Category Description
This award is aimed at any organisation of less than 50 employees, ostensibly established to offer a sustainable product and/or service that either has created an innovative new way to solve an existing environmental problem and/or creates a greener version of an existing product/service. It can be a new service or product or solution, or an existing one delivered more sustainably than the rest of the sector.
Organisations must be able to demonstrate environmentally-friendlier business practices across its entire operation – this will include policies concerning waste prevention, recycling, energy efficiency and water conservation or involving stakeholders in greening the business.
The judging panel will be looking for details on how the organisation was developed or adapted, its goals and ethos and how the need for the organisation or sustainable service was identified; with verifiable examples of the organisational ethos in practice. The organisation will also need to demonstrate what challenges were overcome and how they were managed.
There is no specific time scale for this award, however, the organisation must have made significant developments within the 2015-17.
Criteria
Judges will be looking for evidence of the following points within the supplied application form (weighting percentages in brackets):
- Details of the service innovation, how it was developed, its goals and ethos and how a need was identified for the product; (30%)
- Evidence and effectiveness of the product and the verifiable reductions to the environment compared to delivery in an unsustainable method of delivery, whether it is a unique / patented service or whether it encourages and leads other businesses to change the way they think about sustainable practices; (40%)
- Awareness raising to promote and support the environmental benefits of the service incl. market reaction, industry awards won, press coverage gained; (15%)
- Details of how the organisation has been built since it’s inception, including any investment the service attracted and whether the service has led to financial success and further services; (15%)