Business and operational excellence at organisational levels: an integrated methodology for self-assessment

Purpose Business and operational excellence models are frequently employed by organisations as self-assessment tools for ensuring continued performance improvement. This paper presents an integrated methodology for excellence self-assessment that is applicable at organisational and functional levels. Design/methodology/approach The self-assessment methodology was sequentially developed, based on a theoretical and practical perspective, and a case study was presented. Findings This study develops: (1) a framework of excellence enablers and results criteria for each of the organisational, functional (core and supportive processes) and operational levels; (2) a framework of the characteristics of maturity levels of excellence according to enablers, results, organisational context, in addition to other assessment components; (3) a framework of the assessment and improvement steps for achieving excellence. Originality/value Although several proposed methodologies are available for the self-assessment of business and operational excellence, these only partially focus on various organisational aspects (such as the organisational and functional level, and organisational context) and are primarily used as business excellence models by non-large organisations. This study aims to fill the research gap in this regard.