This book helps performance excellence examiners and organization-improvement practitioners to understand the 2011 2012 Baldrige Criteria and the linkages and relationships among the Items. Six types of information are provided in this book for each of the Items in Categories 1 through 6: The actual language of each Item, including Notes. A plain-English explanation of the requirements of each Item with some suggestions about the rationale for the Item and ways to meet key requirements. A summary of the requirements of each Item in flowchart form. The key linkages between each Item and the other Items. An explanation of some potential adverse consequences that an organization might face if it fails to implement processes required by each Item. Examples of effective and ineffective practices that some organizations have developed and followed consistent with the requirements of the Item. Changes to this 2011 2012 edition include: New information from the Baldrige 2011 2012 Criteria for Performance Excellence to help leaders focus on priority opportunities for improvement and better understand the role they must play in refining their management systems and processes. A brief explanation of the main differences for each Item among Business, Education, and Health Care Criteria requirements. A section has been added to describe common but ineffective management practices. Any of these would be humorous if the practice wasn t so foolish. The CD-ROM included with this book has been modified to bring templates and related analyses up to date with the changes in the Criteria. This CD-ROM contains a new feature, a summary of changes between the 2009 2010 and 2011-2012 Criteria, annotated with the differences between the Business/Nonprofit, Education, and Health Care Criteria. A section on the CD-ROM to provide a comprehensive Application Development Template for Education and Health Care organizations, as well as for Business and Non-Profit organizations. Scoring guidelines are also provided on the CDROM for Education, Health Care, and Business/Non-Profit organizations. Reading Insights to Performance Excellence 2011 2012: Understanding the Integrated Management System and Baldrige will strengthen your understanding of the Criteria and provide insight on analyzing your organization, improving performance, and applying for the award