Why enter the 2010 TJ Awards?
It will undoubtedly take a number of hours for you to write a compelling award submission, so what is the justification for this investment of time?
There are three main reasons why you might want to enter the 2010 TJ Awards:
- If you are a training vendor, then the main motivation is probably to improve your credibility as training providers through independent recognition.
- If you work for an internal training department, then the main reasons will be to motivate your team and demonstrate your commitment to staff development.
- Whether you are a training vendor or internal department, a major motivator is likely to be the desire to demonstrate the value of your training programme to budget holders.
All these points were proven in a survey of those who entered the 2009 TJ Awards.
Going through the process of writing an award submission forced us to scrutinise our training design and evaluation processes and this was extremely beneficial. Karen Fleming, Global Learning and Development Manager, Hydratight Ltd
The discipline of focusing on what we did and the difference it has made, acted as a great motivator and we walked tall for a number of days following submission. Being short-listed was the icing on the cake and a few more inches have been added ever since - you don't forget the buzz of being told that what you have developed and rolled out has been valued by others. Des Bishop, Hiscox
Benefits at every stage
It is not just the winners who will benefit from the 2010 awards:
- Benefits of entering: we have always believed that simply entering awards demonstrates a hunger for excellence to all stakeholders, and encourages people to improve their evaluation practices. Our survey supported this belief. In fact 70% of those entering in 2009 had experienced benefits at this stage.
- Benefits of short listing: If you are short-listed, you are officially among the elite. In fact, our survey showed that this was the stage when most people accepted that their objectives, as mentioned above, were achieved.
- Benefits of short listing for the peer award: If you are short-listed for the peer award, you become part of the panel of expert speakers at the informatology 2010 conference. This gives you and your project exposure in the conference programme, at the conference itself, and subsequently optionally online and at your own Company Raid.
- Benefits of winning: The loud cheers at the TJ Awards event demonstrate the personal impact of winning an award, something all entrants should aspire to, but not essential to benefit from the process.
To see these reasons and the associated survey findings explored in more detail, please click here to read the "Everyone's a Winner" article.
The publicity, marketing opportunity and increased credibility that comes from entering and being short-listed has been invaluable. Lee Martin, Managing Director, Toojays Training & HR Consultancy Ltd
A NEW benefit for 2010: benchmarking
The 2010 TJ Awards will see a new optional benefit introduced. Those entering the awards can either enter for free, or pay £95 and receive a judge's feedback report outlining comments and scores. The objective here relates to continuous improvement: our panel of distinguished judges will offer an objective assessment of the strengths of your submission/programme and areas that could benefit from more evidence of additional best practice.
Participating in this exercise has, in itself forced us to raise the bar and improve our services. We did not expect to win, but having a board member at the TJ awards ceremony showed just how important this short- listing was to the business. The energy generated from actually winning was felt throughout the business, but rather than being the only benefit, we see this as just the final of many benefits. Mark Stables, Training Director, Specsavers
For help writing your award submission, or to view research on the value of awards please visit www.boost-marketing.co.uk specialists in awards entry