Possible Ethical Implications in the Deployment of the EFQM Excellence Model

Abstract

It may be quite rightly stated that the EFQM Model of the European Foundation for Quality Management is the basic reference model for those organisations whose aim is to achieve excellence. It offers an integral and integrating approach to the most relevant dimensions of the reality of the organisation and permits the establishment of framework that is both objective and rigorous and based on a structured diagnosis.

The EFQM Excellence Model is based on a humanist approach that situates the client (in all aspects/senses) as the centre and ultimate reason of the activity of the organisation, emphasizing the role of the latter as a responsible member of the community. An ethical approach is therefore adopted as the best way to serve the long-term interest of the organisation and the people that integrate it (as well as their sustainability in time), exceeding expectations and the policy of society in general.

This article analyses in depth, and from the point of view of ethics (one of the key aspects in the search for excellence), the possible ethical implications in the deployment of the nine basic criteria of the EFM Excellence Model which facilitate the understanding of the most relevant dimensions of the reality of an organisation.