2015 Standing 'O' Application

Standing ‘O’ Awards

Honoring BUSINESS EXCELLENCE Oct. 15

Registration Open

Nov. 10

Standing O registration closes. Packets due.

Dec. 10 Winners announced in the December issue of the Business Observer.

Trophies and commemorative printer’s plate delivered.

Points awarded based on the following: Strategic Planning Information & Data Leadership Customer Focus Process Management Community Relations Employment Growth Increase in Revenue Increase in Profits NON-DISCLOSURE

The Observer acknowledges that all information submitted on this application contains the CONFIDENTIAL information of The Company, and agrees that the CONFIDENTIAL information will be shared only with the panel of judges after execution of a non-disclosure agreement between The Observer and individual judges on the panel.

BUSINESS CATEGORIES Agriculture Financial Services Health Care Home Based Business Hospitality Manufacturing Non-Profit Professional Services Retail Small Business (5 or less employees) Technical Services

PACKAGES Included:

Standing ‘O’ Application Fee Business Profile in December Business Observer (45,000 Circulation) Participation Banner and Window Decal

$250:

Small Business Profile (5”x2)

$400:

Expanded Business Profile (5”x4”)

$650:

Large Business Profile, Including Company Photo (5”x8”) (Taken by Observer Team)

LV11065

TIME TABLE

Contact your Observer Representative today! 386-447-9723

Standing ‘O’ Awards

Honoring BUSINESS EXCELLENCE

Contact your Observer Representative today! 386-447-9723 Companies will be judged based on data from the business performance matrix. The matrices will be evaluated by the partner council and points will be awarded based on:

ELIGIBILITY

Strategic Planning Information & Data Leadership Customer Focus Process Management Community Relations Employment Growth Increase in Revenue Increase in Profits

APPLICATION PROCESS Return completed packet to the Observer no later than November 10, 2015. Do not submit any additional materials at this time. If your company is selected as a finalist, a panel member will contact you for supplementary information.

Please note that it is not mandatory to complete all components of the application; however, completeness is considered by the panel. Please do your best to follow the directions on the supporting statement page. This will separate your business from the other participants in your category.

Do not alter or revise this entry form. Responses to questions should be limited to the space provided. If clarification of an answer to explain unique circumstances is necessary, you may attach up to one page of single-spaced endnotes to the entry.

Each endnote should clearly reference a specific question and page number.

Please note the following recommendations:

Candidates for the Standing ‘O’ Awards must have completed at least 2 years of operation as of October 1, 2015.

SELECTION PROCESS All participants are required to complete the application form, supporting statement, and questionnaire to their best abilities. Entries will be reviewed by the partner council.

All finalists will be contacted by the council for an interview.

All data will remain confidential. The total scores inputted on the questionnaire will be added to determine the Standing ‘O’ winner in each business category. Total overall points from all business categories will determine the Overall Standing ‘O’ winner. Additional data and verification may be required in the event of a tie.

For questions where percentage reductions are requested, use 100% as the base level. Nothing can be reduced more than 100%, and, thus, no answer should be greater than or, in many cases, equal to 100%.

If your company uses metrics that differ from those requested, please attempt to convert to the requested metric, and also submit the actual company metric in an endnote. If still unknown, leave the space blank. DO NOT answer “0.”

Data from January through October of 2014 should be reported and compared to data from January through October of 2015.

APPLICATION FEE FORM Standing ‘O’ Awards honoring Business Excellence

$250 includes:

$400 includes:

• Standing ‘O’ Application Fee • Small Business Profile • Participation Banner • Window Decal

• Standing ‘O’ Application Fee • Expanded Business Profile • Participation Banner • Window Decal

$650 includes: • Standing ‘O’ Application Fee • Large Business Profile w/ photo • Participation Banner • Window Decal

Company Name: Company Location: Make checks payable to Palm Coast Observer Or to pay by credit card please complete the following information:

Amount to be charged: $ Open Billing:

Type of Card:

