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Governor's Quality Leadership Award The Governor's Quality Leadership Award was created in 1995 to annually recognize the individual who best exemplifies outstanding leadership in the pursuit of performance excellence, and who has done the most to further performance improvement in the State of Missouri. The recipient of this award is dedicated to the principles of total quality and committed to the core values of the Missouri Quality Award program. The 2007 Recipient of the Governor Quality Leadership Award was Dennis DeGroodt of Missouri Corporate Credit Union. Dennis is well-known not only for personal integrity and professionalism, but for kindness. His personal reputation and integrity are beyond repute and are key factors in his ability to increase membership in his organization, despite the highly competitive nature of the business.
Dennis does not keep all of his victories, even within his own organization. He is committed to spreading the “quality bug” to his clients and colleagues. He knows the good it has done for his own organization, and he wants to share that wealth of knowledge with anyone and everyone who will listen. His quest for quality has led him to implement policies and directives to continually upgrade the services and products offered by his organization. As concerned as he is with offering quality services to clients, he is equally focused on ensuring that his client base includes all eligible persons, including low to modest income individuals and families. Dennis has cultivated extraordinary leadership and visionary skills within his field. He has worked alongside others from his sector to create a conference to allow those in his sector to learn about several subjects that affect the growth strategies of credit unions. A goal number of participants was set in the beginning of the planning stage, but the actual number of participants was more than twice the goal number. This group of corporate credit unions have also begun sharing non-financial information with one another; something that was not even on their radar scope prior to his involvement. His call to public service has led him to positions on the boards of several foundations, one of which is the National Credit Union Foundation. The Foundation is the philanthropic and social responsibility arm of the U.S. credit union system and raises funds, makes grants, manages programs, and provides educational and related services that promote and improve consumers’ financial independence through credit unions. This individual was instrumental in the implementation of and the continued growth and success of the Community Investment Fund for the NCUF which is the primary funding mechanism for local, state and national credit union development activities. The Excellence in Missouri Foundation is proud to have Dennis DeGroodt in the prestigious group of GQLA recipients. Congratulations, Dennis! Past Recipients GQLA Process
Nomination forms are due in early August. Click here or contact the Award Office at (573)526-1725 for a nomication form. The nomination requires a two-page description of the individual's achievements relative to the Baldrige/MQA Criteria for Performance Excellence. A panel of judges comprised of the Foundation's Board of Directors and the Missouri Quality Award Board of Overseers will review the nominations and identify the GQLA recipient. The award will be presented to the recipient at the Missouri Quality Awards Presentation Banquet. For more information, please contact the Award office at (573)526-1725. |
Dennis is honest, compassionate and dedicated toward his staff and colleagues. He is deeply committed to his craft and to performance excellence on both a personal and professional level. He shares this passion with others, through his hands-on leadership, which has infused the spirit and performance of his staff. Although he has had many successes in his field, he remains humble, citing that “we are all in this together.” He and members of his staff accept setbacks and victories as a team.