(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- Recognizing that performance excellence and innovation are the key ingredients in a recipe for success, 26 top-level organizations are vying to be honored as the “top chefs” in the nation by applying for the 2015 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. This year’s applicants include two small businesses, four educational organizations, 16 healthcare organizations, and four nonprofits.

This year’s group of applicants shows that the Baldrige leadership and performance management framework continues to have strong support across different sectors, especially in healthcare. There has been a double-digit number of applicants in the healthcare category and at least one healthcare Baldrige Award winner annually since 2002. Additionally, this marks the 16th consecutive year with at least two or more applicants in both healthcare and education—a streak that started with the introduction of the two categories in 1999.

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