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Business of the Year

This is the premier award of the year.  Successful entrants will need to show excellence and outstanding achievement in all aspects of their operations.  The judges will be looking for strong growth, innovation and leadership as well as a clear vision.

The Innovation Award

The Innovation Award recognises the success of companies that have created and developed innovative products or processes that have improved the performance of the organisation.  The judges will also look for continued innovation as well as the wider impact and long term effectiveness of the innovation.

The Technology Award

The Technology Award rewards companies that have used technology to create a significant and exploitable advantage in their chosen field.  The development or adoption of the technology alongside its effective implementation will be assessed by the judges.  The judges will also look at how the technology has impacted on the business as well as its long term effectiveness and the wider impact of the technology.

The Excellence Award

The Excellence Award will focus on service excellence that permeates throughout the entire organisation including management, processes, feedback monitoring and frontline customer service. Entrants for this Award must show the highest standards of leadership, planning, analysis, people management and customer-led focus. The judges will look for well adopted company values, provision of stimulating and supportive workplaces and the deployment of resources to most effectively meet the needs of its customer base. The judges will also look favourably upon any recruitment programmes that target local residents and show a commitment to train and develop people at all levels within the business.

The Green Award

The Green Award will recognise those businesses for whom the protection or enhancement of the environment is at the core of their activities or whose products or practices have resulted in significant environmental improvement.  The judges will look at how environmental considerations are built into the planning and daily operations of the business as well as the efforts made to lessen the impacts of their business processes on the environment.  These activities should be driven by the organisation rather than by legislation.

The Community Award

The Community Award will reward businesses who make a committed and proactive contribution to the enhancement and benefit of the community in which they operate.  The judges will look at how the organisation has worked effectively with community groups, their commitment to continue their work in the community in the future and how good management has maximised the benefits to the local community.

The Entrepreneur Award

The Entrepreneur Award will recognise individuals who have shown the desire to succeed with their own ideas and have had the ambition to turn those ideas into a successful business.  Entrants must clearly demonstrate their business idea and start-up process, showing evidence of a well researched business plan and forecasts for business performance.  The judges will look for the outstanding individual who can best demonstrate exceptional vision, leadership and personality in the establishment and development of an owner-led business.

The International Trade Award

The International Trade Award acknowledges the success of Salford's businesses abroad.  Entrants must be committed to the growth of international trade and should have achieved significant growth in sales, revenue and profitability as a direct result of trading internationally.  The judges will look at how much the company values international trade as well as how it has dealt with cultural and language constraints.