About OCBE

About the Ohio Center for Business Excellence

The Ohio Center for Business Excellence (OCBE) is a collaborative, member-driven network committed to advancing organizational excellence across Ohio. Built on the principles of openness, shared learning, and mutual support, OCBE brings together business leaders, professionals, and change-makers from all industries to grow, learn, and innovate—together.

At OCBE, we believe excellence is not a destination but a continuous journey. Our approach is simple, practical, and powerful: members learn from each other by openly sharing knowledge, insights, and best practices. Through peer-to-peer learning, collaborative training, and benchmarking visits—either in person or virtually—we create opportunities for real-world improvement and measurable results.

Our Philosophy

  • Free Membership: OCBE is open to all organizations and professionals committed to improvement—no membership fees, no barriers to entry.
  • Volunteer-Driven: Our center is run by members, for members. All administration is carried out by dedicated volunteers.
  • Knowledge Through Sharing: Our core belief is that knowledge multiplies when shared. Members exchange practical experiences that lead to real change.
  • Shared Resources: From collaborative training to grant-supported initiatives, we share both the learning and the cost.
  • Benchmarking & Site Visits: We offer regular benchmarking opportunities—both virtual and on-site—giving members a transparent view into how others achieve excellence.
  • Sustainable Support: Any costs associated with administration are transparently shared among members only as needed, ensuring sustainability without profit motives.

Background

In 2006-2007, a group of leaders from different non-competing companies – mostly US and multinational – in Ireland gathered together and brainstormed how they could become more relevant. How can they grow rapidly and sustain the industrial base in their region. They decided to adopt a methodology to implement rapid improvements in their organizations and as a group, they traveled to Kentucky to study the Toyota supply chain vendor training program. Based on their studies, they developed their own model to drive success.

Their efforts have resulted in large number of organizations associated with their cluster – known as the Irish Centre of Business Excellence (ICBE). The participating companies put themselves on the path toward sustained revenue and growth. The industrial base of the region grew in importance and the Irish companies received the most Shingo Prize recipients per capita in the world. Today the initiative is supported by significant grants from local and federal governments.
 
An initiative has been started to bring the ICBE model to Ohio. The initiative was started with the support of the Shingo Institute and key individuals, including the members of the Irish initiative. The NEO Lean forum with about 50 members serves as a starting point. The Ohio initiative is called “Ohio Center for Business Excellence”. Currently a team of seasoned improvement experts from Cleveland Clinic, Lincoln Electric, Akron Children’s Hospital, Williams Electric, Rockwell International, Goodyear retirees volunteer their time to help grow this initiative.

Our Proposal

This is a brief outline of how the initiative could be implemented:

  • Secure grants from the State of Ohio to support site visits, coaching, and training.
  • Expand the membership of the NEO Lean Forum to all interested, non-competing companies.
  • Let the members define the vision and goals for the initiative, inspired by the successful model from Ireland.
  • Organize the education defined by the consortium members.
  • Facilitate benchmarking visits and interchanges among member and non-member companies and organizations.
  • Participate in global study tours to learn from the world’s leading companies.
  • Identify capability gaps and educational needs and use grant funding to jointly close gaps and improve support.
  • Foster a culture of continuous improvement through shared learning and growth.
  • Organize formal assessments and provide actionable feedback.
  • Drive expansion and new initiatives – including conferences to share knowledge, experience, and generate funds. Partnerships with colleges to connect top talent with member companies. And other member-led programs.

Potential Benefits to Participants

  • Access to grants for training and joint improvement initiatives.
  • Opportunities for significant continuous improvement in operational and business excellence through sharing, learning and coaching.
  • Access to results from “joint learning/studies” done with grant money.
  • Wide spectrum of benchmarking and assessment opportunities to stay ahead of the curve.
  • Easy access to the largest operational excellence organizations in the United States.
  • Opportunities for self direction and targeting OCBE initiatives to meet the real needs of members.
  • Member colleges can engage students early in industry life and obtain valuable feedback on how to better prepare students.
  • Companies can get hiring opportunities for students they helped educate to access as much talent as possible.

Want to get involved?

Want to join OCBE or contribute to the initiative? Or have unanswered questions?

Contact Us