What is the ABEF?
The Australian Business Excellence Framework (ABEF) is a comprehensive management system designed to assess and improve all aspects of a business. Its integrated approach covers leadership and management systems, strategy and planning, people, information and knowledge, safety, service delivery, product quality and performance. By addressing these key elements, the ABEF provides organisations with a methodology to achieve and sustain high performance levels.
The 9 Principles of Business Excellence:
- Clear direction and mutually agreed plans enable organisational alignment and a focus on the achievement of goals
- Ethical governance fosters organisation growth and prosperity
- Understanding what customers and stakeholders value, now and in the future, influences organisational direction, strategy and action
- All people work in a system, outcomes are enabled and improved when people work on the system and its associated processes
- Organisational performance is realised through its people's enthusiasm, resourcefulness and empowerment
- Innovation, learning and continuous improvement enable the responsiveness of the organisation
- Effective use of facts, data and knowledge enables and leads to improved decisions
- Sustainable performance is determined by an organisation’s ability to deliver value for all stakeholders in an ethically, socially and environmentally responsible manner
- Senior leadership’s constant role-modelling of these principles and creation of a supportive environment to live these principles are necessary for the organisation to reach its true potential.