maintenance of high standards


Theory and Concepts

The indication of the short term focus of a compliance/blind

obedience approach in contrast to the more informed, owned

approach in their definition of leadership links to the two

contrasting approaches to quality management where again the

contrast between internal organisational drivers and external

requirements are also considered:

• ‘Instrumental approach with quality as a vehicle for achieving

good inspection and review outcomes. Proactive developments

to meet the requirements with effective use of resources which

means organisations are able to meet the additional demands

of inspection etc.

• A more reactive approach and systems that do not identify

and tackle problems routinely and resource effectively and

hence can lead to the organisation being caught unawares.’

Dave Stockbridge from Dearne Valley College says about EFQM:

‘This has meant that I do approach my job differently as I am

aware of the fundamental elements of the EFQM Model. I can

work towards improving the status of the college at ‘grass roots’

level through the way I teach but, more importantly, the way I run

my programmes.’

Finally, in this section, attention needs to be drawn to the EFQMmodel itself as continuous learning, innovation and improvementis one of the fundamental concepts. In the Model, the innovationand learning directional arrow across the bottom of the Modeldoes not achieve the visual impact commensurate with theimportance of these two activities in excellent organisations.However, continuous improvement activities are threadedthroughout the RADAR logic (measure, learn, improvement,causes) and many of the criterion parts.

Together, these five pieces of jigsaw provide a framework foreffective quality assurance and improvement. This is the modelDearne Valley College developed during the project, which isnow informing the ongoing development and improvement ofpractice in the college.


Theory and Concepts

Dearne Valley College Quality Framework

The Quality Assurance and Improvement Jigsaw

Self-assessment of effectiveness

Policies and working practices set

standards and provide guidance

Informed business and development

planning

Learner, Customer & Staff feedback

Continuous improvement and

maintenance of high standards

Quality Management Team20 March 2002

Theory and Concepts

6 Learning organisations

The final theoretical concept that has been important in thedevelopment of the college’s ideas and approach is the workdone on learning organisations. Again it has close links with self-assessment and continuous improvement but warrants beingseparately highlighted as the study of learning by individuals andgroups is so central to an educational establishment, yet often notapplied to the organisation itself or management. Considerationof how organisations learn, organisational learning styles,barriers to organisational learning, the learning cycle andtransferable skills all offer food for thought.

The EFQM Excellence Model® promotes continuous improvementand a learning organisation is defined by Wick and Leon (1995)as one that ‘continually improves by rapidly creating and refiningthe capabilities required for future success’.

The decision by an organisation to use the EFQM ExcellenceModel® will result in learning as individuals, teams, and theorganisation plan, reflect, develop and evaluate in order toimprove the future service or product to the learner.

Learning is key to the success of all the stakeholders involved inour organisations and, to this end, learning is at the centre of allour improvement activity: our quality strategy. (Refer to DearneValley College Quality Strategy based on the EFQM ExcellenceModel® page 23).

There are many theorists who have proposed the prevailingindividual learning styles, Kolb et al (1974), Honey and Mumford(1986). The learning styles and their management withinorganisations are critical to the success of the Excellence Modelbut, to realise this potential and unlock the opportunity to learnand improve, an organisation has to support and involveindividuals across the organisation to become active in theprocess of continuous improvement. All staff need to be aware ofthe following reasons:

• why EFQM • what is its purpose/benefit• who is involved • when will this happen • where will it impact

Dearne Valley College has concluded that, on reflection, it canidentify strong links with the characteristics of a learningorganisation proposed by Wick and Leon (1995):

• ‘leadership with a clearly defined vision’ (senior managementhave to be advocates of the Excellence Model)

• ‘sharing of information’ (Wick and Leon propose ‘rapidsharing’; each organisation should be mindful of its owntimeline and ability to adapt to meet deadlines, effect andmanage change)

• ‘inventiveness’ (remember the ‘baby and bath water’ - allorganisations have sound systems, build on these having firstdetermined your current position and where you want to get to)

• ‘a detailed, measurable action plan’ (self-assessment plans arefirmly established within FE - ‘so what’ - can they be improvedto have greater value to the organisation?)

• ‘the ability to implement the action plan’ (management,operational teams and individuals have to be able to achievethe targets).

At Dearne Valley College, the Quality Strategy is a learningstrategy for all stakeholders.

Our organisations are complex and diverse and as such demandconstant management and development to achieve the deadlinesand targets of external bodies. The EFQM Excellence Model® andits application within an organisation supports the learningrequired by the organisation to meet the demands of theseexternal bodies and compliment the demands of other qualitystandards - QAA, CIF, IiP, etc.



Theory and Concepts

7 Quality and performance monitoring

The models currently used in Further Education Colleges and their correlation to the EFQM Excellence Model® .