Amex

Discover/Novus

Mastercard

Visa

Credit card # Expiration Date Card Holder’s Name: Billing Address: City: State: Zip Code: Phone: Fax: Authorized Signature: Date: Please select up to three categories that apply to your business: Agriculture Financial Services Health Care

Home Based Business Hospitality Manufacturing

Non-Profit Professional Services Retail

Small Business Technical Services

II. GENERAL INFORMATION ID# (for internal use only): Location (City): Primary product or Service: Management Owner (or equivalent): Title: Phone:

Years in business:

Years in current position:

Contact Information for Person Submitting Entry Name: Title: Street or P.O. Box: City: State: Postal Code: Phone: Fax: E-mail:

I. SUPPORTING STATEMENT

A supporting statement must be included with your entry. It may not exceed three pages and typeface may be no smaller than 10-point.

It should include essay responses covering history, products and services, achievements, and future plans. Please have each response section numbered and labeled based on the list to the right. Please describe achievements as well as obstacles overcome, and cite statistical results whenever possible. If space allows within the 3-page allotment, facility and product photos, process flow diagrams, and performance graphs are encouraged.

All information submitted will remain confidential.

Standing ‘O’ Awards honoring Business Excellence

1. History—Give a brief description of the history and nature of the company and its operation.

2. Products and Services— Describe the products and/ or services provided by your company and any unique challenges faced.

3. Achievements—Describe the key initiatives and programs, and performance results that distinguish your company as a high-performance, first-class operation. Include significant competitive improvements, and other achievements, recognitions, or awards received.

4. Future Plans—What are the short- and long-term strategic goals for your company, and how do they reflect your objectives?

Describe current improvement projects and near-term plans and explain how they will ensure that your company remains competitive in the future.

Directions: Please rate the following answers on a scale of 1-5.

1- Strongly Disagree 2- Disagree 3- Neutral/Undecided 4- Agree 5- Strongly Agree

STRATEGIC PLANNING

1. Our organization has a strategic plan.

2. Our entire team understands what our strategic plan is.

3. Our organization measures and reports effectiveness of the strategic plan.

TOTAL SCORE FOR STRATEGIC PLANNING:____________

INFORMATION & DATA

1. Operational, performance and financial data is shared across the organization.

2. Data is used in decision making and forecasting.

3. Communication is open and feedback is frequent across the organization.

TOTAL SCORE FOR INFORMATION & DATA:___________

LEADERSHIP

1. Leaders communicate why we are in business.

2. Team members and departments know what needs to be accomplished for our organization to be successful.

3. Training and development of team members is a priority for our organization.

4. Control charts and graphs are used to measure and report progress of our organization.

5. People trust each other in our organization.

6. Management implements changes in a timely manner.

TOTAL SCORE FOR LEADERSHIP:___________

CUSTOMER FOCUS

1. We have a process in determining the needs and desires of our customers.

2. Team members are empowered to take necessary steps to satisfy the customer.

3. Data is gathered to measure customer satisfaction.

4. Our customers brag about us.

5. We know who our internal customers are.

TOTAL SCORE FOR CUSTOMER FOCUS:___________

PROCESS MANAGEMENT:

1. Team members are aware how their functions support the overall process.

2. Our team is dedicated to following the process.

3. Our standard operating procedures are written and reviewed.

4. We use control charts and graphs to measure our process.

TOTAL SCORE FOR PROCESS MANAGEMENT:___________

COMMUNITY RELATIONS

1. Our organization is dedicated to supporting a civic cause.

2. Our team members are encouraged to be involved in civic causes.

3. Our team members are required to provide community service.

TOTAL SCORE FOR COMMUNITY RELATIONS:___________

GENERAL INFORMATION

Staffing Total employees as of October 1, 2014 ______ Total employees as of October 1, 2015 ______ From January 1, 2015 - October 1, 2015 our revenue increased/decreased by_____%.

From January 1, 2015 - October 1, 2015 our net profits increased/decreased by_____%.

List three major awards you received in the last year: (Please describe the award and who presented the award.)

1. ____________________________________________ 2. ____________________________________________ 3. ____________________________________________

Standing ‘O’ Awards honoring Business Excellence