Iran National Excellence Award

INEA Introduction

The Iranian National [Organizational] Excellence Award (INEA) has been awarded based on the assessments of the managerial approaches and systems in organizations and their successful outcomes. The assessment is conducted by an elite group of assessors according to the ‘Organizational Excellence Model’ – which determines any organization’s status in terms of meeting the expectations of the model.
Since the introduction of the Organizational Excellence Model and the INEA to the Iranian economy, many managers of the Iranian organizations have established the model and, as a result, were enabled to achieve a proper framework for implementing the latest management methods within their organizations, identify their own strengths and weaknesses, and take steps to plan and execute improvement programs. .
All Iranian organizations and companies from various sectors (i.e., manufacturing, services, health, education, and the public sector) are eligible to apply for the INEA, provided that they have: .

  • a. Conducted a self-assessment according to the Organizational Excellence Model principles;
  • b. Implemented the improvement programs;
  • c. Provided other preliminary arrangements.

INEA Objectives

The INEA objectives include:

  • • Creating a competitive environment in order for the enterprises/organizations to achieve excellence;
  • • Encouraging enterprises to self-assess, and to identify their strengths/weaknesses;
  • • Creating an atmosphere where enterprises can share their successful experiences.

The INEA assessors are generally selected from among managers and experts of different organizations – Including the award applicants – that have opted for the Organizational Excellence Model as a framework for managing their organization. This approach has proven to be a superb platform for the organizations/enterprises to share their success stories.
The active presence of the organizations and enterprises in the INEA process indicates that they intend to compare themselves with others in order to take further steps towards organizational excellence, increase their competitive power, raise sustainability, and achieve more organizational goals.
Relying on sixteen years of the INEA experience, IMI has provided an opportunity for Iranian organizations from all economic sectors and different areas of activity to participate in the INEA winner selection process, compare with others their achievements in establishing the latest management systems within the Organizational Excellence Model, and also share their experiences, findings, and knowledge.
This environment promotes the active presence of the Iranian top organizations, expands the organizational learning, spreads the culture of organizational excellence in all Iranian economic sectors and organizations, and leads them towards glory.

Applicants Assessment Process

All the applicant organizations are assessed by a team of assessors. To ensure the homogeneity of the points given by these assessors, they all receive collective training.
The reports submitted by the organizations (the Excellence Declarations) is evaluated based on the strengths and areas for improvement. After that, the assessment team visit the premises and remove any ambiguities in the declarations and receive answers to their questions from the organizations.
Subsequently, the assessor team will convene a consensus meeting and reach a unanimous decision, of which the IMI Secretariat will be notified. The Arbitration Committee will then make the final decision on the of the applicant organization in terms of level of excellence.
After the due process, the applicant organization will be notified of the assessment result and the final score by the Secretariat.
Finally, the official feedback report will be sent to the applicants by the Secretariat. At the request of the applicant, the INEA Secretariat may also arrange a meeting for discussion between the applicant and the assessors, solely for the purpose of clarifying the report; this is to ensure that the applicants receive a valid, useful report, and not for the applicants to pose their objections to their excellence score.
The award-winners are recognized at national level as model organizations/enterprises, and will continue their cooperation with IMI in presenting their successful methods to future applicants. This cooperation takes the form of scheduled group visits, as well as related seminars and workshops.

The Organizational Excellence Model (OEM)