Comparisons with ISO 9002, IiP and Charter Mark

• Many FE Colleges have developed systems and gained accreditation by one or more of these three systems. Substantial work hasbeen done to map these systems against the EFQM Excellence Model®. The Cabinet Office/DETR publication, ‘Guide to QualitySchemes and Best Value’19 explores this aspect in some detail and suggests that the EFQM Excellence Model® provides an overallframework for an organisation’s activities and helps to ask the questions necessary to identify improvement areas. Schemes such asIiP, Charter Mark and ISO help with finding the answers through looking in more detail at ways of improving performance inparticular areas. In simplistic terms, IiP focuses on staff, Charter Mark on customers and ISO on processes.

• In the initial stages of this project, Karen Quine worked on mapping the EFQM Excellence Model® against these three systems andthe table below records her conclusions.

• All the systems entail rigorous external assessment of performance against standards leading to accreditation. The EFQM ExcellenceModel® offers more scope for the organisation to determine the detail within each criteria and sub-criteria thus accommodating thediversity of educational organisations. It also offers greater scope for using the principles and concepts as a developmental toolwithout going for external accreditation.

• ISO announced significant changes to the ISO 9000 standards for 2000/1 which heralded a move to a Process Model comprisingfour sections: management responsibility; resource management; product realization; and measurement, analysis, improvement. Inaddition, more emphasis was placed on customer feedback, continual improvement and management responsibility than in earliermodels. Organisations moving to the new model needed to rework their quality manual and move closer to TQM principles. At asuperficial level, the new model does more closely resemble the Excellence approach. The mapping report is based on ISO 9000.ISO remains a process based system with heavy emphasis on compliance.

• The revision of the IiP standard meant that the new version became outcome based with particular emphasis on the ‘spirit’ of thestandards rather than a process model. Two changes of particular note are the change in terminology from ‘employees’ to ‘people’and that improving the organisation’s performance is more explicitly acknowledged as the intended outcome. Both these changesbring the model to a closer alignment with the EFQM Excellence Model®. More detail on these comparisons can be found in thepublication ‘Linking the Excellence Model to other Management Models and Tools’ (http://excellence.shu.ac.uk).

19 Guide to Quality Schemes and Best Value, DETR, 2000

Critical Links of the Quality Models

Excellence Model Charter Mark Investors in People ISO 9000

ENABLERS

Leadership � ��

Policy and Strategy ��

People ��

Partnerships and Resources ��

Processes � � ��

RESULTS

Customer Results ��

People Results � ��

Impact on Society

Key Performance Results ��


Theory and Concepts

Comparisons with QAA • QAA reviews can be viewed in a similar manner to ISO, IiP and Charter Mark in terms of focusing on specific aspects of the

activities of education and training organisations. The mandatory nature of QAA reviews for Higher Education Institutions/FurtherEducation Colleges is in contrast to other quality schemes to which organisations opt into.

• The QAA Institutional Reviews and Subject reviews both have significant similarities to the EFQM Excellence Model® but are morelimited in scope. A full and detailed mapping of the QAA framework and the EFQM Excellence Model® has been conducted andreported on by Carol Steed and Gwyn Arnold from Sheffield Hallam University with a full and summary report available on theweb site (http://excellence.shu.ac.uk).

Comparisons with the Common Inspection Framework• For Dearne Valley College, the superficial similarities of the EFQM Excellence Model® with the CIF (Ofsted/ALI Common Inspection

Framework) were a major driver in the decision to join the project team. However, deeper consideration has shown that this is onlya superficial likeness based on both having three main criteria as below:

• Further consideration reveals that all of the CIF questions focus on results. For example, for question 2 on teaching, training andlearning, inspectors are instructed to evaluate ‘how well teaching and training meet individuals’ needs and course or programmerequirements’ and ‘how well learners learn and make progress’. The focus is purely on the outcomes with only implicitacknowledgement of the factors required to achieve the results i.e. the enablers.

• This CIF focus on results is in contrast to a QAA Review in which there is more recognition and emphasis on the processes involvedin achieving results and a very clear distinction with the EFQM Excellence Model®.

CIF EFQM

Achievement & Standards Key Performance Results

Quality of Education and Training - which covers processes liketeaching and learning, student support

Processes

Leadership & Management Leadership

Tabular Mapping of EFQM Criteria against the seven CIF Questions

9 EFQM criteria

CIF

Que

stio

ns

Ach

ieve

men

t

Teach

ing &

Learn

ing

Res

ourc

es

Mon

itori

ng &

Ass

essm

ent

Prov

isio

n To

Mee

t N

eeds

Gui

danc

e &

Suppor

t

Leader

ship

&M

ana

gem

ent

Leadership ✗ ✗ ✗ ✗ ✗ ✗ ��

Policy & Strategy � ✗ ✗ ✗ �� ✗ �

People ✗ Imp �� ✗ ✗ ✗ ��

Partnerships & Resources ✗ ✗ �� ✗ ✗ ✗ ��

Processes � Imp ✗ Imp � Imp ��

Customer Results �� ✗ ✗ Imp Imp Imp �

People Results ✗ ✗ � ✗ ✗ ✗ Imp

Society Results Imp ✗ ✗ Imp ✗ ✗ ✗

Key Performance Results �� ✗ ✗ ✗ ✗ ✗ ��

Key: �� Clear and strong match betweenCIF questions & EFQM criteria

�� Partial coverage of EFQM criteria

� Some coverageImp Implicit to achieve ‘results’✗ No match

• A further potential correlation to consider is whether the EFQMweightings reflect the emphasis in Inspections.

EFQM weightings:

Leadership 10%

People 9%

Policy & Strategy 8%

Partnerships & Resources 9%

Processes 14%

Enablers total 50%

People Results 9%

Customer Results 20%

Society Results 6%

Key Performance Results 15%

Results total 50%

Hence Customer Results, Key Performance Results and Processesare the three criteria with the heaviest weighting for the EFQMExcellence Model®. For Ofsted/ALI inspections the emphasis is onAchievement/Learner attainment, the learner experience andimpact of Leadership and Management on the learnerexperience. Quality is an important element in gradingLeadership and Management.

Comparisons with the LSC Provider PerformanceReview• The final format for LSC Provider Performance Reviews for all

post 16 education and training providers was introduced forthe October 2002 reviews. Hence, it is very early to draw anyconclusions regarding the effects of the process on practice butit is likely that the reviews will have an important influence onthe approach to quality by FE colleges. The PPRs draw heavilyon existing assessments including the College self-assessmentand audit reports. The emphasis is on continuous improvementsupported and monitored by the local LSC through the reviewsthat are conducted twice a year. The LSC has issued nationalguidelines for self-assessment broadly covering some of theareas addressed by the EFQM criteria. There is particularemphasis on financial aspects and customer feedbackincluding, learners, parents and employers. Processes andPeople criteria are not addressed any more rigorously than inthe CIF.

• The table (opposite) exploring the degree of correlation withthe Excellence Model and the CIF, PPR, ISO 9002, IiP andCharter Mark is an extract from an unpublished paper byAlan Davies, Business Improvement Adviser, Manchester LSC.

The conlusions reached are similar to our own, but themethodology slightly different.

Awarding Body requirements• Further Education Colleges are not able to accredit their own

qualifications and hence work with a range of AwardingBodies and Higher Education Institutions that set down specificquality requirements, which have to be met. These are basedon QCA and QAA standards but each interpret andimplement these in slightly different ways. Two of the majorthree Awarding Bodies, Edexcel and OCR now include collegelevel quality system monitoring on an annual or biannual basisinvolving full day monitoring visits. A college needs to ensurethat its quality system can meet these requirements with theminimum of additional work.

Summary points• ISO 2000, IiP and the Charter Mark all offer a foundation

from which to begin the journey towards excellence. Inparticular, involvement with these schemes introduces therequirement to have well documented and evidenced systems.

• Evidence ‘banks’ to meet Excellence Model requirements arewide ranging and comprehensive but should also ensure thatFurther Education Colleges/Higher Education Institutions havethe evidence required for QAA reviews and Ofsted/ALIinspections.

• Organisations holding these quality marks need to be awareof how they ’fit’ with the Excellence Model to inform theidentification of starting points and places that may need to bevisited and addressed on the journey.

• Equality and diversity is not clearly addressed within theExcellence Model but extremely important within any FEinstitution and in FE Inspections and LSC Provider PerformanceReviews. For an FE college, it would be important to includemeasurements of equality in Key Performance Results and inSociety Results, as FE has a clear remit to address inequalitiesin education and help to break down cycles of deprivation anddisadvantage.

• For organisations subject to significant external scrutiny, theExcellence Model provides an ‘umbrella’ under which todevelop strategies and processes to meet the range ofrequirements. It addresses quality assurance and continuousimprovement requirements and implicit within this is the needto establish comprehensive evidence.

• EFQM Excellence Model® is significantly less prescriptive thanother quality schemes and hence places more responsibility onthe organisation. This can give greater ownership for planningthe journey and the destination.


Theory and Concepts

Alan Davies drew the following conclusions:20

‘The EFQM Excellence Model® is a holistic approach that encompasses all the elements of the Common Inspection Framework, the

Performance Review Framework, Investors in People, ISO 9000:2000 and Charter Mark, without exception, with no unmatched areas.

The EFQM Excellence Model® offers an overall approach that gives us a common language and framework for the quality assurance

process that would help to reduce inconsistencies and minimise bureaucracy.

