Special Recognition Awards
Inspiring Business of the Year
Please note, this award is not available for entry, the winner of this award is selected from all of our winners and presented on the awards night.
Outstanding Contribution to Business
Please note, this award is not available for entry, this very special accolade will be presented to someone on the Awards Evening chosen by Hertfordshire Chamber of Commerce.
Sponsored by:
Sponsored by:
Apprentice of the Year
This award is open to companies that offer one or more apprenticeship opportunities to students.
Employers can nominate an apprentice who deserves to be recognised for their outstanding contribution to the company and who has demonstrated dedication to their apprenticeship.
The judges will be looking for:
Evidence that the apprentice is enrolled on a recognised apprenticeship course
Sustained and comprehensive contact with training providers
Initiative towards personal development and career progression
Enthusiasm, passion and drive
Active engagement with management, team members and customers
This award is sponsored by:
Best use of Technology
This award recognises businesses that have fully exploited the range of technology available to businesses in the 21st century to improve their overall business performance. Entrants for this award must demonstrate how they have used the power of technology, this could include mobile, social, cloud and others, to transform their business.
The judges will be looking for:
The range of technology used in the business's day to day life
How innovative technology has improved the businesses processes and increased efficiency
The use of technology to improve customer service and engagement
How the above practices reach to the businesses supply chain
Sponsored by:
Business of the Year Small to Medium
This category will be awarded to the Hertfordshire based company (with a staff count of 50 or less) that can demonstrate high levels of growth and a robust plan for sustainable financial performance.
The judges will be looking for:
What differentiates the company’s products/services from their competitors
Managerial and financial performance
Potential for growth
Evidence of the businesses commitment to staff
This award is sponsored by:
Business of the Year Medium to Large
This category will be awarded to the Hertfordshire based company (with a staff count of 50 or more) that can demonstrate high levels of growth and a robust plan for sustainable financial performance.
The judges will be looking for:
A clear strategy for product and market differentiation
Managerial and financial performance
Potential for growth
Evidence of commitment to staff
This award is sponsored by:
Community Champion
This award will recognise the achievements of an individual or organisation that has made a significant impact in their local community defining the values through Volunteering.
The judges will be looking for:
Exceptional commitment to an unpaid activity
Contribution to other people’s lives or to a community
Going above and beyond the call of duty
This award is sponsored by:
Diversity and Inclusion Award
This new award category will recognise the achievements of an individual or organisation that champions diversity and promotes inclusion - in their workforce, their customers and any community outreach work.
The judges will be looking for:
Evidence of diversity and inclusion being at the heart of the business
Details of how they are championing diversity
How they promote inclusion within the workplace, customer base, and local community
What makes this business a trailblazer for diversity and inclusion?
This award is sponsored by:
Entrepreneur of the Year
This award recognises the achievement of an individual who has been instrumental to the success of a business. Entrants for this award may have exploited an opportunity to develop a successful business from scratch or radically improved the performance of an existing business.
The judges will be looking for:
The unique skills or methods that the entrant has brought to the business
How the entrant’s vision has driven business growth
Business performance over the past three years
How the above practices reach to the business's supply chain and local community.
This award is sponsored by:
Excellence in People Development
This award recognises organisations that demonstrate excellence in the promotion and implementation of a learning and development culture. Entrants for this award must communicate how this culture has contributed to the business, achieving outstanding success.
The judges will be looking for:
Why learning and development is important to the organisation
How training needs and skills requirements are indentified, assessed and supported from apprenticeships to all areas of the workforce.
How a learning orientation has impact on business performance.
Investment, commitment and support given to staff
Evidence of people strategy integrated with the overall organisation strategy.
This award is sponsored by:
Excellence in International Trade
This award recognises the strength of Britain’s exporters. Entrants for this award must stand out from the crowd on the International stage and demonstrate that they have generated significant and/or sustained increases in their export activity.
The judges will be looking for:
How an organisation has developed a proactive strategy to drive organised growth through international trade.
The level of exports when compared to the size and sector of the organisation
The barriers that have been overcome e.g. languages, logistics, access to finance.
Innovative approaches in product and market development.
This award is sponsored by:
Family Business of the Year
This award recognises a Family Business who uses its unique core values to aid growth, demonstrate best practice, overcome challenges and provide business excellence. This Category is open to an independent family owned business (A family member must own a majority share of the business) which has two or more employees from the same family working within it (in any position). To enter this award the Family business must have been trading for 18 months irrespective of size or sector.
The judges will be looking for:
How the Family Business encompasses its core family values
The challenges the business has faced and overcome
The Family business’s greatest achievements over the last 12 months
The businesses plan and objectives over the next three years
How the Family business makes itself stand out from the crowd
This award is sponsored by:
Green Award
This award recognises organisations that employ responsible business practices in relation to the environment, community and people. Entrants for this award must show how they contribute to the well-being of their community and the environment.
The judges will be looking for:
A business with a clear mission and policies relating to the environment, the community and people
Evidence of a contribution to the overall well-being of the community and the environment
How the business practices sustainable development
How the above practices reach to the businesses supply chain
This award is sponsored by:
Most Promising New Business
This category will be awarded to a business that has been trading for less than three years and can demonstrate outstanding performance and future projections
The judges will be looking for:
Performance and future projections
Explanation of the background to the business
The markets it operates in
The business vision and the research that was undertaken when the business was in development
Sponsored by:
Property and Construction Project of the Year
This category will be awarded to a business that has or is in the process of completing an outstanding property/construction project within Hertfordshire.
The judges will be looking for:
A project within the last 12 months; this project can still be ongoing
The initial brief stating a clear strategic plan
How you have overcome obstacles along the way
Evidence of your project including before and after examples and how you achieved this
The overall outcome of the project .
This award is sponsored by:
Workplace Wellbeing Award
This award recognises businesses that are creating an environment for their employees to succeed by demonstrating their commitment to the health and wellbeing of their workforce.
The judges will be looking for:
Evidence that the health and wellbeing of your employees is embedded in your businesses culture
The activities that your organisation undertakes to promote and encourage the positive health and wellbeing of your staff
How you assess your employee’s health and wellbeing needs
The impact that your health and wellbeing initiatives have had on your employees and the wider business
This award is sponsored by: