Frequently asked questions

• What are the Leader Business Achievers Awards and who are the program organisers?
• What are the awards regions and how many are there?
• What are the award categories and how many are there?

• Who can be nominated in the Leader Business Achiever Awards?
• Who can submit a nomination?
• When can I nominate?
• How do I know which category I should nominate my chosen business in?
• How can I encourage everyone to nominate my business?
• Are entry forms kept confidential?

• How do I become a finalist?
• What do I need to do if I become a finalist?
• What do finalists receive?
• How can I let everyone know I’m a finalist?
• What is a finalists' feature and how do I participate?

• How does the judging process work?
• What are the major awards and how are they judged?

• When will the Awards Night take place?
• What will the Awards Night involve?
• Do I need to attend the Awards Night to be eligible to win?
• How do I book my tickets?

• What do winners receive?
• How can I let everyone know I’ve won a Business Achiever Award?
• What is a winners' feature and how do I participate?

About the Business Achievers Awards

Leader Community Newspapers runs the Leader Business Achiever Awards across all 33 Leader newspapers and 27 Awards Regions throughout Melbourne.

For the past 12 years, Leader Community Newspapers has proudly celebrated the achievements of local businesses and organisations through its business awards program.

The Leader Business Achiever Awards recognise and celebrate the success and potential of local businesses and organisations by rewarding and publicly acknowledging outstanding achievement.

The Leader Business Achiever Awards combine public nominations, a mystery shop audit by Mystery Shopping Auditing Australasia (MSAa) and an official judging process undertaken by the Victorian Government and VECCI.

• Bayside
• Boroondara
• Brimbank
• Casey - Cardinia (Incorporating Cranbourne Leader and Berwick/Pakenham Cardinia Leader)
• Diamond Valley
• Frankston - Hastings
• Glen Eira-Port Phillip
• Greater Dandenong
• Heidelberg
• Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong and Wyndham
• Hume
• Kingston
• Knox
• Yarra Ranges (Incorporating Free Press Leader and Lilydale & Yarra Valley Leader)
• Manningham
• Maroondah
• Melbourne
• Melton-Moorabool
• Moonee Valley
• Moreland
• Mornington Peninsula
• Northcote-Preston
• Stonnington
• Sunbury-Macedon Ranges
• Waverley
• Whitehorse
• Whittlesea

Awards are given across a maximum of 23 categories in each awards region. Leader readers are able to nominate in up to 18 of these categories.

1. Automotive
   Motoring retailers, services and dealerships.
2. Fresh/Gourmet Food
   Bakeries, green grocers, delicatessens, butchers, gourmet food retailers.
3. Restaurant/Café
   Restaurants and cafes.
4. Hotel/Pub/Cellars
   Hotels, pubs, clubs, bars, bottle shops and liquor retailers.
5. Convenience Food
   Takeaway/Fast food outlets, local independent grocers and milk bars.
6. House & Home
   Electrical and furniture retailers, giftware & homeware retailers.
7. Trade/Garden/Hardware
   Plumbers, electricians, fencers, roofers, glaziers, handy services, garden centres and hardware or trade retailers. Only independents or independently operated franchises of national companies are eligible for this category.
8. Fitness/Wellbeing
   Fitness centres and gyms, natural therapy clinics, yoga and pilates schools, dance schools, health food retailers.
9. Health Services
   Medical centres, clinics, GPs, chiropractors, physiotherapists, dentists, pharmacies, osteopaths.
10. Hair/Beauty
    Hair salons, beauty clinics, tanning centres and day spas.
11. Real Estate
    Real estate agencies.
12. Business/Professional Services
    Lawyers, accountants, engineers, architects, childcare centres, tuition centres, training centres, mortgage brokers and financial services.
13. Travel & Tourism
    Travel agencies and tourism destinations eg. attractions and accommodation facilities.
14. Community Services/Not-For-Profit Organisation
    Not for profit organisations or businesses that assist the community eg. charities, libraries, government services.
15. Specialty Retailer/Services (Under 50 employees)
    Luggage & accessories, book shops, newsagencies, florists, crafts, wedding supplies, party supplies, repairs and alterations.
16. Fashion/Jewellery Retailer
    Clothing, footwear, accessories and jewellery retailers.
17. Large Retailer (Over 50 employees)
    Larger retailers.
18. New Business (under 18 months in operation)
    To be eligible for this category businesses must have been in operation for under 18 months.

