Join leaders and professionals from across the country for the 2026 Baldrige Conference: The Rhythm of Excellence, hosted by The Alliance for Performance Excellence and Communities of Resilience & Excellence (C.O.R.E.).
Scheduled for October 12-13, 2026, and set in the heart of New Orleans at the Sheraton New Orleans, this year’s conference will bring together organizational and community leaders from healthcare, education, manufacturing, nonprofit, government, and service sectors to explore innovation, leadership, resilience, and performance excellence at both the organizational and community levels.
Featured C.O.R.E. Topics Include:
- The Connection Deficit: Loneliness, Belonging, and Why It Matters Everywhere
- Community Wins: Promising Practice Lightning Rounds – 2 sets
- Built to Belong: What the Next Generation Wants from Where They Work and Live
- The Infrastructure of Trust: Leading Organizations and Communities in an Era of Skepticism (panel)
- C.O.R.E. Data Workshop
- Rural by Choice: Building Vitality in the Communities and Organizations That Anchor Them
- What's Working: Community Approaches to Mental Health
- MHM Featured Presentation: Courtyard Conversation with Methodist Healthcare Ministries CEO Jaime Wesolowski
FEATURED SESSION - Inside Philanthropy: A Courtyard Conversation with Jaime Wesolowski, CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas
What are grantmakers really looking for when they choose who to fund? This C.O.R.E. featured session brings community leaders into conversation with Jaime Wesolowski, President and CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries, a private, faith-based organization that is advancing health equity across South and Central Texas through community health, wellness, and investments. In this courtyard conversation, Wesolowski shares an inside look at how funders set priorities, what they look for in partners, and what keeps leaders in philanthropy up at night. Attendees will leave with a rare, candid perspective from the top of the philanthropic world, insight that can sharpen how they build relationships with funders and position their own organizations for support.
Agenda - View the full agenda here.
Conference Hotel - New Orleans - Reserve your room at the official conference rate before it sells out.
