The National Business Awards Programme is one of the most respected and toughly fought business contests in the UK and is the only all encompassing business awards programme able to consider micro-businesses against large corporations, allowing them to compete on a level playing field.
Leading judges scrutinised hundreds of entries from across the region to name just four finalists in each category. The finalists were selected as a result of being able to demonstrate strong leadership, engagement, innovation, ethics and real customer focus.
Chess was named as a 2008 finalist in the Corporate Social Responsibility and Badenoch & Clarke Business of the Year of the Year categories and received Highly Commended status in the Employer of the Year category. Chess’ success in the programme is testament to its aim to be recognised as a performance benchmark, not just in the telecoms industry but by organisations from other business sectors.
The judges, selected for their business acumen, experience and knowledge, were looking for evidence of businesses meeting the specific entry category criteria as well as the underlying values of ethics, success and innovation. Chess has a strong system of values at the core of its culture, centred on quality and spirit. Its success in this programme is evidence that this can be recognised.
As well as rewarding business success, the National Business Awards Programme allows organisations to take an inward view and appreciate the progress they have made. This is the third year Chess has taken part in the National Business Awards programme, having being named as a finalist a total of 6 times, received two highly commended awards and winning the award for Business Improvement through People in 2006.
"We were proud to be named as a finalist in two categories again this year,” said Chief Executive, David Pollock. “Looking after the environment and having a positive impact on our community affects all our business processes so to be recognised in the CSR and Business of the Year categories shows that responsibility and values go hand in hand with building a successful business. It is part of our vision not to be known as the best of the best but to be known as the only ones who do what we do and Chess is hugely ambitious by nature. Therefore, whilst we are patting our backs for the awards we have won such as FCS Service Provider of the Year, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and our latest success in The National Business Awards, we are also focusing on what we need to do in order to win next year."