To be eligible for all categories excluding Large Retailer, New Business and the major award categories a business/organisation must have less than 50 employees.

19. Employee Excellence Award**
    All finalists will be given the opportunity to nominate an employee for the Employee Excellence Award by submitting a nomination form included in their finalist kit.
20. Apprentice Excellence Award**
    All finalists will be given the opportunity to nominate an apprentice for the Apprentice Excellence Award by submitting a nomination form included in their finalist kit.
21. Community Contribution of the Year**
    Businesses and organisations that are major contributors to their local community in areas such as volunteering, financial contributions and environmental sustainability are eligible for this award. To be considered for this award, finalists can nominate their business/organisation by completing the ‘Community Contribution of the Year’ section of the finalist questionnaire included in their finalist kit.
22. Hall of Fame
    This is not a nominated award. Finalists will be inducted into the Leader Business Achiever Award's Hall of Fame if they have won their category award for three years in a row (including the current year), or if they have won the Business Achiever of the Year Award for two years concurrently.*
23. Business Achiever of the Year
    The Business Achiever of the Year is awarded to the finalist that receives the highest combined finalist questionnaire and mystery shopping results for each of the Business Achiever Awards regions.

Submitting Nominations

The Leader Business Awards is open to all local businesses and organisations in a given community region. This includes small to medium sized businesses, franchises and sole traders.

Anyone! Nominations for businesses can be lodged online at this website or by submitting an in-paper nomination form found in your local Leader newspaper. To nominate click here.
One nomination per person per category can be submitted.

The nomination period runs for four weeks in each award region. To view the nomination dates for each award region click here.

To view a list of award categories and their definitions click here.

If a business is nominated in more than one category, the nominations received will be compiled into the most appropriate category as determined by Leader. A business cannot win an award in more than one category unless that category is New Business or a major award category.

Some of the ways you can encourage your customers and clients to nominate your business in the Leader Business Achiever Awards include:

• Website – put details of how to nominate on your website.
• SMS, direct mail or email – your client and customer database about the awards.
• Posters and signage – create posters or signage for your shop front encouraging nominations.
• Nominate Now poster - download the Nominate Now poster from this website and display it on your shop front.

Click here for more ideas on how to promote your business!

All information provided to Leader Community Newspapers adheres to the privacy agreement at the bottom of the nomination form which appears in-paper and on this website. If you would like to receive information from Leader Community Newspapers, its sponsors or any of its affiliates please tick the box on the nomination form.

Finalists

To become a Leader Business Achiever Awards finalist your business/organisation must receive the maximum number of nominations in the relevant award category. Finalists are determined by the highest number of nominations received by the local community in each award category.

Five businesses in each award category will become category finalists.

1. Complete the Finalist Questionnaire:
   In order to be considered for a Leader Business Achiever Award you MUST complete the finalist questionnaire enclosed in the finalist kit.
2. Return the Finalist Questionnaire:
   The finalist questionnaire must be returned to the Leader Business Achiever Awards office by the due date outlined on the questionnaire. You can return your completed questionnaire via fax or post.
3. Book your tickets:
   Winners of the Leader Business Achiever Awards will be announced at the Awards Nights.
   The awards nights are popular events, so make sure you book your tickets now BEFORE TICKETS SELL OUT!
   Tickets can be purchased by completing and returning the ticket reservation form enclosed in the finalist kit or online at this website. To purchase tickets click here.