The Iranian organizations and enterprises first came to know of the Organizational Excellence Model two decades ago. During these years, the Iranian management community has become acquainted with different dimensions and applications of this model, and made constant efforts towards its establishment. For its part, the INEA has created an environment of encouragement and efficacy where enterprises and organizations can speed up their progress towards excellence in order to participate in the award process, while they share their successful approaches for other organizations to benefit from.
In line with the current developments in the business environment and aiming to promote of the maturity level of Iranian organizations and enterprises, IMI’s Center for Organizational Excellence has compiled and published several editions of its journal throughout the years, using the latest findings in management science. Meanwhile, the 2021 edition has distinctive features compared to previous editions. This new edition greatly emphasizes on the implementation of the invaluable knowledge and experience gained over the past two decades, and also endeavors to learn from the developments and reforms in the latest editions of the valid models from around the world.
Among other topics that formed the compilation basis for the 2021 edition are: close attention to the organizational excellence culture, developing within the Iranian organizations throughout the years; relying on the challenges and capabilities of the Iranian organizations; and taking into account the macro approaches and policies affecting the nation-wide development of management.
This edition’s compilation process began in the late 2019 and was followed up persistently into 2020. The members of the Scientific Committee of the INEA made great efforts, in forming specialized task forces for formulating the new edition of the OEM. After going through various stages of compilation, the latest edition was unveiled in February 23rd, 2021, at the 18th Organizational Excellence Conference.
In appreciation to all the members of the Scientific Committee of the INEA, we feel obligated to extend our utmost gratitude to our diligent members with the most active participation in compiling the 2021 edition (in alphabetical order):
Azadi, Ali Asghar
Akhavan Kharrazi, Morteza
Esmaeilpour, Abedin
Homayounfar, Seyed Masoud
Janaami Nia, Jafar
Najmi, Manouchehr
Taghavi, Allahvierdi
Taghizadeh Harat, Ali
Roghani, Morteza
Rostamian, Houshang
Rouhani Malek, Saeid
Zahedi, Nima
These valued members of the IMI family endeavored to meet the needs and expectations of the Iranian enterprises and organizations in achieving organizational excellence. Sparing no effort, they drew on the views and suggestions of a large number of the main beneficiaries of the award – i.e., assessors, organizational excellence managers, senior managers of top organizations, and the INEA board members.
We hope that the introduction of the Organizational Excellence Model, 2021 Edition will further promote and establish the organizational excellence culture in Iran in order to pave the way for our nation to achieve all-round development and, in turn, prosperity, pride and joy.
The Center for Organizational Excellence
Spring 2021
* In line with our social responsibility, and for the benefit of organizations, assessors and the interested individuals, the complete Organizational Excellence Model, 2021 Edition, is now available for free download.

EXCELLENCE TIERS & POINTS

Excellence Tiers in INEA

Excellence Tiers distinguish organizations in achieving excellence and show how successful they are in achieving excellence. The Iranian National [Organizational] Excellence Award (INEA) is awarded in the following tiers:

  • - Golden, Crystal, and Silver Trophies
  • - Plaque of Commendation
  • - Committed to Excellence Validation

The winner selection process is carried out separately for each tier, before the winners are announced. Reaching each of the above tires is determined by the amount of points earned in the assessment process.
The award-winning organizations/enterprises of all tiers can use the Excellence Badge from their own Excellence Tier in their advertisings.
The ‘Outstanding Organization of the Year’, which is selected and announced annually, is the one organization/enterprise that has reached the ‘50+ Point Tier’ annual list and the sole winner of the ‘Golden Trophy’ of the year; in case there are more than one 50+ Point Golden Tier contenders, the Outstanding Organization will be selected by the announced by the Arbitration Committee.

Points System & Conditions for Reaching Excellence Levels

The minimum required points and conditions in order to qualify for the excellence levels are listed in the table below:

