The National Quality Institute (NQI) has signed an agreement with the American Society for Quality (ASQ) that will provide an interchange of knowledge and complementary products and services from these two authorities on quality management.

“Through this agreement, we can be more effective in helping organizations apply best practices in quality management and customer satisfaction,” said Dan Corbett, President and CEO, NQI. “By leveraging our alliance with an established body such as ASQ and its global network, we can build on scientific and technological progress in quality and performance improvement, and serve local interests through coordinated efforts.”

Under the terms of the agreement, NQI, ASQ and ASQ's global network of partners will offer their members and customers self-assessment criteria based on the Excellence Criteria of the Canada Awards for Excellence; Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award; and the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Excellence Model.

Other complementary products and services will be offered to the members and customers of the organizations, including the opportunity to cross-pollinate ideas at annual conferences and other events. NQI and ASQ have also agreed to maintain a "world watch" capability to monitor and report important international quality developments to each other and their respective members.

“We are very pleased to enter this agreement with NQI as a leading Canadian authority on applying principles of excellence in the workplace,” said Elizabeth Keim, President, ASQ. “We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship that will benefit our members, particularly in Canada, through wider access to international experience and services.”

About ASQ

The American Society for Quality (ASQ), a professional association headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, creates better workplaces and communities worldwide by advancing learning, quality improvement, and knowledge exchange. More than 103,000 individual members and 800 organizational members worldwide are organized in approximately 250 local sections throughout North America and an international chapter for members, representing more than 100 countries outside North America. ASQ has participated in the administration of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, under contract to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, since the award's inception in 1987.

About NQI

The National Quality Institute (NQI) is a not-for-profit organization with a single-minded purpose: to help Canadian organizations build long-term growth through innovation and excellence. NQI offers a range of practical benefits for its members and customers including independent organizational assessments, management tools, training, networking, recognition, peer assessments and personnel certification programs. NQI provides strategic frameworks for excellence based on recognized criteria and best practices for quality and a healthy workplace, and adjudicates, on behalf of Canada, the Canada Awards for Excellence (CAE). Its Progressive Excellence Program (NQI-PEP©) is an easy-to-use, outcome-driven program for implementing the CAE criteria in sequential steps to develop and sustain organizational excellence.


For more information, please contact:

NQI: Mrs. Catherine Neville at [email protected]
ASQ: Mr. Michael O'Donoghue at [email protected]