• Finalist certificate.
• Finalist sticker for use on shop fronts.
• Exclusive use of the official Leader Business Achiever Awards finalist logo for use in marketing and promotional materials.
• Opportunity to market and promote your business/organisation by providing a merchandise item or customer offer for inclusion in event gift bags handed to attendees at the awards night and/or provide a product or customer offer for giveaway at the awards night as a door prize.*
• Opportunity to advertise your achievement in the finalist feature in your local Leader Newspaper. Finalist businesses that purchase an advertisement in the finalist feature will receive a bonus listing at www.leaderawards.com.au**

* These opportunities are only available to businesses that purchase tickets to the Awards Night.
** Bonus online listings will be for a limited period and the format and design of the listing will be the decision of Leader.

Some of the ways you can let your customers and clients know you have become a finalist in the Leader Business Achiever Awards are:

• Promote via:
  • email signature
  • business cards
  • stationery
  • merchandise
  • newsletter
  • promotional flyers
• Website – put details of your achievements on your website.
• SMS, direct mail or email – your client and customer database.
• Posters and signage – create posters or signage for your shop front.
• Logo – display the Leader Business Achiever Awards finalist logo on all of your promotional materials. See the Promote Your Business form in your finalist kit for details.
• Finalist sticker – display the finalist sticker in your shop front.
• Advertise – celebrate your success and thank your customers and clients by advertising in your local Leader newspaper and/or the Leader Business Achiever Awards finalist feature. For details of your local advertising consultant call (03) 9875 8333.

Click here for more ideas on how to promote your achievement!

The Leader Business Achiever Awards finalist feature is an advertising feature that gives finalists the chance to advertise their success and thank their customers and clients for their support.

Finalists will be contacted to participate in the finalist feature closer to the time of it appearing in the relevant local Leader newspaper.

Judging

Part 1: Finalist Questionnaire Judging

The finalist questionnaire is a key judging component of the Leader Business Achiever Awards. The finalist questionnaire gives you the opportunity to provide insight into your business and demonstrate what sets you apart from your competitors.

Questions are weighted and all finalist questionnaires submitted by the due date are judged by representatives from the Victorian Government and VECCI.

* All submissions are confidential. Any business that does not return their questionnaire will be ineligible to move forward in the judging process. Judges have the right to not award a category if they are not satisfied with the results.

Part 2: Mystery Shop Audits

Finalists in each category who have returned their questionnaire will receive a mystery shop audit from Mystery Shopping Auditing Australasia (MSAa). The audit will assess each business on the following areas:

• Store Appearance
• Products & Services
• Employee Appearance & Service Manner
• Employee Product/Service Knowledge

This section creates a benchmark between businesses, identifying strengths and opportunities for growth. These results, combined with questionnaire responses will determine the category winners.

Part 3: Winners

The results of the finalist questionnaire and mystery shop audit are combined to determine the Leader Business Achiever Award winners.

Winners will be announced at the Leader Business Achiever Awards nights.

The Leader Business Achiever Awards include five major award categories. These include:

• Employee Excellence Award
• Apprentice Excellence Award
• Community Contribution of the Year
• Business Achiever of the Year
• Hall of Fame

Apprentice Excellence and Employee Excellence Awards

• Nominations are submitted by finalist businesses/organisations.
• Finalist businesses/organisations must complete the relevant nomination form included in their finalist kit and return it with their finalist questionnaire to Leader by the due date.
• Finalists are determined by Leader.
• Winners are determined by representatives from the VECCI.

Community Contribution of the Year Award

• Nominations are submitted by finalist businesses/organisations.
• Finalist businesses/organisations must complete the relevant section of their finalist questionnaire and return it to Leader by the due date.
• Winners are determined by representatives from the VECCI.

Business Achiever of the Year

The Business Achiever of the Year is awarded to the finalist business that achieves the highest combined finalist questionnaire and mystery shop audit scores for their Leader Business Achiever Awards region.

