The "Skinny" on Baldrige versus Lean

Posted by Bob Fangmeyer
I have heard it a hundred times--while standing in our booth at a conference, responding to a general inquiry from our customer service line, after presenting an overview of Baldrige to an audience with varying degrees  of interest, even when talking to friends and family-- "Yeah, my organization looked into that Baldrige stuff in the 80's and early 90's. We have moved into Lean Six Sigma because we think it is a better fit for our organization."
Of course as soon as I begin explaining how Baldrige and Lean Six Sigma are not only compatible but very complimentary the eyes glaze over and lose focus, searching for another place to be. (Apparently I need to work on a snappy rejoinder, maybe something like "Oh yeah!? Well Lean might use cool Japanese terms like kanban and kaizen but people tell us we have our own language: Baldrigese!"). OK- so it needs a little work...
Actually, maybe I should just refer them to a fantastic discussion started by Regina Pontes that is occurring on the LinkedIn Baldrige Improvement Discussion Group: Baldrige and other quality programs/tools. (You need to be a member of LinkedIn and then you need to join the discussion group, but registration is simple and it is free.) In the discussion you will hear from Lean Six Sigma experts, Baldrige experts, and some that are both. What I hope you walk away with is a better understanding of how Baldrige provides the framework that can help ensure organizations that utilize Lean Six Sigma do so in such a way that optimizes their entire system and their ability to achieve organizational objectives rather than "merely" streamlining key processes and eliminating rework. Baldrige does not prescribe a particular tool or methodology, instead we support and encourage the use of a variety of performance improvement tools to address and improve the outcomes of not only traditional customer-focused and production processes, but your leadership, strategic planning, and workforce-focused processes as well.
So join in the discussion and share your thoughts here around how Lean and Baldrige go together like walnuts and brownies, peas in a pod, or maybe some other metaphor that comes to mind.