The Common Inspection Framework, Performance Review Framework, IiP, ISO 9000:2000 and Charter Mark offer best and good

practice within individual criteria of the Excellence Model framework.’


Theory and Concepts

20 A Report on the degree of fit between the EFQM Excellence Model® Framework and Quality Initiatives employed in the Education and training sector - unpublished report by Alan Davis

EFQM Weighting CIF ProviderReviewFramework

IIP ISO9000:2000

Charter Mark

Leadership 1.0 Medium Low Low Medium Not Addressed

Policy & Strategy 0.8 Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium

People 0.9 Low Not Addressed Medium Low Low

Partnerships &Resources

0.9 Medium Low Not Addressed Medium Medium

Processes 1.4 Medium Low Low High Low

Customer Results 2.0 Not Addressed Low Not Addressed Not Addressed Low

People Results 0.9 Not Addressed Not Addressed High Not Addressed Not Addressed

Society Results 0.6 Not Addressed Not Addressed Not Addressed Not Addressed Not Addressed

Key PerformanceResults

1.5 Low Medium Medium Not Addressed Low

A quote from Talisman, the ALI Newsletter, sums up the requirements for FE and other post 16 providers:

‘A provider needs to be able to assure, improve and prove the quality of their provision.’

The EFQM Excellence Model® supports a provider in meeting these three requirements through providing a comprehensive yet flexibleframework.

elements and to having a defined system of processes. Thisproved to be both a strength and a challenge to thesubsequent development of the quality strategy.

• The college was very aware of the pressures resulting from therequirements of the various bodies charged with monitoringthe standards and performance of the College and the need toidentify a framework for quality that provided an overarchingumbrella that reduced the pressures of inspection and audit.These were graphically illustrated in 2001/2 when the Collegehad to respond to the requirements of an Area Inspection bythe FEFC in February that was only interested in the 16 to 19age group and then a QAA Subject review in June that wasonly interested in HNC/D students. For the college, they wereall learners and hence of equal importance, albeit withdiffering needs, but this concept did not ‘fit’ with the remit ofthe review/inspection teams, resulting in additional work andstress for college staff. The experience emphasised the need toprovide a supportive framework that would meet allrequirements with the minimum additional work.

3 The ‘journey’ - Where did the college want totravel to?

The objectives of the project for Dearne Valley College wereformulated during the first six months as the options and collegeneeds became more clearly defined and include:

• To learn about the EFQM Excellence Model®, from a wellinformed group, and its application in HE

• To develop strategies to support the College in meeting thedemands of external inspection and audit requirements

• To achieve an appropriate balance between Quality Assuranceand Quality Improvement

• To redesign the process map to support process improvement • To develop the internal culture necessary to support the

changes to the quality strategy with particular emphasis on amore self critical and evaluative approach

• To contribute to the development of a more effectiveorganisation able to meet the educational and training needsof the local community


The Dearne Valley College JourneyTowards Excellence

1 Purpose of this case study

• To reflect on the experience of using the EFQM ExcellenceModel® in an organisation that held ISO and IiP accreditation

• To illustrate some of the key learning points in the HEFCE GMP143 Programme.

• To demonstrate the benefits of applying EFQM concepts in FEand to draw out recommendations for other FE collegesundertaking the ‘journey towards excellence’.

2 Context

• Dearne Valley College is a medium sized FE College in an ex-mining area of South Yorkshire. The college has a communityfocus and provides mainly vocational programmes from Entrylevel to HE for the 16 plus age group with growing provisionfor 14 to 16 year olds.

• In 1999/2000, the college applied to Sheffield HallamUniversity for Associate College status and the contactsestablished during this process led to the college being invitedto join the HEFCE funded GMP143 Programme. A significantfactor in this was the college’s quality system based on processcontrol.

• The college has always set high standards with regard toQuality Assurance and was the first college to secure BS 5750registration in October 1992. The college secured IiPaccreditation in February 1994 and has received positivefeedback at all subsequent monitoring and re-assessment visits.The college was graded 1 for Quality in the first round of FEinspections in 1993. In the second round in January 1998, theQuality grade dropped to 2 with the main weakness beingthat the quality system was not having sufficient impact onresults. Strategies were put into place to address this and someprogress made. In June 2001, the college scored 21 out of 24in a QAA Joint Subject Review with a 3 for QSME. Thecohesion, integration and evidencing of quality strategies werethe underpinning issues for the QAA grading.

• The college has experienced substantial growth in size,complexity and range of provision since FE incorporation in1993. This was further stimulated by the move to a newpurpose built building in 1996. The growth in student numbershas been particularly marked in the 16 to 19 age group andthe addition of FT HE students in 1998. The staff team hasgrown with increasing numbers of support staff to meet thechanging requirements of FE.

