2023 HRO Today Association Awards Category Definitions

Are your customer satisfaction scores higher than those of your competitors in the industry? Are candidates talking about the positive experience they had applying for a job and the process that followed, whether they got the job or not?  Tell us how you ensure candidates have a positive experience along each step of the way, whether engaging with technology or a person. Include how you make it work for your company and measure results to ensure continued success.

A positive overall Employee Experience not only builds a stronger work culture, but also impacts business performance. Tell us about your best talent management programs, showcase your employee experience success stories and key retention strategies that help ensure job satisfaction and make your company a great place to work!

How is your company utilizing technology differently, more efficiently, and in ways that make the lives of your employees and/or customers happier? Showcase your latest advancement, upgrade, or unique solution that uses technology to work more efficiently and successfully on Human Resource function(s). How did you implement it to ensure compliance and maintain the integrity and functionality of the technology? While technology can provide speed to market, an important aspect of HR is people. Have you taken steps to ensure the human factor and having opportunities to engage still exists? If so, be sure to include information on how it is done.

Note: This can be a standalone private labeled technology, customized for use within your company, or a new technology that you’ve developed for private use and/or taken to market for the entire industry.

When HR can inspire and implement innovative thinking and best practices throughout the organization, great things can happen. This award recognizes forward thinking innovation resulting in improved employee and/or customer satisfaction, better business performance, and/or an advancement for the organization and/or industry. While technology may play a role, we ask that for this award you focus on the nontechnology components of a successful new program, practice, policy, product or service that has been shown to demonstrably reduce costs, improve quality or in some way benefit the organization, its employees and/or the way they work.

This award shows the power and strength of a true partnership.  A  partnership can be between an organization and an (outsourced) HR Services and/or Technology Provider OR a collaboration across two or more businesses that results in a positive outcome from a business, financial, and/or philanthropic standpoint. Nominations should discuss the successful results as an outcome of the partnership. Why/how did the partnership come to be? What have you been able to do differently as a result of the partnership? How is the partnership relationship managed to ensure continued success and that evolution occurs, when applicable, to maintain its performance? Please share any process improvements, efficiencies realized, key metrics, cost savings and/or impact on customer service.

Note: Because this award recognizes a “partnership”, it is expected that finalists in this category have representation from BOTH partners at the awards program.

Over the past few years, the responsibility of business leaders has shifted from an economics-only focus to one that incorporates social responsibility, creating an expectation that companies will deliver an inclusive space not only for consumers and workers alike. Human Resources works to ensure Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) is top of mind throughout their organization. Whether it be candidate selection, customer experience, employee engagement or the company environment itself; what DEI activities are you undertaking that stand out as a success within your office, company, and/or the industry?  How are they measured, communicated, and evaluated to ensure successful outcomes?

This award recognizes the Recruitment (Talent Acquisition) Team of an organization that has demonstrated significant success and/or growth within managing the talent acquisition process, which may include sourcing, candidate experience, employer branding, candidate selection, interviewing, offer process, onboarding processes, and more. The proof is in the numbers! Please be sure to include data points, as well as key performance indicators and team goals to support your success story.

Is your HR a powerhouse team that keeps the company moving forward with innovative leadership direction, reliable people and innovative programs and practices to drive home your mission, enhance your brand and stand out as an employer of choice? This award allows you to share the many successes, accomplishments, and achievements of your entire HR team. Tell us what your HR team does that is unique and makes it stand out as a highly valued, integral and respected part of the organization. Describe your HR team’s overall strategy and objectives, and how they align with the rest of the business.  Outline any major HR initiatives or programs implemented and/or improved that best showcase the team’s spirit, drive and innovation.

This award recognizes forward thinking, innovation, and creative solutions, as well as ideas generated and/or implemented by an individual. The HR Excellence Award is award is about someone who did something great: an event, accomplishment, big project, innovative idea, big success, etc.

This individual creates an inspiring vision of the future and effectively motivates and inspires people to engage with that vision, and/or demonstrates extraordinary treatment of their employees resulting in positive business results. The HR Leadership award is about a person’s leadership traits, ability to mentor, lead people, inspire and/or a thought leader or someone thought of as an expert.

Simply put, HR Excellence is about someone who did something great. HR Leadership is about someone who IS great.

This award recognizes an HRO Today Association member who consistently contributes their time and expertise to support, participate and actively engage in association programs and activities and acts as an advocate of the association. This award honors a member who has made extraordinary contributions to the betterment of the association and Human Resources industry overall.