CONCORD — On Sunday evening, March 30, Northeast Delta Dental was awarded the esteemed national Baldrige Performance Excellence Award, by Robert Fangmeyer, Director, Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, National Institute of Standards and Technology. The award recognizes the company's unwavering commitment to quality, service, and innovation. One of only five companies in the United States to receive this national award this year, and the first ever in New Hampshire, the organization impressed examiners with its outstanding 99% account retention, Guarantee of Service Excellence program, and exemplary customer service record.

“We are thrilled to be recognized with this prestigious award for our business practices and our commitment to the communities we serve,” said Tom Raffio, president and CEO, Northeast Delta Dental. “We take our success as a result of Baldrige, and give it back to our underserved communities. “

The ceremony took place at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront. More than 500 guests attended the event to witness Fangmeyer bestow the esteemed national award on representatives from the five winning companies. Each awardee received a stunning engraved crystal sculpture.

The ceremony was followed by the Quest for Excellence Conference, where Baldrige Award recipients and other leading organizations shared best practices and innovations that can help any organization improve.

Established by Congress in 1987 to promote improved quality of goods and services and long-term success of U.S. organizations by recognizing role models, the program considers how organizations perform across eight categories. These include: Leadership: Strategy; Customers; Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management; Workforce; Operations and Results.

The rigorous award process involved a detailed application outlining key processes and results, followed by an evaluation by a team of examiners who conducted a site visit to verify information. Finally, a judges' panel review determined the award recipients based on the application and site visit findings. Notably, all applicants receive valuable feedback on their strengths and areas for improvement, regardless of winning the award. Key aspects of the Baldrige Award process include a focus on performance excellence, comprehensive evaluation of practices and performance, strict confidentiality of applicant information, and the opportunity for benchmarking against industry best practices.

Some of the highlights key to its success in the awards program included:

• Guarantee of Service Excellence™ (GOSE™): a money-back guarantee for customer service, quick claims, billing, ID cards and more.
• Veteran’s Dental Health Program for veterans who don’t meet the Veteran Administration's dental care requirements.
• 99% account retention.

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Northeast Delta Dental administers dental benefits in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, offering dental insurance programs for businesses and nonprofits of all sizes, and individuals and families with no access to employer-sponsored dental benefits. The company follows its mission to advance the oral health and overall wellness of its customers and the communities it serves by funding oral health initiatives and numerous community organizations throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Visit www.nedelta.com for more information. 

The Baldrige Performance Excellence Program is a public-private partnership within the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which is dedicated to promoting U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards and technology. The program has fostered the adoption of proven leadership, management and operational best practices, and supported a global community that values people, organizational learning, continuous improvement and striving for sustained excellence.