Overview and Benefits
Canada Awards for Excellence (CAE) Overview
Awarding companies for their commitment to sustained excellence is a job that Excellence Canada takes very seriously. We know that the companies that win year after year are the ones that are leading us into the future. And of course, your award is not simply something that hangs on the wall, but corresponds directly to reduced costs, improved efficiencies and greater profitability for companies that earn these coveted awards.
Since 1984, the Canada Awards for Excellence (CAE) have been presented annually to private, public, and not-for-profit organizations that have demonstrated excellence in the areas of Quality and a Healthy Workplace®. Through their achievement and results, these organizations have made a significant contribution to the quality of life of Canadians. The Governor General of Canada is the Patron of the Canada Awards for Excellence, making this the most prestigious awards program in Canada. The Canada Awards for Excellence applicants are evaluated through an independent adjudication process, and each evaluation is judged against the Excellence Canada Canada Awards for Excellence Criteria.
Canada Awards for Excellence Mission Statement
To inspire organizations by promoting excellence and showcasing their success as role models in an interdependent global economy that benefits all Canadians.
You’ll be Part of a Very Progressive Group
What do 3M Canada, TELUS, Delta Hotels, Homewood Health Centre, and R.H. King Academy have in common?
They are all past recipients of the Canada Awards for Excellence, one of Canada’s highest levels of recognition. Each year, many Canadian organizations like these are making exceptional progress in meeting or exceeding the standards required to help establish Canada as a world leader. When your organization dedicates the effort required to achieve this award, you will be joining some of the most progressive organizations in the nation.
Feedback from past recipients indicates that in addition to receiving national recognition, the impact of this award is clearly reflected in the organization’s performance. Specific areas of improvement typically include customer satisfaction, employee productivity and loyalty, profitability, waste reduction, and in the private sector, shareholder value.
A sample of specific results of effective practices of some pass CAE recipients:
| Trillium Health Care | NCR |
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• 10% higher in Work satisfaction than benchmark • 19% higher in Quality Improvement Scores than benchmark • 20.5% higher for “satisfaction with Trillium” than benchmark • 21% higher for “Trillium is a healthy workplace” than benchmark • 11% improvement in sick time • 16% decrease in employee turnover
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• Attrition rate at 50% of industry rate • Absenteeism rate of 2.4 days per employee (industry average 9.1) – annual savings of $3.4 million |
| Dofasco | Toronto East General Hospital |
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• Attrition rate at 50% of industry rate • Absenteeism rate of 2.4 days per employee (industry average 9.1) – annual savings of $3.4 million |
• Wait times 31% better than benchmark • 10% reduction in administrative overhead • 12% higher physician satisfaction than industry • 3.4% higher staff satisfaction than benchmark |
What Sets the Canada Awards for Excellence Apart From Other National “Awards”?
There are many “awards” or ranking programs in Canada such as the 50 Best-Managed Companies, Top 100, etc. So what sets the Excellence Canada Award apart from others in Canada?
1. The Governor General of Canada is the Patron of the Canada Awards for Excellence. Like the “Order of Canada” for individuals, the CAE is the “Order of Excellence” in Canada for organizations.
2. The Canada Awards for Excellence Criteria are very comprehensive and cover all aspects of an organization (leadership, planning, governance, ethics, people and health practices, processes, suppliers, partners, and organizational results). Many other “ranking” or awards programs focus on simply a survey.
3. In order to help organizations to aspire to the Canada Awards for Excellence, Excellence Canada has developed a progressive implementation roadmap in the form of the Progressive Excellence Program® (PEP). This is unique in Canada.