Hall of Fame

A business that wins their award category for three consecutive years or wins the Business Achiever of the Year award for two consecutive years is inducted into the Leader Business Achiever Awards Hall of Fame. These inductions take place at the Leader Business Achiever awards night.

Awards Nights

Eleven awards nights will be held between August and October, and each awards night will host up to three awards regions. Dates will vary depending on your local awards region. Details of the awards night will be posted online approximately six weeks prior to the event and tickets can be purchased by completing the ticket reservation form located in the finalist kit, or online at this website closer to the date of the event.

Awards night and ticket reservation enquiries can be directed to:

Event Management Group (EMG)
E: leaderawards@emgevents.com.au
P: (03) 9866 7182
F: (03) 9866 7183

The Leader Business Achiever Awards is a great opportunity to celebrate your success and the success of the local business community with your peers, employees, family members and key figures in the local community.

The awards nights are hosted by an MC and include dinner, entertainment and the awards presentation.

As a finalist we strongly encourage you to attend the awards night, or nominate a representative to attend on your behalf. Your business must be represented at the Leader Business Achiever Awards night to be eligible to win the major award: Business Achiever of the Year.

Join us in celebrating the 2008 Leader Business Achiever Awards!

No – category winners
Yes – Business Achiever of the Year winner

Whilst it is not compulsory to attend the awards night, we strongly suggest that a representative of your business/organisation be present. There are many networking and profiling opportunities and it's also a fabulous evening to celebrate with your staff.

1. Online
Go to www.leaderawards.com.au and click on the ‘Book tickets’ button.

2. Post
Print and complete a Reservation Form and post to:

Event Management Group (EMG)
PO Box 6486, St Kilda Road, Central Melbourne VIC 8008

* Note: Cheques must be payable to Event Management Group. Payment of registration fees must accompany all registration forms.

3. Fax
Print and complete a Reservation form and fax to, (03) 9866 7183

All ticket booking enquiries should be directed to:

Event Management Group (EMG)
E: leaderawards@emgevents.com.au
P: (03) 9866 7182
F: (03) 9866 7183

* A cancellation policy applies to all reservations. Please see the Reservation Form for your awards region to view our cancellation policy.

Winners

All award winners receive the following:

• Winner certificate.
• Winner sticker for use on shop fronts.
• Exclusive use of the official Leader Business Achiever Awards winner logo for use in marketing and promotion materials.
• Photo of the winner and their team at the awards night.
• Special advertising offer.
• Editorial coverage of the Leader Business Achiever Awards night in their local Leader Newspaper.
• Online listing in a winners’ directory at www.leaderawards.com.au. This listing will include the name of each winning business and a link to their business website.*

* Online listings will be for a limited period and the format and design of the listing will be the decision of Leader.

Business Achiever of the Year winners also receive:

• A VECCI business training voucher
• Editorial in their local Leader newspaper to promote the business’ achievements.

Some of the ways you can promote your business as a winner of a Leader Business Achiever Award include:

• Promote via:
  • email signature
  • business cards
  • stationery
  • merchandise
  • newsletter
  • promotional flyers
• Website – put details of your achievements on your website.
• SMS, direct mail or email – your client and customer database.
• Posters and signage – create posters or signage for your shop front.
• Logo – display the Leader Business Achiever Awards winner logo on all of your promotional materials. See the Promote Your Business form in your finalist kit for details.
• Winner sticker – display the winner sticker in your shop front.
• Advertise – celebrate your success and thank your customers and clients by advertising in your local Leader newspaper and/or the Leader Business Achiever Awards winner feature.*
  For details of your local advertising consultant call (03) 9875 8333.

Click here for more ideas on how to promote your achievement!

* Winner Features are run at the discretion of Leader newspaper sales management.

The Leader Business Achiever Awards winners' feature is an advertising feature that gives award winners the chance to advertise their success and thank their customers and clients for their support.

Winners will be contacted to participate in the winners' feature closer to the time of it appearing in the relevant local Leader newspaper.

* Winner Features are run at the discretion of Leader Community Newspapers.

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