Categories 2021
Download a handy PDF copy of all the category descriptions here. This year’s entries are with our Judging Panel but you can start planning your submission for 2022.
To talk through your initiative and the category it would be best suited for, contact the team on +44 (0)1727 847398, or at [email protected]
Coronavirus has created an unprecedented situation of such magnitude as to impact on every aspect of our lives. Economic markets have suffered historic falls and our lives at work have changed beyond recognition, with many aspects greatly impacting the future of work. The majority of the workforce has faced losing colleagues and teams to furloughing and grappled with the challenges of remote working using new tools and technologies. At the toughest of times issues of trust, fairness, innovation, agility, inclusivity and collaboration – key facets of our organisational culture – have come to the fore more strongly than ever. This award will recognise organisations with 500 employees or more, or 500 employees or less, whose culture has been an absolute strength; enabling leaders to make and communicate difficult decisions with honesty and humility in the face of a rapidly-changing commercial landscape.
This award is open to organisations that have achieved a transformation or turnaround in their Business Culture and can demonstrate outstanding results. Entrants will show how their organisations have transformed culturally, the reasons for this transformation, and the positive impact this has had on the business. Judges will be looking for how these organisations have enacted the change, and how and why the transformed culture has advanced the confidence of stakeholders. This may include achievements in strategic (re)alignment, stakeholder management, organisational design, and development, change management, and process modification, and how these aspects relate to culture. As well as describing how your organisational culture has changed, submissions should fully outline the transformation journey, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
A drive for innovation is central to how an organisation performs in the marketplace and how engaged employees and other stakeholders feel in making a difference to its success. This award will be given to an organisation that has put effective and inspirational innovation at its heart, with outstanding results. Entrants show how their organisations have progressed innovation at a cultural level, not a procedural one. Judges will be looking to understand how the focus on innovation has been enacted, and how this has inspired stakeholders. As well as describing how the culture of the business has changed, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
DE&I approaches seek to create meaningful, systemic change toward more equitable environments. Organisations making a sustained effort in this area recognise the importance of diversity in high-performing organisations and teams and understand the need to create an environment where diverse groups are respected, supported, and valued to fully participate. In this category, we’ll be looking for organisations who have put diversity, equity and inclusion at the heart of their Business Culture with outstanding results. Judges will be looking to understand how this focus on diversity and inclusion has been enacted, and how it has resulted in a reinvigorated organisational culture that has the renewed confidence of employees and other stakeholders. As well as describing how the culture of the business has changed, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
Purpose-led businesses are proven to perform better; with purpose driving growth. A common vision and ambition stems from the central brand purpose, highlighting clearly to employees not only what they need to do but why they are doing it. During times of change and uncertainty, this purpose is strongly anchoring for employees, customers and other stakeholders, fostering a sense of belonging, ownership and responsibility. This award is open to organisations whose renewed purpose has enabled leaders to more effectively connect with their teams; offered a lens for decision-making and enabled them to learn and adapt during change. Entrants will have significantly strengthened their purpose, possibly in response to the recent crisis, successfully articulating this and connecting it to business strategy. Judges will be looking to see the impact of this reinvigorated purpose on the confidence and trust of employees and other stakeholders and the business benefits in terms of engagement, retention and other outcomes.
This award recognises organisations that have positioned their unique workplace culture at the heart of their employer brand and/or their consumer brand. They will have clearly articulated values, and will be able to demonstrate how these have positively impacted on everyday behaviours within the organisation and/or in interactions with customers. Behaviour change should be sustained and consistent and have had an impact on business outcomes. Our judges will look to understand how the brand and values have been developed and how they have advanced; for example, how the employer brand has been aligned with the consumer brand(s). Evidence should be provided of the benefits they have brought to the organisation; for example, the impact on employer visibility and reputation; on the attraction, retention and engagement of staff and customers. Finally, entrants should clearly demonstrate the journey to achieving this strong brand and values, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
Effective learning has the capacity to inspire individuals to do their best work and can have a transformative effect on the organisation as a whole. Innovation in learning and a blended approach to how interventions are delivered have enabled learning to be more effectively embedded, leading to true, long term behaviour change. Technology has also enabled approaches to be effectively delivered at scale. Entrants in this category will be able to show how their learning approach has impacted on organisational culture and the business benefits that have arisen as a result of the initiative as a whole. Judges will be looking to understand how this focus on learning has been enacted, resulting in a reinvigorated culture that has the renewed confidence of employees and other stakeholders. As well as describing how the culture of the business has changed, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
This award recognises organisations that have advanced employee health and wellbeing, increasing engagement and strengthening business culture as a result, particularly in the context of the pandemic and its detrimental impact in this area. The focus could be on physical, mental or financial wellbeing or a blend of all of these. The judges will look to understand how wellbeing initiatives have been developed and advanced, and the impact this has had. Evidence should be provided of the benefits it has brought to the organisation; for example, the impact on the attraction, retention and engagement of staff. Finally, entrants should clearly demonstrate the initiative’s journey, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
In this category, we’ll be looking for professionals who have created or advanced an exceptional Business Culture, and have demonstrated both passion and commitment to creating the type of workplace which has the confidence of staff and other stakeholders. Judges will be looking for evidence of business culture impact, and how this individual in particular contributed. They will need to understand the person’s approach and values, and the reasons why they have been so influential. As well as describing how your organisational culture has changed, and the individual’s role in this transformation, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
This category is designed to recognise the power of teams in championing and influencing outstanding Business Culture. Their achievement will have been defining because of their passion and commitment to creating a unique workplace that has the confidence of its stakeholders. Judges will be looking for examples of innovative approaches to addressing organisational culture. This could include evidence of effective working across boundaries; a quantifiable contribution to organisational achievements; underpinning project work; operational excellence in execution; and measurement of the direct benefits of these aspects. Submissions will include insight into the team’s values and approach, with the reasons why they have been so influential. As well as describing how the culture of the business has changed, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
Organisations are becoming increasingly dependent on a blended, multi-generational and geographically dispersed workforce to deliver on their business strategy. The most forward-thinking companies enact a holistic talent approach, which takes into account that business culture is key to all segments of the workforce. Entrants to this category may focus on different aspects of their talent approach, for example, flexible working approaches; strategies to integrate and develop multi-generational talent; meeting the needs of contingent or outsourced talent alongside permanent employees; or recruiting talent according to organisational values. Judges will be looking to understand the attraction, development and engagement of different talent segments; whether culture resonates for them wherever they sit in the organisation; and to what extent the integration of different workforce segments is aligned with organisational goals.
