Award deadlines coming up (scroll down below text for a list of awards organised by industry) 

Welcome to my latest award deadline update for November, December and beyond. With awards ceremony season in full flow an increasing number of events have switched to virtual awards or moved their physical event to spring next year, so it’s very much business as usual, despite the challenges faced. We are currently getting a lot of companies contacting us and placing even more importance on awards, many with the same message that ‘this award would be a way of giving something back to our people.’ With the likelihood of Christmas parties not happening, how about winning a team award instead?  

As ever, contact our team here at Boost if you need help with your entries or guidance on which awards to enter. Now is the perfect time to get a date in your diary to begin planning which awards to enter in 2021 – our amazing new digital planning sessions are a great way to get teams together from across your organisation to identify which are your strongest stories. We can then match them to awards that would provide most benefit to you. Okay, let’s get started with the awards to look out for…

Customer contact awards

An understandably important theme this year, there are still some key schemes coming up. For a more comprehensive overview, please read our guide, Which are the best customer service awards to enter?

The 12th November deadline is approaching for the credible-yet-winnable Stevie Awards for Sales and Customer Service – a great way to get global recognition and tons of categories to choose from. If you don’t think you can fit this in don’t worry, for a late fee you have until 13th January to enter.

For a credible awards scheme that deals with a fairly unique but vital aspect of customer support, look no further than The UK Complaint Handling Awards. While the final 15th January deadline seems some way off, there is considerable reduction in cost-per-entry to be gained by entering before the 18th December early-bird deadline.     

Financial services awards

As we’ve seen throughout this turbulent year, many schemes are having to adapt and move their timelines – The Pensions Age Awards are an example, and their usual end of Oct deadline has now moved to 7th January. Highly credible with their association to the Pensions Age magazine, these are suitable for both pension and benefits providers as they have awards for both schemes and providers, which is fairly unique. 

The Treasury & Cash Management Awards (1st December deadline) are run by Global Finance. These are an international banking scheme but very important to certain departments within banks, and some niche providers. This has global and regional awards for the “Best Bank for Payments and Collections” in numerous countries and parts of the US.

Straddling the two sectors of technology and financial services, The FStech Awards are a favourite for our clients here at Boost. In the words of the organisers, they are ‘Celebrating excellence and innovation within the UK and EMEA financial services sector.’ This is now definitely going ahead, with a 7th January deadline and a dinner scheduled for 5th May at the London Marriott Hotel.

International Financing Review IFR Awards are a highly credible international scheme run by Refinitiv and associated with the International Financing Review news published for banking. They’ve moved to a calendar year cycle with the deadline 31st December, with announcements typically happening in late-January. There are about 80 categories to choose from, including the big ones like ‘Bank of the Year’ as well as numerous niche ones like ‘Euro Bond House’ and ‘Interest Rate Derivatives House’. 

Best companies awards and rankings

The highly prestigious Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For is now open for applications. There are some significant changes to the entry process this year, with several shorter questions embedded in the survey set up process. Also associated with the same media organisation, The Times Top 50 Employers for Women are open until 27th November. Do contact us if you need help with these schemes – we have a great track record helping large UK organisations improve their standing in both. 

Also worth mentioning as they are whole company recognition, The RoSPA Health and Safety Awards are an international scheme welcoming organisations of all sizes, from across all industries. There is a substantial entry form and a 6th December deadline.  

HR awards and training awards

For a more comprehensive overview, please read our guides ‘Which are the best HR Awards to enter?’ or ‘Which training awards should I enter?‘

The UK Employee Experience Awards are now very well established in the HR space, and will be opening shortly with a proposed 15th January deadline. 

There are two very important schemes to be aware of in the world of recruitment. First up, The RAD Awards, championing the very best of employer branding, talent attraction and recruitment advertising. You will need to enter by 8th January. Then a few days later on 13th January, it is the deadline for The Recruiter Awards. Arguably the highest profile awards in recruitment, they feature lots of awards for agencies as well some for in-house functions. 

Marketing awards

The Transform Awards Europe are a great scheme covering rebranding and brand strategy. Be quick though – the deadline is 6th November.

For some global recognition in the digital and creative industries, consider the Marcom Awards, which this year are focusing on the great work of the creative industry during these turbulent times.    

Lastly, another international scheme in the creative space that you should consider and are well worth entering – The Vega Digital Awards – they will remain open until 12th November.  

IT and tech awards

In our final sector for the month, there are some key schemes coming up in the world of tech. The Cybersecurity Excellence Awards (31st December deadline) are US-based but open to international entry and feature a massive 150+ categories. Another international scheme – The CIO 100 Awards – are highly credible and while they are organised by CIO Magazine, they are in fact for the whole IT function not just CIOs. Be sure to apply before 25th January. Our final mention goes out to a Boost favourite – SIIA CODiE Awards – which focus on code and tech development. They feature lots of categories covering everything from business technology products, data & analytics, networks and systems and security. The CODiEs are open until 29th January.    

Hopefully these highlights will have provided some insights to help you plan which awards to enter. Below you will find all the awards with deadlines occurring within the next two months, organised by industry sector. Remember, do please contact Boost if you need a helping hand entering any of these – our in-house team of experienced award writers have won over 1,400 awards, and can increase your chances of a win significantly.

You can also sign up for our email deadline reminder service, so that the next two months of deadlines arrive in your inbox – completely free of charge. Handy, I think you will agree!  

Stay safe and well, and let’s all keep recognising the outstanding people, teams, projects and businesses out there.

Chris.