The GPEA (introduced in 2000 as IAPQA) is the only formal international recognition of performance or business excellence. The program is administered by the APQO which is non-stock, non-profit organization that serves as an umbrella group that brings together all of the leading quality professional societies in Asia Pacific Region. In 2010, the name of this prestigious award was changed from IAPQA to GPEA to reflect the evolution in the field of quality from a focus on product and service quality to a strategic focus encompassing overall organizational performance termed performance/organizational/business excellence. The GPEA endeavors to bridge the cultural geographic and economic system gap of National Quality Awards (NQA).
GPEA is today a strategic enabling tool for global performance excellence. It helps to strengthen the strategies and performance of organizations both public, private and NGOs to succeed in the fast-evolving global market place and be future ready in this digital era. The GPEA process promotes and strengthen awareness in performance excellence as an increasingly important tool in competitiveness towards global business success and sustainability. Adopting best practices within a country or region are extremely important for raising organizational performance levels, the customer experience, and the standard of living. This results in improving each country's or regions economic and business activity and driving GDP performance.
APQO has continually recognized National Quality / Performance Excellence Awards as a significant component of enhancing productivity, innovation and strengthening business performance improvement strategy of many countries. The Baldrige and EFQM Criteria and its variaions customized to meet the needs of various economies is widely used criteria for National Quality Awards. The GPEA process, which includes an assessment by an international panel of experienced assessors, provides an excellent opportunity for winners of National Quality Awards to benchmark and better understand their opportunities for improvement and performance based on the Business Excellence Model.
The GPEA Secretariat is a key function in the success of the GPEA process. The Secretariat should be supported by the APQO Award Governing Council and managed by a APQO Core Council Member who has demonstrated experience in a business excellence award programme and is an experienced business excellence assessor and a representative of an APQO Core Council Member.
The GPEA Secretariat should also serve as Secretariat to the APQO Award Governing Council. To ensure neutrality and independence in the governance of the GPEA, members of the APQO Award Governing Council should not be involved in assessing or providing consultancy directly to the GPEA applicants being considered. In an event of conflict of interest, the APQO Award Governing Council member is expected to declare a conflict of interest so that it is transparent and the affected member will be exempted from the decision making process.
APQO Registered Office:
Postal Address:
PO Box 622
Palmerston North 4440
New Zealand
Physical Address:
Floor 1
ETC Building
140 The Square
Palmerston North 4440
New Zealand
Phone : +64 6 351 4407
Fax : +64 6 351 4408