• Following the 1997 FEFC Inspection, questions were raised incollege about the relevance and efficacy of ISO within thechanging FE environment. The debate continued and was asignificant motivating factor in the College joining theGMP143 Programme. Staff were used to the complianceculture associated with ISO for the areas covered by the 19

4 Outcomes from the use of Excellenceprinciples at Dearne Valley College

• The college now has a Quality Strategy based on RADAR andKolb’s learning cycle that focuses on improvement and thelearner experience as depicted in the diagram that concludesthis section.

• We have the Quality Assurance and Improvement Jigsaw,another visual image that is designed to convey a sense of theinterlocking dimensions needed.

• We have ‘re-engineered’ the process map to produce theQuality Framework based on processes not functions and areen route to achieving substantial active staff engagementrather than blind compliance.

• The emphasis on stakeholder feedback is substantiallyincreased and the outcomes more effectively used in self-assessment.

• As a result of EFQM Assessor training and an initial review ofcollege practice against the criteria, QMT led the introductionof a staff survey, which included both a questionnaire andfocus groups. The findings from these surveys have beeninfluential in both management discussion and development. Inaddition, QMT has encouraged, through the QualityFramework, more systematic customer reviews that informdevelopments at College and programme level.

• A more informed and thorough approach to data analysis isevident. There is further work to be done but across Collegethere is greater recognition that it is not just about getting thedata accurate but also that the data needs to be analysed andused to plan improvement. The progress made wasacknowledged in the recent Ofsted inspection.

• The Excellence Model criteria have been used veryproductively to provide structure and reference points formanagement and leadership development. In the first year ofthe project, the College Management team used an away dayto consider our strengths and areas for development in relationto both Leadership and People. In the second year, customerand people feedback was used to underpin a critical review ofthe College effectiveness. This was followed up by theintroduction of RADAR to increase the rigour of self-assessmentand encourage reflective practice.

• Involvement in the project has highlighted the need and guidedthe planning for an ‘evidence bank’ that will, once established,ease the reporting required by Further Education Colleges to avariety of external organisations. It is also provingexceptionally useful in planning internal reportingarrangements including reporting to the Governing Board,although there is still work to be done to ensure clear linkagesand timescales.

• More recently, the analogy of ‘spinning plates’ and using the


Towards Excellence

Key milestones

April 2000 First GMP143 Programme Board Meeting

July 2000 Change of Project Leader – Dr Tricia Macredie, who led the initial discussions and agreement, retired and Sally Blunt appointed.

Sept 2000 Three members of QMT trained as EFQM Assessors

Nov 2000 Simulated assessment of EFQM Criteria 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 by QMT

Feb 2001 First Staff Survey

March 2001 College Management team used Criteria 1 and 3 to explore strengths and areas for improvement and focus management development activities

March to June 2001 Concept of Quality Framework developed and consulted on

May 2001 Project manager, Karen Quine, left DVC and was replaced by Tony De’Ath

June 2001 Deregistration from ISO system to free the development of the quality system from the ISO constraints

July 2001 Programme Improvement plans introduced

Sept 2001 The first areas of the new Quality Framework went live on the staff intranet – with planned development schedule for all other areas of activity

Dec 2001 QMT conducted second simulated assessment against all EFQM criteria

Jan to March 2002 Work done to develop a proforma based recording method and December assessment transcribed. Visual images to portray the Quality framework developed

July 2002 ISO based Quality System ‘switched off’

July 2002 RADAR methodology introduced to managers and team leaders to use for annual team self-assessments and shift in approach to Team Development Plans asan ongoing rather than an annual activity

Aug 2002 Initial preparation for and work on evidence bank

Sept/Oct 2002 Open invitation to staff to attend one of a series of presentations to explain EFQM and its application at DVC.

model to help determine which ‘plates’ need most attention ishelping to ensure appropriate prioritisation of improvementprojects. In addition, the nine criteria are providing a usefulchecklist to guide project planning.

• The project has highlighted the need to plan for and evaluatethe deployment and impact of policies and processes onperformance in a more structured and systematic manner. Thiswas highlighted in the recent Ofsted Inspection.

5 Challenges that have needed to be addressed or coped with

Time and timing• Time constraints for the core project group, the College Quality

Management team and the wider college staff team who wereinvolved in developing the content of the Quality Framework.

• Ongoing conflicting priorities and demands that slowed downprogress.

• Getting the timing right and moving forward at an appropriatepace: not too quick, not too slow.

• Judging when to use EFQM terminology and conceptsexplicitly.

• The challenges posed when external organisations, such as theLSC, set the timescales for key activities like strategic anddevelopment planning.

• Maintaining momentum and focus.