Specifications & Other Requirements Points Excellence Level
Receiving the ‘Trophy’ requires the following:
  • 1. The Excellence Declaration is submitted to the award committee in due time. :
  • 2. One of the senior managers of the enterprise is appointed as the : ‘Organizational Excellence Manager’. :
  • 3. The self-assessment process is systematically institutionalized in the enterprise, and at the time of submitting the declaration, not more than one year has passed since the last self-assessment. :
  • 4. Improvement Programs are designed, developed, prioritized, and executed based on the self-assessment results. :
  • 5. There is a balance between the enablers’ points and the results; the difference between the enablers’ points and the points from the results should not include more than 10% of the points of the whole enterprise. :
  • 6. The points for process criteria, customer results, and key performance results for achieving the Crystal and Silver Trophies must be in the 41-50+% range, or in the 51-60+% range for achieving the Golden Trophy. :
  • 7. All the fundamental concepts of Organizational Excellence must have clear, tangible examples, and there should be no clear evidence of resentment or negative mindset in the beneficiaries towards those fundamental concepts or performance of the organization. :
  • 8. The enterprise shows a documented significant improvement trend or sustained good performance for at least the last three years. :
  • 9. The organization has reached a certain level of maturity and seeks to improve through external optimizations, including performance indicators and processes. :
  • 10. In order to win a Crystal Trophy, the applicant must be comparable to the best Iranian organizations within the same class in most of the key parameters. :
  • 11. In order to win a Silver Trophy, the applicant must be comparable to the global-class organizations in most of the key parameters. :
  • 12. In order to win the Golden Trophy, the applicant must be comparable to the global-class organizations in most of the key parameters, be considered a national-level role model; it also must has been modeled by other Iranian organizations. :
650+ Golden Trophy
550+ Silver
450+ Crystal
Receiving the ‘Trophy’ requires the following:
  • 1. One of the senior managers of the enterprise is appointed as the ‘Organizational Excellence Manager’.
  • 2. The self-assessment process conducted by the enterprise based on any of the Organizational Excellence Model approaches, in a manner that the strengths and areas for improvement can be determined. Also at the time of submitting the declaration, not more than one year has passed since the last self-assessment.
  • 3. Improvement Programs are designed, developed, prioritized, and executed based on the self-assessment results.
  • 4. The applicant must submit the documented results from the implementation of at least one of the Improvement Programs based on the self-assessment process, indicating the effective establishment of the Organizational Excellence Model.
  • 5. The applicant must be comparable to the average stats of Iranian organizations within the same industry in most of the key parameters.
400+ 4 Star Plaque
350+ 3 Star
300+ 2 Star
250+ 1 Star
Receiving the ‘Committed to Excellence Validation’ requires the following:
  • 1. Senior-level and mid-level managers of the enterprise must have a decent knowledge of the concepts and criteria pf the Organizational Excellence Model. For this purpose, one of the senior managers of the enterprise is appointed as the ‘Organizational Excellence Manager’, and Excellence-related training courses are held.
  • 2. The self-assessment process conducted by the enterprise based on any of the Organizational Excellence Model approaches, in a manner that the strengths and areas for improvement can be determined. Also at the time of submitting the declaration, not more than one year has passed since the last self-assessment.
  • 3. The commitment of company leaders to implement Improvement Programs, as well as to conduct periodic self-assessments within the Organizational Excellence Model framework, is evident.
  • 4. Self-assessment-based Improvement Programs are designed and their priorities are determined.
  • 5. Self-assessment-based Improvement Programs are executed. No points calculated Validation
No points calculated Validation

Scope of Inclusion & Categories of INEA

All Iranian organizations and enterprises from various fields can apply for the Iranian National Excellence Award. The INEA is awarded in five different categories:

  • 1. The Manufacturing/Production Sector
  • 2. The Services Sector
  • 3. The Health Sector
  • 4. The Education Sector
  • 5. The Public (Non-profit) Sector

Each of these five categories are divided, depending on the number of their employees, into two groups: ‘small to medium-sized’ and ‘large’ enterprises; those with 150 or more employees are in categorized as ‘large’, and the ones with less than 150 employees are in the ‘small to medium-sized’ category. The first three months of each annual award period is the criterion for calculating the average number of employees.

The above categories are briefly explained here:

  • 1. The Manufacturing/Production Sector
    All enterprises along with their branches and sales representatives that are involved in either manufacturing, distribution, or sales processes of physical products, as well as agricultural, mining, and construction enterprises can register and compete in this category.
    Note that the enterprises in the Manufacturing/Production category are for-profit. To date, enterprises/organizations from various industries have participated in this category, e.g. steel, automotive, parts, power plants, cement, petrochemicals, oil and gas refinery, pharmacy, housing, ceramic tiles, home appliances, etc.
  • 2. The Services Sector
    All enterprises along with their branches and sales representatives that are involved in services sales can register and compete in this category.
    Note that the enterprises in the Services category are for-profit. To date, enterprises/organizations from various industries have participated in this category, e.g. banking, insurance, engineering, contracting, auditing, ICT, gas distribution, chain stores, water/wastewater, etc.
  • 3. The Health Sector
    The enterprises, along with some of their branches and representatives, that can register and compete in this category, include services that deal directly with individuals such as medical, surgical, and general health services. They can be for-profit, non-profit, private, or public/governmental.
    To date, a significant number of hospitals, clinics, and other medical centers have participated in this category.
  • 4. The Education Sector
    The participants in this category are enterprises that provide educational services throughout the country, including for-profit, non-profit, private, and public/governmental bodies.
  • 5. The Public Sector
    All public bodies (both governmental and non-governmental), along with their branches and representatives, can register and compete in this category.
    Note that all the bodies categorized in the Public Sector are non-profit. To date, representatives from law enforcement, governorates, and the Ministry of Agriculture have participated.