About the Awards

As in previous years the awards will contain both Excellence in Customer Service recognition and Excellence in a nominated category.  

Award nomination forms for customer service and category nominations are now available from the Benalla Ensign office in Carrier Street, Benalla and from the Benalla Rural City offices in Fawkner Drive, Benalla or can be downloaded as a pdf below (scroll to the bottom). Completed forms can be returned to Benalla Business Network, P.O. Box 760, Benalla, 3672 or deposited in the box provided at the following locations:

* Goulburn Murray Credit Union, Bridge Street, Benalla

* Benalla Ensign office, Carrier Street, Benalla

* Benalla Rural City Council offices, Fawkner Drive, Benalla

* Westpac Bank, Bridge Street, Benalla

BBN Business Excellence Awards in Customer Service 2011

This is your opportunity to nominate any business in Benalla and district you feel has provided you with excellence in customer service.  It can be a retail, trade or service business.  

Simply download the nomination form below, complete and return as directed.  

BBN Business Excellence Awards 2011 Categories

New Business of the Year Award
Recognises the innovation and determination required to start and grow a new business. Open to all businesses established or ‘taken over’ in the Benalla area within the last 24 months.

Business Commitment to the Community Award
The organisation recognised with this award will demonstrate significant contribution to the community, which includes examples of policies, or projects that positively impact on the community and generate outcomes that have a long term benefit. Achievements can include, but are not limited to local employment, local education, and initiatives in social enterprise and charitable work. Open to companies and organisations actively involved in their local community.

Small Business Award
Recognises business excellence in delivering quality products and services to our community and beyond. Also recognises the progression, determination, teamwork, resilience and sustainability of the area’s primary production businesses. Open to all businesses employing 5 or less people, including manufacturing, trades and services, retail, home based, hospitality and accommodation.

Large Business Award
Recognises business excellence in delivering quality products and services to our community and beyond. Also recognises the progression, determination, teamwork, resilience and sustainability of the area’s primary production businesses. Open to all businesses employing more than 5 people, including manufacturing, trades and services, retail, home based, hospitality and accommodation.

Tourism Award
Recognises the ongoing effort required to attract visitors to the Benalla area. Open to all tourism businesses and tourism organisations in the Benalla area as well as all businesses that target and attract tourism markets.

Arts & Culture Industry Award
Recognises the contribution the arts industry makes to the community, retail sectors and tourism. Open to all arts based businesses in the Benalla district including galleries, retail, performing arts, arts organisations and arts events.

Service Excellence Award
Recognises businesses that deliver outstanding customer service. Businesses are required to provide evidence of consistent exceptional service and professionalism, demonstrating how they manage, monitor and measure customer expectations, satisfaction and retention. Consumers will also be involved in the nomination of these businesses.

Marketing Excellence Award
This award recognises outstanding achievement in marketing strategy and execution. Recipients of this award demonstrate how they have differentiated themselves from others in their industry. Submissions should include evidence of customer insight, innovation, clear and differentiated brand values, design excellence and effective use of marketing resources. Also recognises businesses that demonstrate innovative and strategic application of the Internet, communications and information technology.

Employer of Excellence for Young People aged 19 or under
Recognises the valuable work our local employers do in supporting young people during their secondary school years and beyond, in their Gap Year. However, employers will be particularly recognised for providing quality work placement and training opportunities for our young people. This can be either through work experience, part time work, VET placements or VCAL placements, cadetships or GAP Year jobs. Employers may excel in a range of things including providing a fabulous induction program, looking after their student well in terms of supervision and support whilst at work, providing quality learning experiences (teaching on the job), or giving feedback that assisted the young person improve their employability skills in general.

Education and training Award
The Education and Training Award will be presented to a business which has achieved excellence in the provision of education and training to its employees. The award is open to businesses with five or more full time equivalent staffing. The business must have been trading for a minimum of 3 years. The judging criteria will include, extent & quality of training for employees, integration of training into the business, achievements of the business, or of its employees, which may be attributed to training and the innovation & excellence in the design, development and delivery of training.

Certificates of Recognition
Certificate of Recognition for Long Serving Employees or Employees of Excellence is an opportunity for businesses to recognise their employees in a public arena. Businesses can put forward an application for one employee per business to be presented with a certificate and photo opportunity. The certificate will be presented by the nominating business representative to the employee.