Categories & criteria

For the UK train operator providing the most outstanding customer service and demonstrating overall business excellence.

Eligibility: The award is open to any passenger or freight train operator within the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for excellence in the following areas:

• Service to customers 
• Revenue growth
• Development and introduction of new services and products
• Performance improvements
• Safety and security achievements
• Effective communication with customers
• Examples of integration with other transport modes such as bus, coach, tram, bike, air, marine, road freight and the pedestrian.

 

For the company demonstrating excellence within the UK rail industry's supplier network.

Eligibility: The award is open to any business - including suppliers, consultants, manufacturers, logistics or transport companies - providing products or services within the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of one or more of the following:

• Provision of quality services and products to the industry
• The positive impact on the industry of the company's services or products
• Innovation in the use of technology to improve supplier/supply chain efficiency
• Positive benefits of collaboration with partners
• The reduction of the impact of supplier's operations on the environment
• Improved business performance and cost management following process improvements.

For the most successful internal communications strategy/campaign by a company.

Eligibility: This award is open to any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of:

• Communications programmes that promote improved organisational effectiveness and therefore business performance, through staff engagement
• A detailed outline of communication goals and objectives at the start of the project, actions taken and appropriate measurement and evaluation at the end of it
• The effect the programme has had on improving organisational behaviours and business performance.

 

For the most successful PR campaign.

Eligibility: This award is open to any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of:

• Context in which the campaign was developed
• Pre-campaign planning and organisation buy-in
• The quality and innovative use of the techniques employed during the campaign
• The thinking behind how and why target audiences were selected
• The business benefits of the campaign including reputation and awareness
• Return on investment demonstrating value for money for budget spent
• Evaluation of the campaign's success including a review of key message delivery and measuring against strategic objectives

 

For the most successful marketing campaign.

Eligibility: The award is open to any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry. 

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of:

• The commercial and/or communications context in which the campaign was developed
• The marketing techniques used in creating and structuring the campaign
• Communication effectiveness and the originality of the messages and materials
• The versatility and effective use of various media (both external and internal if appropriate)
• Indications of approximate costs involved
• The results/benefits realised through the campaign - including awareness, sales, profit and development of new markets
• Above average return on investment/demonstration of value for money for budgeted spend
• Key learnings including post campaign evaluation and measurement against tactical/strategic objectives.

 

For information technology projects, products, systems or services within the rail industry.

Eligibility: The award is open to any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of:

• A clear vision of what the IT project, product, system or service had to achieve
• How the IT projects, products, systems or services were developed
• How the use of IT facilitated business growth or gave an advantage to you or your customers
• How the relevant parties worked together to identify and solve problems and achieve success
• Gains in revenue or market share
• The overall benefits to the industry or its customers

 

For the introduction of the most successful new idea or outstanding business performance at a UK passenger rail station.

Eligibility: The award is open to any company involved with the provision or introduction of any product or service at a UK passenger rail station.

Criteria: The judges will look for examples of:

Overall benefit to the rail passenger including:

• improvements to the station environment including better waiting facilities or new retail outlets
• improved access (particularly for the disabled)
• information services
• safety and security improvements
• innovation

Benefits to the train or station operator including:

• creation of additional revenue streams
• aesthetic improvement
• increases in customer numbers
• efficiency improvements

Integrated transport with other modes such as bus, coach, tram, bike, air, marine and pedestrians.

For the best contribution to improving integration between the UK rail network and other modes of transport. 

Eligibility: The award is open to any private or public sector organisation in the UK. The initiative must be in the UK, and must improve integration between rail and another mode (or modes) of transport. Joint bids from several organisations are welcome.

Criteria: The award will be given to the initiative developed in the last year that has provided the best overall contribution to improving integrated transport for the UK railway. It could include for example the provision of passenger information, integrated ticketing, and interchange facilities at stations. There is no preference for applications from a particular interchange mode. The judges will give consideration to innovation, scale and size of the initiative, the possibility for it to be replicated elsewhere, business or environmental benefits, and the extent to which it improves the passenger experience.

For the company demonstrating excellence within the UK rail industry's supplier network.

