In his speech on the honoring ceremony for winning establishments of King Abdulaziz Quality Award- third round,
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques: The country has launched a range of programs to develop government performance and support development process
Secretary-General of the Award: Nine Establishments Won among 5 Categories, the Award was Withheld in Two
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud- may Allah preserve him- said in a speech delivered on his behalf by the Minister of Trade and Investment, Chairman of SASO Board, Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi, on the honoring ceremony of national establishments winning King Abdulaziz Quality Award in its third round yesterday evening "Tuesday", at the Four Seasons Hotel in Riyadh, that the country has launched a range of programs to develop government performance and support the development process in this generous country. One of these initiatives was the approval to establish King Abdul Aziz quality Award as a national motivation for building standards of quality and organizational excellence.
He added, "It's my pleasure to join citizens of this generous country, on this day, in celebrating their success and honor. My pleasure is intensified as the Award holds the name of the founder King Abdul Aziz – may Allah have mercy on his soul - who was keen, along with his sons after him, to build a modern country that recognizes the importance of building human and the need to provide human with science and knowledge to be solid as a rock in building and developing this country. It comes from our awareness of the importance of adopting modern management methodologies to achieve progress and prosperity for the country and citizens."
He clarified that the Kingdom is living a historic transformation through its Vision 2030, in addition to the programs and initiatives for national transformation that it includes, in order to build a strong and solid economy that depends on enhancing competitiveness and diversification of the pillars of national economy. This goal requires sincere efforts and clear visions enabling the Saudi market to attract investments and improve its ability to compete with global economies. "We- thanks to Allah's blessings followed by the efforts of this country's citizens- are able to meet this challenge. We are able to create an economic experience whose basis is quality as well as excellence, if Allah wills". King Abdulaziz Quality Award, in its third round, reflects the diversity of winning establishments' categories and services," he added. Quality is not limited to investment activities, but also to other core activities in the development and prosperity of services such as education, health and technology, which is reflected on the winning establishments in this round. At the end, he extended his congratulations to all winning establishments, in this round, as well as his gratitude to General Secretariat of King Abdulaziz Quality Award on its efforts to improve the Award.
For his part, His Excellency, SASO Secretary-General of King Abdulaziz Quality Award, Dr. Sa'ad bin Othman Al-Kasabi, in his speech at the honoring ceremony, said that the Kingdom, since it was united by the founder, King Abdul-Aziz – May Allah have Mercy on his soul-has ensured to keep pace with global developments and adopt institutional construction methodology of the country depending on the professional practices in different levels. In light of this vision, the importance of the application of quality standards and organizational excellence methodologies were stressed to strengthen the enablers to improve government performance and promote economic growth. Keeping this in mind, the idea of King Abdulaziz Quality Award, which was established in 1420 AH and aimed at establishing competition between production and service sectors in all public and private categories, was developed to join national awards for quality and organizational excellence in different developed countries around the world. He noted that the life journey of the Award, in the third round, began in early 1436 AH when the Award worked on reviewing and updating the adopted excellence model in a way that consolidates the work of the establishment and keep pace with modern developments in methodologies and practices of quality and excellence.
He pointed out that the steps came in succession. The announcement of receiving establishments' applications for the Award was on Dhul Hijja 21st,1436 AH, corresponding to October 5th, 2015, among seven categories targeting the private sector: large and medium services and production establishments, private universities, private educational schools, and private hospitals with a capacity of more than 100 beds. The due date for applications' submission was on Muharram 30th, 1437 AH, corresponding to November 13th, 2015, followed by evaluation and arbitration. Through the Award's website, (50) establishments applied, with an increase of more than 90% compared to the second round where twenty establishments fulfilled qualification requirements. On Sha'aban 11th, 1437 AH, corresponding to May 19th, 2016, it was announced that nine establishments won the Award among 5 categories, whereas the Award was withheld in two categories after results were approved by the Supreme Committee of the Award, according to a thorough evaluation mechanism. The evaluation began with an initial sorting process, followed by a series of biographies' examination, field assessment and discussions to evaluate reports with a judging committee. It ended by sending review reports to all establishments participating in the Award, and approving the results by an independent arbitration commission whose membership includes experts in quality and organizational excellence .
Al-Kasabi pointed out that the General Secretariat of King Abdulaziz City Quality Award is holding, on the sidelines of the ceremony, Quality and Excellence Best Practice Forum. The Forum sheds light on more than (16) international experiences from (9) countries, (4) keynote speeches that review many international and national experiences related to quality and excellence awards, and (3) panel discussions on the impact of national quality awards on national economy, institutional performance, and societies in general.
He concluded that the Secretariat will work, during the fourth round, to open the way for government sectors to compete for services, education and health categories. "We target, during that round, Allah willing, launching a number of self-development programs for establishments and individuals in order to provide them with knowledge and skills necessary to apply the Award's excellence model. The development of a program to honor pioneers of the country citizens, being a male or a female, in scientific and cultural fields is on the process," he said.
Before closing, a film about the journey of the Award and its winners in the third round was presented. After that, winners were announced, which are: Saudi Iron and Steel Company (Hadeed), Advanced Electronics Company, Effat University, Al-Jubail Petrochemical Company (KEMYA), the Saudi Investment Bank, Tarbya Namouthajiyah Schools, Al Hammadi Hospital, Dr.Soliman Fakeeh Hospital, and Specialized Medical Center Hospital.