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February 1, 2022

Tips and Best Practices for Entering the 2022 IECRM Summit Awards

Submitting a nomination for an IECRM Summit Award is a simple process through our brand new submission platform. This year, IECRM has adopted the same online platform that IEC National uses and has aligned its categories making it easier than ever for members to apply their local entry to a national entry later in the fall. Entrants will be prompted to create an account or will use the same credentials they’ve previously used to submit an entry for a national award. For convenience, users are able to save their progress and finish later and are also able to access submissions after submittal.

Even though the online platform is user-friendly, there is a bit of preparation involved to make sure your entry is in tip-top shape. Nominations are due on Tuesday, March 22 at 11:59 PM, so the time to start planning your entry is now, especially if time and a dose of procrastination will be a challenge over the next couple of months.

Steps to Enter for an IECRM Summit Award

  1. Review the award categories and highlight those you would like to enter. For the 2022 Summit Awards, there are two award types – electrical project awards and company and individual awards. Click here for the full list of awards.
  2. Log in/create an account on the nomination platform (https://iecrm.awardsplatform.com/) and get familiar with the interface. If you have already submitted through IEC National, you will use the same credentials for the IECRM Summit Awards submissions.
  3. Gather information and documents to help support the writing process, i.e the scope of work, start and completion dates, etc. Tip:  Write your submissions in Word or Google Docs as a backup and reference for future submissions.
  4. Set up a time to interview the individuals closest to the project or individual you are submitting a nomination for, and ask them for more personal insight into how the project or individual displays excellence in the industry.
  5. Collect or solicit photos/videos of the project or individual to enhance your entry (make sure to get the proper permissions for photo usage).
  6. Have someone review your entry before final submission to double-check for errors or omissions. You may edit your entry after submitting, up until the entry deadline of Tuesday, March 22, at 11:59 PM.

We have asked Jill Farrand, Marketing Director, Weifield Group Contracting to provide additional tips and best practices for entering a nomination for an industry award. Weifield has won several industry awards including regional, national, and international awards that have gotten them noticed for the work that they do and helped to propel their business forward in many ways over the past several years.

Winning awards can certainly help a company in many different ways including attracting new business, boosting the overall morale within your company, and creating a sense of pride among those who work for your organization and your clients.

Presenting your entry in a compelling manner is critical to demonstrate to the judges that your entry deserves the win.

  • Give yourself time to prepare. Some key steps to incorporate into your timeline to submit your award might be: interviewing the project manager or team closest to the project, consolidating interview notes, creating an outline, writing and editing, locating and deciding on supporting photographs or documents, reviews by internal/external team members, and finalization. Another tip, because of the new online entry format, is to create all of your answers in a simple Word document with the correct character/word count limits, then copy/paste them into the final online form for submission.
     
  • Show why your organization/project deserves to win. The writing portion is where you need to convince judges that you’re a top contender for the award. Clear, concise, and compelling writing must be used here to win over the judges’ support. If you’re able to tie in relevant company and individual accomplishments, go for it. But even more critical is to convey “why” the work done on your project or by the individual being nominated is important to any one of these common challenges: (1) solving a problem, (2) addressing an issue, (3) innovating processes, (4) providing value, (5) supporting your company’s business mission, or 6) helping the community. There can be others, but the recommendation is that you state why this project matters and what is special about it. By weaving this in, you convey eagerness and determination as well as establish a meaningful connection to something bigger than just your organization.
     
  • Follow all the instructions. Understand everything being asked for in the entry form and make sure to address each element thoroughly. It’s all too easy to want to answer with one word or short statements, however, the new online format has character/ word count limits to encourage a thoughtful answer. Really think it through and tie back to the bigger picture every chance you get.
  • Present outcomes as well as output. What’s the difference? Output is what you have done, built, created, designed, etc. Outcome, however, includes the impact of the work, how you met goals and what happened as a result. Include any quantifiable metrics such as cost savings, efficiencies, productivity, etc. But also detail business impact — the significance of your work to your customer, end-user, the community, the industry (via innovation) – you get the idea.
  • Find your theme. Every story has a theme – or a story behind the story. Your organization may have helped to build a new, state-of-the-art hospital – and that in itself is amazing. But what drove your team to build it with the highest attention to detail? Did your team keep in mind patient ease and comfort while incorporating accommodations for the medical team’s latest technological advancements? Were you aware of how this building would serve the community and that patient perspective became your guiding star throughout construction? Find a theme and build that into your narrative.
     
  • Be different. It’s always good to ‘show’ in addition to ‘tell.’ So in putting support material together, go the extra mile to really show the work visually through images, printed materials (PDFs), videos, technology-at-work imaging, etc.
  • Do your research. If you haven’t yet, take a look at who won the awards last year. See if you can garner any insight from that review. Click here to see previous year’s award winners.
     
  • Edit, finalize, revise. Run your first draft past everyone who helped contribute to it – internally and externally – and incorporate all of the input and edit suggestions. You may need to revise a few times, but if you do this, you are assured that your nomination is strengthened with each round.

Now that you have these tips, get to work! The deadline for Summit Awards entries is Tuesday, March 22 at 11:59 PM. If you have questions, feel free to contact IECRM CEO Marilyn Akers Stansbury at [email protected] or 303.853.4886. We look forward to recognizing you at the 2022 Summit Awards Banquet!

IECRM Self-Pay Tuition Policy

 

Self-pay students who are employed with a member company must register and pay through the member company using the IECRM Flashpoint Enrollment Portal/Process in order to qualify for member rates.

Self-pay students that are employed with a member company but that do not register and pay through the member will be charged the non-member rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.


Self-pay students who are employed with a member company and require a payment plan will not qualify for the member rate and will be charged the non-member rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.


Self-pay students who do not work for a member company will continue to be charged the non-member rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.


To maximize association/membership benefits, ALL member companies are encouraged to register and pay for all enrolled apprentices utilizing internal payment arrangements and processes between employer and employee.


We value our IECRM members and apprentice community. We encourage all apprentices to be enrolled in the four-year apprenticeship program, earning, and learning their way toward Journeyworker licensure. We encourage all members to utilize the member discount for tuition, books and applicable fees to ensure the long-term support and success of the next-generation electrician.


(Payment Plans are available, please reference the Self Pay Payment Plan Policy.)


Self-Pay Payment Plan Policy


We offer the following arrangements for students that are unable to pay in full at the time of registration.


● Self-pay students will be charged the non-member rate.
● A 50% down payment of total semester tuition, books and applicable fees are due at registration.
● Remaining balance can be divided up to 3 additional monthly payments ($10.00 processing fee applies on each installment)
● All payments that are declined will incur a $20.00 NSF fee.

 

We encourage all students who are employed with a member company to work with their employer to register and pay through the IECRM Flashpoint Enrollment Portal/Process. This will ensure the student is paying the lowest possible rate for tuition, books and applicable fees.