Organisational and cultural change • Moving from a hierarchical to a team based organisation with

shared responsibilities and recognition that those withidentified management roles are not the only ones withleadership roles and responsibilities.

• Moderating the compliance culture without ‘throwing the babyout with the bath water’.

• Developing a learning culture within the organisation toinclude a focus on improvement as a constant and as integralto everyday activity.

• Getting the appropriate balance between process control andcontinuous improvement.

Key personnel changes• During the project, both the Project Leader and Project

Manager changed, which could have destabilised thedevelopment. Fortunately, within the core team, thecommitment to EFQM principles was sufficiently wellestablished to prevent this. In fact, the changes may haveencouraged a greater degree of integration into coreprocesses.

• The role of the QMT (Quality Management Team) as the coreteam within the development has been crucial. All have beentrained as Assessors and hence have developed a soundunderstanding of the Model.

6 How far have we travelled?

It is difficult to pinpoint where, on this never ending journeytowards excellence, we have reached, but we do know that weare making progress and that the changes are positive. Onequestion under consideration is whether the application of theModel is having an impact on the culture of the organisation.There are strong indications that it is having an impact but, withother significant changes in both senior staff and the FE sector, itis difficult to separate out the cause and effect. It is reasonable toconclude that it is contributing to the cultural change thatsupported the college to a positive outcome in the recent OfstedInspection.

But there is more to do.


Towards Excellence

1 Key learning points identified during the project

Importance of having a defined strategic purposefor undertaking the journey• There needs to be a clear purpose, for starting the journey,

which is clearly mapped into strategic objectives and sets outthe organisation’s requirements of its quality strategy.

• Dearne Valley determined that its quality strategy/frameworkhad to include all areas of the College activity with specificreference to Business Unit Plans, Strategic Plans and self-assessment combined with clear definitions of key performanceoutcomes.

• The core team should identify the external drivers (e.g.Inspection) and the ‘fit’ with other requirements (e.g. FEemphasis on consistency/deployment and impact/cause).

• The value of the Excellence Model as a catalyst and toolkit forchange that is coherent, rooted in common sense and offeringan organised and systematic model.

Leadership/People factors • The support and recognition of senior staff and other key

people. Quality at Dearne Valley has always been aresponsibility of a senior manager to lead, manage anddevelop.

• The value of an enthusiastic core team (QMT) with differentskills and responsibilities and a broad understanding of theorganisation and its culture. The QMT has a membership ofacademic and business support staff who have been trainedas EFQM Assessors. This blend of staff from across theCollege structure with a common understanding of theExcellence Model has proved invaluable as a resource toinform, evolve and support developments.

• The need to have/develop a sound understanding of theculture and climate within an organisation. This knowledgewill inform and support change management that will becritical in underpinning and communicating the values of theExcellence Model.

• The value of identifying the connections with otherrequirements so that the work involved can be seen as part ofthe ‘day’ job not as an extra. Weaving in the principles ofExcellence to the College Business Unit, Strategic Planningand self-assessment processes as an enhancement.

• Introducing Excellence principles to key processes to engagestaff in the positive benefits of the model.

• The importance of language, the timing and how much of theModel is communicated to a wider internal audience.

• The contribution of simple visual images of the underpinningconcepts has been invaluable for the core team and the wideraudience.

Process factors• The Excellence Model supports an approach characterised by

a mixture of theory, opportunism and pragmatism, which iseffective in the FE sector.

• The importance of keeping ‘it’ simple, practical andaccessible. The move away from ISO compliance has beenwelcomed by staff as the Excellence model offers a soundrationale to move the organisation further down the qualitypath. To date, there has been no negative feedback inresponse to the implications of the EFQM Excellence Model®.

• At Dearne Valley College, a key factor has been theownership of self-assessment and processes rather than anysense of actions purely to meet external requirements. Hencethe emphasis of the quality strategy on ‘doing the job well’and not hiding behind a ‘system’ or external requirements.

• College managers were empowered to take ownership of thekey processes for their area of responsibility. The constraint ofISO system compliance was removed which allowedmanagers to write processes that reflect their operational andstrategic responsibilities which- focused on improvement, not just process compliance- are deployed in consultation and agreement with

appropriate teams- undergo assessment and review to inform

improvements- have results that can be evaluated to inform planning.

Identifying starting points and route maps• Whilst Further Education Colleges and Higher Education

Institutions have very different histories and current positions,a common factor that has emerged during the project hasbeen to identify a starting point appropriate to theorganisation and its culture.

• Organisations that have already achieved accreditation withISO, IiP or Charter Mark will have begun to develop theculture and the processes required by the Excellence Model.The Excellence Model is the next step.

• At Dearne Valley College, the core team completed arudimentary self-assessment of the Results areas beforemoving on to focus on Leadership, measuring peopleperceptions and process development.

