Judging

JUDGING OVERVIEW
The Business Ethics Award Buffalo Niagara recognizes companies that exemplify the highest standards of ethical behavior and practice. Awards are presented in three categories based on the number of employees:

• Small: 5-25 employees (FTEs)
• Mid-sized: 26-100 employees (FTEs)
• Large: 100+ employees (FTEs)

Entries are judged by business, professional, academic, and community leaders. There are two rounds of judging, a preliminary round and a finalist round.

JUDGING
Judges for the Business Ethics Award are volunteers who serve without compensation. They are experienced business practitioners and business ethicists who are committed to raising the standards for ethical business practice in the Buffalo Niagara region. All judges are given an orientation to the Business Ethics Award, including a review of the Business Ethics Award judging criteria.

JUDGING ETHICS
For the award process to be effective there must be unquestioned fairness and objectivity for all concerned.

• The decisions of the panel of judges are final.
• Judges are assigned so as to avoid conflicts of interest.
• Judges are asked to reveal any significant present or past dealings with the company in consideration for the award.

PRELIMINARY ROUND
Niagara University students, with oversight of faculty and BEA board members, perform an initial evaluation of the entries in their size category based upon a company’s responses to the Business Ethics Award judging criteria and select up to three finalists per category. The finalists from each preliminary panel are then submitted to the final panel for review and final selection.

 FINALIST ROUND
One panel of seven judges reviews entries. Judges will look for the following:

• Completeness of submission
• Executive commitment to ethics – leadership
• Internal ethics program and employee buy-in
• A formal ethics program and/or a strong demonstration that ethics is part of the culture
• Examples of internal and external ethical practices in action
• Identification of past ethical challenges and how they were resolved
• Ethical commitment to workplace, customers, community

At the judges’ discretion, the award may not be given in a particular category.

VERIFICATION
Each organization is required to sign a Verification Statement that reads: “To the best of my knowledge, the information provided herein is true and complete.”

CONFIDENTIALITY
All Business Ethics Award entry documentation is treated as confidential. Applicants are not expected to provide or reveal proprietary information regarding products, processes, or services.