After all you should know what you are getting yourself into and if this book doesn't scare you away from your plan to apply for the Baldrige award then you will be well prepared. However, if you are interested in using the criteria as a self assessment tool then just do that. Get a copy of the criteria from NIST or from ASQC and start analyzing if you even understand what the criteria mean. After you review the criteria you will be in a better position to read Part 3 of this book to get some good ideas and to use Appendix B to contact helpful resources. However, to buy this book with the idea that you can use it as a guide to using the Baldrige criteria as a self assessment tool is a misconception.
Quality is a complex subject and needs different treatment for different companies.
Therefore, wherever your company is along the quality continuum, you can use the criteria or the entire application process to involve your people in learning more about their business and in improving quality.