• In retrospect, focusing on the three main strands of themodel, Leadership, Processes and Key Performance Resultsfor self-assessment, communication and development mayhave offered a more sound foundation on which to developexcellence. These strands underpin improvements in otherareas.




• A significant factor for organisations such as Dearne ValleyCollege, which held ISO registration, is the need to addressthe compliance/non-conformance culture and instil a cultureof continuous improvement in self-assessment. This is beingdone by supporting and challenging staff, teams, andprocesses to the ‘so what’ test. You provide a good service!So what, could it be improved? Could you raise your target?What could you do or could be done to improve further?

• A critical question has been when to score and who wouldbe involved in this. The college has begun to use theprinciples of RADAR without the additional complication ofscoring. The value of RADAR is to support staff in developingthe skills to analyse and evaluate student data is beginning topay dividends.

2 Recommendations

• The EFQM Excellence Model® has much to offer aneducational organisation that wants to be effective and toachieve high standards for its learners and other stakeholders.

• Reflect on the Model and the mapping against other kitemarks,CIF, IiP, Charter, ISO etc. The Excellence Model is able tomatch all the criteria contained in other acknowledgedstandards and stretch you and your organisation further. Lookat the scope of the Model and how your organisationapproaches each of the nine areas.

• If the decision is taken to apply the EFQM Excellence Model®

ensure that Senior Management support is enlisted. Progress issmoother if there is clear and unequivocal support from SeniorManagement and they become advocates of the Model andtake an active role in the development of Excellence principles.

• However, it is equally important that staff from across theorganisation take ownership and back the development. Theprogress made at DVC has been eased and accelerated bystaff involvement and ownership. The staff team is essential tohigh performance and representatives of the team need to beinfluential in the development of the approach. The applicationof the Model must include ‘bottom up’ influences.

• Ensure that the core team undergoes training as Assessors andthat the understanding of the Model is regularly revisited.

• Start from where you are as an organisation. There is no needto throw the ‘baby out with the bath water’. You will havesound systems in place that you can build on. One option toconsider would be to focus on one of the three main strands ofthe model - Leadership, Processes and Key PerformanceResults - and work on this.

• Think carefully about when and how to introduce the Model.The main driver for change needs to be internal and not tomeet another set of external requirements. The language usedneeds to be accessible with jargon and theory kept to aminimum and introduced as teams gain confidence with theapproach.

Finally – take ownership and make the Model work for yourorganisation and your organisational goals.




Policies and working practices set standards and provide guidance

(Approach)

Implementation of framework is systematic and deployment maximised through

working practice ownership & consultation.(Deployment)

Self-assessment of effectiveness leading to plans for development

(Assess & Review)

Achievement of learner and college objectives

(Results) Learner Experience

Quality Management Team20 March 2002

Dearne Valley College Quality StrategyBased on the EFQM Excellence Model® (RADAR)


Glossary and References

References

The Future of Higher Education, DfES, Jan 2003

LSC Circulars 03/01 and 03/02

Opportunities and Excellence 14 to 19

EFQM Excellence Model®, EFQM

Improving Learning Processes: principles, strategies andtechniques, Phil Cox, LSDA, 2002

Self-assessment and Development Plans, DfEE, 2001

In Search of Excellence, Peters T and Waterman RH, 1982

Senior Management Team Programme: Participant’s Guide, HayMcBeer, 2001

Sustaining Excellence, R Moorse and A Reisenburger, LSDA,2001

Quality Leadership and Management in Post 16 Learning, C Mackenzie and P Starling, LSDA, 2003

Guide to Quality Schemes and Best Value, DETR, 2000

GMP 143 Publications (http://excellence.shu.ac.uk)

Glossary

ALI Adult Learning Inspectorate

BSI British Standards Institute

CIF Common Inspection Framework

DETR Department for Environment, Trade & Industry

DfEE Department for Education and Employment

DfES Department for Education and Skills

DVC Dearne Valley College

EFQM European Foundation for Quality Management

FEC Further Education College

FEFC Further Education Funding Council (now Learning Skills Council)

FT Full-time

GMP Good Management Practice

HEFCE Higher Education Funding Council for England

HEI Higher Education Institute

HNC/D Higher National Certificate/Diploma

ICS Information Communication Systems

IiP Investor in People Standard

ISO International Organisation for Standardisation

LSC Learning and Skills Council

MIS Management Information System

PPR Provider Performance Review (Learning Skills Council)

QA Quality Assurance

QAA Quality Assurance Agency

QMT Quality Management Team (Dearne Valley College)

QSME Quality Standards Management and Enhancement (Sheffield Hallam University)

RADAR Results, Approach, Deployment, Assessment, Review (EFQM Excellence Model®)

SAR Self-Assessment Report

AcknowledgementsThis publication draws on the experience and knowledge gainedby a range of institutions from with the Higher and FurtherEducation sectors, bringing together aspects of learning from theHEFCE funded Good Management Practice (GMP143)Programme that was undertaken between May 2000 and May2003.