Eligibility: The award is open to any business - including suppliers, consultants, manufacturers, logistics or transport companies - providing products or services within the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of one or more of the following:

• Provision of quality services and products to the industry
• The positive impact on the industry of the company's services or products
• Innovation in the use of technology to improve supplier/supply chain efficiency
• Positive benefits of collaboration with partners
• The reduction of the impact of supplier's operations on the environment
• Improved business performance and cost management following process improvements.

For the company demonstrating overall rail freight business excellence.

Eligibility: The award is open to any business operating within the UK's rail freight industry

Criteria: The judges will look for excellence in one or more of the following areas:

 

• Development and introduction of new services and products for the rail freight industry
• Adaptation of current services and products
• Attraction of new freight to rail
• Innovation and flexibility in meeting customer requirements
• Communication with customers and suppliers
• Customer comment
• Performance improvements
• Revenue and business growth; job creation .

 

For the introduction of the most successful railway safety or security improvements.

Eligibility: The award is open to any company involved with the introduction of any safety or security development, product or service into the UK rail industry.

Criteria: The judges will look for examples of:

Evidence of safety improvements and enhancement through:

• introduction of new products and services
• improved systems of work or work environments
• new training standards
• improved company safety performance such as falling accident rates
• innovative application of existing products and services
• impact on staff and customers alike

Evidence of security improvements and enhancement through:
• introduction of new equipment, products and services
• application of technology, products or systems from other industries
• benefits to staff, passengers, customers or neighbours
• business benefits.

For the development and introduction of the most successful environmental innovation within the UK rail industry.

Eligibility: The award is open to any company within the UK railway industry that can demonstrate a leading commitment to reducing environmental impact through environmental innovation in areas such as product, service or system.

Criteria: The award will be given to an innovation that measurably contributes towards sustainable development. The judges will give consideration to the reason for the innovation, the design of the improvement, the scale and nature of the current and any projected economic, business, environmental or social benefits of the innovation.

For civil, mechanical or electrical engineering projects or services within the rail industry.

Eligibility: The award is open to any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry. 

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of:

• The development of innovative technical ideas, methods, products or services
• The benefits to railway performance
• The financial benefits
• The benefits to the business of the company
• Adherence to budget and timescales.

For the most outstanding young manager working within the UK rail industry. 

Eligibility: Any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry may nominate a manager under the age of 35*.

Criteria: The judges will be looking for a person with the proven ability to achieve at a level beyond that normally expected from managers of this age and experience. This award is for excellence in any of the functions relating to the management of a rail business.

*Someone whose 35th birthday is after 31 December 2011.

For the most outstanding business manager working within the UK rail industry.

Eligibility: Any company that conducts business within the UK rail industry may nominate a manager.

Criteria: The judges will look for a proven ability in one or more of the following:

• Identify and address key business issues faced by the company
• Contribute to the growth of market share or development of new business
• Provide direction and leadership within their individual sphere of influence within the company
• Play a key supporting role in helping to achieve the company's goals.

The Electro Motive award is open to engineers making a valuable contribution through mechanical or electrical engineering projects within the Railfreight sector.

Eligibility: candidates must work and are in employment with a freight operating company or ROSCO within the freight sector.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of the following:

• Demonstrate strategic awareness and financial acumen.
• Personal involvement in the development of innovative technical & engineering ideas and solutions, methods, products or services which will deliver improved reliability and avilability of the rolling stock asset.
• Takes into consideration the role of the manufacturer, the operator and the maintainer within the industry

For the company demonstrating excellence in the provision of customer information and service to enhance the passenger railway experience.

Eligibility: This category is open to any organisation involved in the delivery of a passenger railway experience, including train companies, local authorities, developers, infrastructure service suppliers and station owners or operators.

Criteria: The judges will look for evidence of how Customer Information & Service Excellence has had a positive impact on business and financial performance and how it has improved the overall customer experience.

Entries should detail all aspects and types of investment made by the company to achieve quality customer service and be supported by examples of excellence and positive customer reaction in some or all of the following areas:

• Journey and transit experience, which includes environment through which the customer travels or comes into contact;
• Travel information provision, which includes information systems; information in disruption; staff behaviour and knowledge;
• Crisis management, which includes dissemination of customer critical information, support and resolution of the customer experience
• Value added services, which offer improved customer experience but are not commonly part of a rail organisation’s business model