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UTILITY WEEK | 4TH - 10TH SEPTEMBER 2015 | 29 Community 2015 Categories Capital Project Management Award Does your company deliver capital projects on time and within budget? This award aims to identify best practice through the effective manage- ment of a utility capital project that was completed during 2014/15. Community Initiative of the Year Award Most UK utility businesses are active in community programmes. This award aims to recognise the significant effort and care that goes into this oen unpublicised work, which benefits the recipients far more than the image of the company. Customer Care Award In all sectors, regulated or competitive, customer service is increasingly important. Entrants for this award need to demonstrate a true under- standing of their customers' needs. Judges will be looking for evidence of something more than "business as usual" or mere compliance with industry codes of practice. Environment Award This award is for the company or a specific project that demonstrates a clear and conscious commitment to good environmental management which goes further than legal or regulatory compliance. The entry should show that clear benefits have been achieved from implementation of the policy or project. IT Initiative of the Year Award The effective use of information technology by utilities is essential to providing the high service levels customers have come to expect while containing costs. Entries to the IT Initiative Award should demonstrate the use of modern – not necessarily cutting edge – IT systems to help the business achieve its aims. Marketing Initiative of the Year Award Marketing activity has to be properly thought-through if it is to be suc- cessful and cost effective in building and differentiating the brand. This award will be judged on strategy, targeting, creativity and most impor- tantly – the results of a marketing initiative completed or continuing in 2014/15. The target group need not be domestic customers. Smart Utilities Award As technology revolutionises all aspects of business life, the ability to adapt and lead will define the winners and losers in the utilities industry. This award seeks companies large or small that have embraced smart technology and used it to achieve genuine and demonstrable business transformation. This may be in any aspect of the business, from internal processes and asset management to customer facing. Staff Development Award Skills shortages due to an ageing workforce and the problem of recruiting talented young people are set to become one of the utility industry's greatest challenges. Entries should demonstrate a sound, thought- ful approach to staff development that meets the organisation's skills requirements and provides long-term career development for employees, whether at apprentice, graduate or other stages of their career. Supply Chain Excellence Award Working closely with contractors and suppliers, as well as taking full advantage of their expertise and experience, can help utilities make dramatic improvements in efficiency, customer service and overall performance. This award is for the utility company that can demonstrate innovative working with supply and contracting organisations, whether that is optimising the relationship; finding ways to draw on others' expe- rience; making step-changes in managing the supply chain; or creating a partnership that is more than the sum of its members. Team of the Year Award Any utility is only as good as its people and this award is for the team that went the extra mile in 2014/15 to deliver a defined project for the company or one of its stakeholders. This may be a special-purpose team bringing together otherwise disparate members or an existing team that has taken on a challenge or performed above and beyond expectations. Note, if you want to highlight an ongoing relationship with your suppliers and contractors, you should enter the Supply Chain Excellence award. Utility of the Year Award Is your utility exceptional? This year we would like to invite utilities to tell us about the achievements that make them a contender for Utility of the Year. Our Utility of the Year will have been successful in all aspects of business, but especially for outperformance. That may be because it sets benchmarks across utility management and is an exemplar of all-round performance. It may highlight a single aspect of its work – setting a new standard for the industry. It may have responded exceptionally to external pressures, or to have innovated particularly successfully. To enter, visit: www. utilityweekawards.co.uk