The programme was led and directed by Mike Pupius, Directorof Organisational Excellence, Sheffield Hallam University, andmanaged by Carol Steed, Organisational Excellence Manager,Sheffield Hallam University.

Sally Blunt, Assistant Principal (Curriculum and Quality), DearneValley College and Tony De’Ath, Head of Human Resources,Dearne Valley College have been the main authors of thispublication.

Representatives from the other Consortia institutions have criticallyreviewed and added to the development of this publication. They are:

Claire Browning, (former) EFQM Project Manager, University of Ulster

Alan Davies, Business Improvement Adviser, Manchester LSC

Mick Hides, Research Fellow, University of Salford

John Hirst, Bursar, Van Mildert College, University of Durham

Andrew Johnstone, Lecturer, University of Cranfield

Ann Kemplay, Head of Staff Development, University of Ulster

Mike Pupius, Director of Organisational Excellence, SheffieldHallam University

Carol Steed, Organisational Excellence Manager, SheffieldHallam University

Jill Wild, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing, University of Salford.

Karen Quine, Project Manager for Dearne Valley College

Alan Davies, Business Improvement Adviser, Manchester LSC

Glen Ashall, Janice Driffill, Christine Rawson, DavidStockbridge, Anne Whitworth, Dearne Valley College QualityManagement Team

The programme has benefited from a range of other valuablecontributions from across all of our institutions. Members of stafffrom academic, administrative and technical backgrounds havecontributed their time, expertise and experience in a wide varietyof ways, which has proved invaluable in generating the richnessof evidence that can be found in our publications.


We also acknowledge and give thanks for the support fromcolleagues within our respective institutions, who have helped usto acquire, further develop and extend our collective learning, forthe benefit of others across the sector.

Acknowledgement is also given to our Advisory Board members,who have supported the programme directly and indirectly on avoluntary basis for three years. These are:

Professor Diana Green (Chair), Vice Chancellor, Sheffield Hallam University

Bob Allen-Turl, Former CEO, TNT Award Office

Roger Cliffe, Former Corporate Quality Director, Lloyds TSB

Steve Dougill, Quality Manager, Xerox UK

Sandy Goulding, Head of Quality Assurance and EducationalDevelopment, Department of Health

Pramod Philip, Consultant, HEFCE

Ian Raisbeck, Former Director of Business Excellence, Royal Mail

John Rushforth, Director of Widening Participation, HEFCE

Dr Martin Samuels, (Formerly Project Director for the CabinetOffice Public Sector Benchmarking and Excellence ModelProgrammes)

Frank Steer, Director General the Institute of Quality Assuranceand President of the European Organisation for Quality

Ken Watling, Head of Efficiency and Private Finance Unit, HM Customs and Excise

Kevin Wyber, HM Customs and Excise, Manager Public Sector Benchmarking Service


AcknowledgementsThis publication draws on the experience and knowledge gainedby a range of institutions from with the Higher and FurtherEducation sectors, bringing together aspects of learning from theHEFCE funded Good Management Practice (GMP143)

Programme that was undertaken between April 1999 and March2003.

The programme was lead and directed by Mike Pupius, Directorof Organisational Excellence, Sheffield Hallam University, andmanaged by Carol Steed, Organisational Excellence Manager,Sheffield Hallam University.

Carol Steed and Mike Pupius have been the main authors of thisSummary Report.

Representatives from the other Consortia institutions have criticallyreviewed and added to the development of this publication. They are:

Sally Blunt, Deputy Principal, Dearne-Valley College

Claire Browning, (former) EFQM Project Manager, University of Ulster

Tony De’Ath, Director of Human Resources, Dearne Valley College

Mick Hides, Research Fellow, University of Salford

John Hirst, Bursar, Van Mildert College, University of Durham

Andrew Johnstone, Lecturer, University of Cranfield

Ann Kemplay, Head of Staff Development, University of Ulster

Jill Wild, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing, University of Salford.

The programme has benefited from a range of other valuablecontributions from across all of our institutions. Members of stafffrom academic, administrative and technical backgrounds havecontributed their time, expertise and experience in a wide varietyof ways, which has proved invaluable in generating the richnessof evidence that can be found in our publications.

We also acknowledge and give thanks for the support fromcolleagues within our respective institutions, who have helped usto acquire, further develop and extend our collective learning, forthe benefit of others across the sector.

For further copies of this publication, please contact

Centre for Integral ExcellenceSheffield Hallam UniversityHoward StreetSheffield S1 1WB

Tel: 0114 225 3344/2044Fax: 0114 225 4207E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

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