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Individual Categories
Appprentice / Newcomer of
the Year
This category will recognise an apprentice or newcomer who have been employed in a non-managerial role for a minimum of 6 months, who show outstanding progress, a positive approach to employment and excellent interpersonal qualities. The judges will be looking for evidence of exceptional vocational competence, achieving great results, making a difference within a short period of time, plus excellent interpersonal skills
Rising Star
This category is for colleagues working in any contact centre or customer contact function within the organisation. The Rising Star Award honours a colleague who has shown an outstanding performance within the last twelve months and who is considered to be a key employee within the business or a potential future leader.
Support Person
of the Year
This category is for non-managers working across the organisation eg. HR, IT, Analysts, Facilities, Comms, Marketing, Workforce Management, Transformation etc. The judges will be looking for evidence of enthusiasm, drive and determination and competence in providing exceptional levels of support to the organisation and their colleagues.
Advisor
of the Year
This category is for individuals working at advisor grade in a sales or service capacity who has demonstrated exceptional levels of service and vocational competence. Nominees will demonstrate consistently high performance as a customer adviser or sales agent, provide strong results and make a real difference to their organisation. Nominees will also go above and beyond their day-to-day responsibilities to provide excellent support to their colleagues.
Team Leader of the Year
The Team Leader of the Year is a professional and inspirational person who leads by example, takes responsibility for the team and ensures that their colleagues’ experience of work is a positive one. Nominees must demonstrate strong leadership, be results oriented, with a commitment to staff development, and have evidence of guiding their team to consistently high performance.
Trainer of the Year
This category is suitable for a professional Trainer, Coach or L&D Manager who applies innovative learning strategies to deliver both corporate objectives and individual needs. Nominees will demonstrate an enthusiasm for staff development and provide evidence of how their training and development solutions have improved staff skills/performance and resulted in successful outcomes for the business.
Support Manager of the Year
Open to individuals who have been managing a support team or support function based in a centralised customer delivery (eg: Quality, Finance, Marketing & Communications, HR, etc). Nominees will ensure consistently high performance of the support team or function and combine a commitment to the delivery of objectives with an efficient and effective service. Nominees will implement strategies that have impacted positively on the team / department and made a real change to the organisation
Customer Contact Leader of the Year
Open to individuals who have been leading customer contact and/or customer service functions across a variety of operations and channels and who leads a team responsible for customers. The team can be remote, hybrid or office based. The customers can be internal or external across any function of the business. The category seeks to reward exceptional leadership and vocational competence. Nominees ensure consistently high performance in customer contact, deliver the company’s vision and objectives with an efficient and effective service, successfully implement innovative strategies that positively impact the organisation and display a commitment to the continuous improvement of the organisation and its staff
Senior Leader of the Year
Nominees will be Directors or Head of Site / Function that have overall strategic responsibility for the customer contact centre. Nominees will be forward thinking and innovative in their approach to strategy and delivering excellence in customer experience, provide evidence of their significant impact on the business – such as the transformation of a contact centre operation – and champion the contact centre within their business and the wider industry
All individual entries must be nominated by a manager.
For details on how to enter, click here
Company Categories
Specialist Team of the Year
This award will recognise the outstanding activity delivered by a specialist team or department supporting the contact centre or centralised customer contact function, eg: Quality Assurance, Vulnerable Customer, Fraud, Risk, Resource Planning/WFM, IT/Digital, Social Media, HR. Nominees should outline the function, objectives, targets, key performance indicators, results and evidence of positive outcomes, plus evidence of the impact of the team on the wider objectives and overall performance of the business
Customer Team of the Year
Open to any team supporting internal or external customers in a sales or service environment (virtual, remote, hybrid or physical) if they are supporting Northern Ireland-based business operations. Nominees should outline the function, objectives, targets, key performance indicators, results and evidence of positive outcomes for their customers and the overall performance of the business in the last 12 months.
Best Talent Programme
This new award will recognise organisations that have successfully addressed business needs with the development of an innovative talent strategy. Nominees should include details of the objectives behind the strategy, how the strategy has been developed and implemented, targets and results achieved, lessons learned and any long-term impact on the business
Best Technology / Digital Initiative
This award recognises how an organisation has created a Technology or Digital Initiave for their systems or processes. The category can include CX, digital transformation, workforce planning or any other technology improvement initiative. Nominees will provide evidence of the objectives behind the strategy; how the strategy was planned, implemented, communicated and monitored; the impact on customers and colleagues, improvements to operational/business performance; plus overall results and how this fits into the long-term strategy of the business.
Best Environment & Sustainability
This new category considers how businesses have adapted their buildings and programmes to deliver best practice for the environment and sustainability. Nominations should outline any measures undertaken to promote the environment and sustainability and include specific programmes to reduce waste eg: locally sourced products, recycling, energy efficiency, community projects and support. It should also outline how the organisation’s objectives, mission and purpose is aligned with sustainability and the impact achieved.
Best Advice Line / Helpline
This category is for any body or organisation delivering an advice line or helpline for internal and external customers or the public. The category is open to all providers delivering advice, help and assistance or public information. This can include local authorities, health and welfare, police, Covid response line, or any other emergency/non-emergency helpline, public sector information line, shared service centre or service desk. Nominations should include details of the advice/helpline’s objectives, delivery and implementation, plus impact and results.
Customer Success
This award recognises how organisations deliver exceptional levels of service to customers. Nominees will include details of their customer success strategy including a multi-channel approach via digital, chat, social, voice and web – with clear details of key objectives, targets and results/KPIs.
Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
This award will recognise an organisation with innovative strategies, policies or programmes in place to promote equality, diversity and inclusion. Nominees may include programmes to support the external community (your customers) or internal community (your people) including: race and ethnic origin, vulnerable customers, neuro diverse staff, disability, health, social or economic disadvantage, as well as gender, religious beliefs, age, education, sexual orientation and/or other perceived differences.
People & Culture
This Award will be presented to a centre that puts its people and culture at the heart of the operation. The successful centre shows that front line people are the focus of the business. Nominees will include details of special initiatives to promote employee engagement and provide evidence of the positive affect on the business. The judges will be looking for examples of how this approach affects the company ethos and how people management is embedded in the company culture.
Best Client Partnership
This category is for an outsourced contact centre with a highly successful business relationship with their client. To be successful in this category nominees must demonstrate a clear understanding of their client’s aims and objectives and provide evidence of:​
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How they have developed an effective client relationship
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How they've helped the client with the effective delivery of a range of services
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How they've implemented two-way communication channels between the front line and client decision makers.
Business of the Year
This new category is about how you deliver excellence for your people and customers, whether these are hybrid or physical. This entry should be a business entry for the whole customer contact operation. Nominees should outline the strategy for customer engagement, people engagement, diversity, equality and inclusion and the environment. The entry may also include any AI, Transformation or Innovation strategies that have delivered a positive impact on the business.