Phoenix, AZ — The Tennessee Center for Performance Excellence (TNCPE) and South Carolina Quality Foundation (SCQF) today announce a merger to bring both programs into a new Baldrige-based nonprofit under the TNCPE brand. Combining existing partnerships with the Kentucky Center for Performance Excellence and the North Carolina Awards for Excellence, TNCPE becomes a powerful regional program serving the Southeast United States.
Heather Schoch, President and CEO of TNCPE, comments: “We are eager to serve leaders, organizations, and communities throughout South Carolina. This gives us an opportunity to leverage our resources in serving a new market, while acknowledging the long history of the SCQF program and preserving their relationships and impact.”
With this arrangement, organizations, leaders, and individual Baldrige enthusiasts throughout South Carolina invited to participate in all TNCPE programs and services, including becoming a TNCPE member to take advantage of substantial discount benefits. TNCPE provides organizational assessments, training and workshops, an annual conference, and other programs and services to organizations and leaders interested in improving themselves, their teams, and their organizations.
“SCQF has a long history of serving South Carolina businesses and organizations,” says Bridget Dewes, Chair of the Steering Committee. “We are grateful to find a partner in TNCPE to sustain our mission and carry our legacy forward.”
“On behalf of the Alliance for Excellence, the network of all Baldrige-based programs in the United States, we are thrilled that the Tennessee and South Carolina programs have agreed to join forces,” says Brian Lassiter, President and CEO of the Alliance. “This merger aligns with the Alliance’s strategy to ensure we have strong state or regional coverage across the country. These two individual programs become stronger together, for the benefit of businesses, organizations, and communities in the region.”
The merger was approved by the TNCPE board in August and accepted by the Alliance’s board last week.
About the Tennessee Center for Performance Excellence (TNCPE)
Since its inception in 1993, TNCPE has provided assessments & feedback to over 1,000 organizations from myriad sectors – health care, service, education, manufacturing, government and non-profit. Using the Baldrige Framework, TNCPE fulfills its mission by providing in-depth, low-cost assessments of regional organizations using the Baldrige Excellence Framework. TNCPE also trains regional professionals to provide these assessments as Examiners. Click here for more information.
About the South Carolina Quality Foundation (SCQF)
SCQF promotes organizational excellence, productivity, and continuous improvement across the state using the Baldrige Performance Excellence Framework. Operating since 1991, SCQF administers the Governor’s Award.
About The Alliance for Performance Excellence
The Alliance for Performance Excellence is the umbrella organization for regional Baldrige-based programs across the United States. It promotes the Baldrige Excellence Framework and fosters a culture of excellence by providing resources, training, and recognition to organizations and communities seeking to enhance their performance. Beginning in 2026, the Alliance also administers the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award on behalf of NIST. For more information on the Alliance, visit here.
