Presentation of the Catalan version of EFQM Excellence Model
The EFQM Excellence Model, developed by the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM), is the most significant model in Europe used by more than thirty thousand private and public organisations as a framework to improve their management practices. The University of Barcelona, together with the Excellence in Management Club —the official representative and partner of EFQM in Spain— and Mútua Terrassa, have developed the translation into Catalan. This new version of the model is added to the fourteen translations that are already available and it facilitates the implementation of the EFQM Excellence Model in Catalonia.
The EFQM Excellence Model, developed by the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM), is the most significant model in Europe used by more than thirty thousand private and public organisations as a framework to improve their management practices. The University of Barcelona, together with the Excellence in Management Club —the official representative and partner of EFQM in Spain— and Mútua Terrassa, have developed the translation into Catalan. This new version of the model is added to the fourteen translations that are already available and it facilitates the implementation of the EFQM Excellence Model in Catalonia.
The Catalan version is presented on Wednesday 12 March, at 7 p.m., at the Historic Building of UB. The personalities who participate in the event are: the rector of UB, Dr Dídac Ramírez; Juan Liquete, secretary general of the Excellence in Management Club (CEG); Jordi Troté, head of Institutional Relations from ACCIÓ; Josep M. Costa, assessor of the EFQM Award, and Emília Gil, assistant director of Mútua Terrassa.
The EFQM Excellence Model is founded on a series of European values collected on the basis of the United Nations Global Compact (2000) about human rights, labour regulations, fight against corruption and environment. It promotes and stimulates continuous improvement and offers a general view of an organizationʼs strong points and growth opportunities. A study developed by EFQM and the British Quality Foundation, which compares the evolution of organizations recognised by EFQM with other entities in the same sectors, proves that award-winning organizations increase job positions and sales, whereas their cost increase is small.
Organizations that use the EFQM Excellence Model can apply for any level of EFQM seal of excellence, conferred by CEG in Spain. In Catalonia, twenty-eight public and private organisations own the European Seal of Excellence. In the case of UB, for example, the Unit of Teaching Laboratories at the Faculty of Pharmacy holds the Seal of Commitment to European Excellence 200+ that recognises its management system, after successfully passing an external exhaustive evaluation carried out by the Spanish Association for Standardisation and Certification (AENOR). Moreover, UB takes the EFQM Excellence Model as an example to manage processes and ensure quality at the University. Currently, seventeen Spanish universities have these seals of excellence. In total, around 434 Spanish private and public organizations hold seals of excellence.
The Catalan translation of the EFQM Excellence Model was done by a team composed by members of Mútua Terrassa, the Agency for Policy and Quality of UB and CEG, and it was revised by the Language Services of the University of Barcelona. The Catalan version of the Model is available on the website of CEG and on the official website of EFQM, which also includes other versions: English, German, French, Dutch, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Portuguese, Greek, Czech, Hungarian, Danish, Finnish, Swedish and Arabic.
The Excellence in Management Club is a non-profit association created in 1991 by Spanish leading organisations in excellence management. It has around 250 members that belong to different sectors. Nowadays, 34% of companies which make up the IBEX 35 are members of the Club. The Excellence Management Club has been committed to excellence for twenty-one years and it is the official representative and primary partner of EFQM in Spain. Its main goal is to help companies to get high competitiveness by means of excellence management. UB is a partner of the Club, together with 33 other universities.