THE Dublin North West Area Partnership was nominated for a prestigious Award for their quality management system at this year’s National Q Mark Awards, which were held recently.
The nomination means the local partnership was in the top 6.75 percent of all audits completed by the Excellence Ireland Quality Association (EIQA) on the island of Ireland.
The coveted Q Mark is awarded only to companies that achieve the highest standards of quality and excellence. And the local award came on what is a very special year for the Q Mark Awards as the EIQA is celebrating 50 years trading.
Dublin North West Area Partnership is a-not-for-profit local development company working to address issues of poverty and social exclusion in the area.
The partnership supports and encourages locals in Dublin North West to create positive change in their communities through the delivery of a range of Community Development, Education, Employment and Enterprise programmes.
“I am immensely privileged to work with our clients and community groups to empower them to realise their potential through personal development, life-long learning and employment opportunities,” said Berni D’Arcy, Education and Employment Programme Manager.
“Management and staff are fully committed to providing the highest levels of service and to keeping our clients front and centre in all we do.
“Transparency and accountability are values that are infused through every system and programme in the organisation.”
CEO of Dublin North west Area Partnership, Michael Bowe, was also delighted for the partnership to be nominated and he extended congratulations to Southside Partnership (winner) and Kildare Local Employment Service who were nominated in the Recognised for Excellence category and to Ballyhoura Development who won the Pursuit for Excellence category.
Known as the Oscars of business excellence, The Q Mark award is the highest accolade an Irish business can achieve, given both the intense competition and the exacting standards required.
Speaking at this year’s awards Irene Collins, Managing Director of EIQA said companies who achieve a National Q Mark Award nomination are “fully immersed in continuous improvement”.
“There’s no end point where they can rest on their laurels, and that includes digging deep into their quality management system and asking themselves and their colleagues if there are ways to improve how they use it,” she said.
“The Q Mark Award nomination clearly tells their customers that the highest standards of Quality and Excellence are at the heart of their business”.
The National Q Mark Awards 2018 were presented by EIQA and officiated by Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys, at the Clayton Burlington Hotel.
Master of Ceremonies on the night was broadcaster Jonathan Healy and almost 600 people representing 140 companies attended the formal black-tie ceremony.
The evening was filled with celebration but also a heady anticipation as many familiar faces waited for the final results to be announced.