This award will be presented to an organisation that has deployed an innovative and effective strategy to maximise the talent opportunity offered by the next generation of their workforce. They will demonstrate that putting the recruitment and development of this segment of their workforce at the heart of Business Culture has yielded exceptional results. Entries may focus on internships and traineeships; graduate schemes; apprenticeship programs; internal development of future leaders; and external engagement with young people on sector-specific skills and interest. Judges will be looking to understand how these next generation engagement / attraction / selection / development processes develop business culture, and who, from across the organisation, is involved. They assess how next generation talent progresses and develops; and how these initiatives have positively impacted on the organisation. Entrants may provide testimonials, as well as key metrics outlining the success of the approach. As well as describing how the culture of the business has changed, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
Coaching, mentoring and developing individuals through ongoing, targeted and specific one-to-one conversations can have wide-reaching benefits for the organisation and for individuals. It can develop and retain your critical talent; provide a stabilising factor during change; facilitate knowledge-sharing and skill-transfer; as well as boosting people’s performance and motivation and supporting their career transition. Judges will be looking to understand how your coaching, mentoring and personal development/performance management initiative and conversations have supported the organisation’s performance and success and how far-reaching the impact has been in terms of developing a coaching culture or more effective performance management. You will need to outline all steps of the project, including planning, implementation, measurement, outcome, and next steps. You will also need to outline clearly who has been involved (and include a rationale as to why these people were selected in the case of coaches and coachees).
Corporate Social Responsibility has the power to capture the hearts and minds of employees and other stakeholders, by giving even greater meaning and purpose to their efforts. This category is open to companies who have put CSR at the heart of their Business Culture and seen outstanding results. The judges are keen to grasp how organisations have enacted this focus on corporate social responsibility, and how this has had a direct and positive impact on culture. Entries will cover how organisations have progressed corporate social responsibility at a cultural, rather than a procedural, level, and the business benefits that have arisen from this. As well as describing how the culture of the business has changed, submissions should also fully outline the transformation journey itself, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
This award is open to organisations that have achieved a merger or integration of teams, brands, or companies, creating a sense of unity in the culture of the newly-formed entity. Entrants will demonstrate how their organisations have embedded the merger or integration at a cultural level, not a procedural one; in particular, how they have been able to strike a balance between the pre-existing cultures in the creation of a new one. They will also show how they have engaged their stakeholders and delivered business results. Submissions may include achievements in strategic (re)alignment, stakeholder management, organisational design, and development, change management, and process modification, and how these aspects relate to culture. Judges will look to understand both how the organisational culture has changed, and the reasons for this, as well as the change journey itself, including how any challenges and barriers were overcome.
This award is open to companies with 1 – 250 employees that have undertaken a substantial initiative which has had a demonstrable impact on their Business Culture. Judges will be seeking to understand all steps of the project including planning, implementation, measurement, outcome, and next steps. They will assess how these organisations have advanced their workplace culture, and what the business benefits of this have been. Entrants should include achievements in areas including strategic alignment, leadership development, stakeholder engagement, improving communication, and advancing innovation. As well as describing how your organisational culture has changed, submissions should fully outline the transformation journey, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
The partnership of consultancies and practitioners can yield transformative results. Furthermore, the initiatives that consultancies implement internally can have a far-reaching impact on their organisational engagement, productivity and performance, as well as yielding learning which can enrich their interactions with clients. This award recognises the contribution of consultancies to Business Culture change initiatives. Entrants will show how they have worked to deliver projects with a maximum cultural, rather than solely operational, impact, either hand-in-hand with their clients, or internally. Judges will be looking for testimonials, key metrics to explain how the consultancy has excelled in their work. They will consider evidence of solution appropriateness, innovation, business impact, and client satisfaction (where applicable). If the entry focusses on a client, or clients, the consultancy must have their permission to enter. As well as describing how organisational culture has changed, and the reasons for this transformation, entrants should clearly demonstrate the initiative’s journey, including how any barriers or challenges were overcome.
Recognition will be given to the organisation that the Judges assess as having delivered the most exceptional Business Culture initiatives overall. The Business Culture Gold, Silver & Bronze Awards are open to category winners only, and cannot be entered separately. They will be presented to the category winners who have shown the broadest deployment of their initiative; and most comprehensible approach in their methods, when examined both quantitatively and qualitatively. The Judges will be looking for the highest standards in stakeholder engagement, innovation, strategic alignment, leadership, communication, learning and more. Each category winner will be assessed according to all aspects of project planning, implementation, measurement, outcome, and next steps.
Want a better idea of what makes a winning organisation in each category?
View the Case Studies from our current Award Winners here.