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  Tips for a Successful Entry – UAI Excellence Awards

  Posted by Leslie Cook (Adm) on June 9, 2021 at 9:58 am

  Hello UAI Members, 

  To help you properly prepare to submit your UAI Excellence Award nominations by June 30, 2021, I want to share some tips with you. 

  TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL ENTRY:

  • Allow yourself plenty of time to prepare your entries. Be sure to set aside plenty of time to write your entry and get input from around the business.
  • Think carefully about which category you want to enter. Think about your significant accomplishments and play to your strengths by entering the most relevant category for you and/or your team. Also, bear in mind that you will need hard, quantifiable results to really wow the judges. Can’t find these? You may want to consider another category.
  • Stay focused. It’s tempting to tell our judges about every amazing thing your team has accomplished, but it’s important to stick to the criteria. Tell the judges about your most notable achievements in a clear, consistent way. If you can, try and tell a story with your entry. For example, the reason for the initiative is the beginning, the middle is how you implemented it, and the ending is the results you have gained.
  • Read the questions on the entry form carefully and make sure that you are answering them thoroughly. It sounds simple, but you’d be amazed how many entrants misunderstand the questions or include information that is not relevant.
  • Remember that the judges don’t know your business – avoid acronyms. The simpler, the better. Take a step back from the environment and processes you are absorbed in every day. We’ve seen lots of entries that seem to assume that all utility analytics operations run in the same way, but this is not the case; therefore, it’s best to be as clear as possible.
  • Involve the whole team. Ask staff at all levels for input – there may be hidden gems within the business that you don’t know about, and employees may have unique ideas about information to include. Your team will gain a lot from looking back and seeing everything they’ve achieved – and they will feel appreciated. Also, consider the benefits of talking to someone at a high level. This may give you a good idea of how the initiative or the person has affected the business as a whole and how it fits into the company’s strategic goals.
  • Evidence, evidence, evidence. Keep statements factual, as this will help with the credibility of your entry. For example, instead of saying “We have an excellent training program,” say “Our new training program contributed to a cost reduction of 25% since the program began.”
  • Don’t underestimate the power of the customer! It’s important that you make it clear how the individual or initiative has impacted your customers. Testimonials from customers and internal stakeholders are incredibly powerful – choose the best examples that clearly and concisely demonstrate your excellence. Tip: customers don’t have to be external to the business. Sometimes customers are internal stakeholders.
  • Presentation, spelling, and grammar matter. It sounds obvious, but it’s difficult to overstate how important this is. Make sure to build time in your entry process for proofreading. Try reading the answers to the questions aloud to a friend or relative – if it makes sense to them, it will make sense to the judges.
  • Supporting material helps. Don’t overload judges with supporting materials that aren’t relevant to your story. Carefully consider how you can most effectively illustrate your success. Feel free to include metrics, testimonials, etc., whatever best supports your story. Package up your supporting documentation in one PDF to make it more accessible for the judges.

   
  Validation feels pretty good, and acknowledgement and celebration go a long way toward keeping employees satisfied, teams performing at a high level, and leadership engaged. Get the recognition you deserve with a UAI Excellence Award! 

  Learn more about the UAI Excellence Awards at http://www.UtilityAnalytics.com/Awards. You can download the Nomination Toolkit, watch acceptance speeches from last year’s winners, download PDF versions of the nomination forms, submit your nominations online, plus more!

  Still have questions? Reply to this message or contact me at lcook@UtilityAnalytics.com.

  Good luck and thank you!

       Leslie

   

  ——————————
  Leslie Cook
  Membership & Digital Engagement Manager
  Utility Analytics Institute (UAI)
  719-203-8650, lcook@utilityanalytics.com
  ——————————

  Leslie Cook (Adm) replied 3 years, 5 months ago 1 Member · 0 Replies
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