Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year Award 2008

Award guidelines are subject to change year to year based on judges' feedback and requests. The guidelines listed here are for the 2008 competition only.

Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year Awards Submission and Judging Guidelines

The CEDIA Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year Award is given to the residential electronic systems professional member of CEDIA that represents the best of CEDIA.

Entrants for the Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year Award are judged on the following criteria:

• Company Structure
• Professionalism
• Profitability
• Growth
• Recognition in the Industry
• Service to the Industry
• Service to the Community
• Overall Success

Who Does the Judging?

The Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year is chosen by a panel of three judges who are each engaged in business, but not in the residential electronic systems industry. The panel is comprised of an accountant, an MBA, and an attorney. Please be aware that no data will be shared with CEDIA members or staff. The panelists will keep all information completely confidential.

Common Misunderstandings...

• My company is too small to enter
  
• Only the large companies will win this award
  
• Only Board Members enter and win
  
• My financials will be viewed by the Board

…THE TRUTH

• This award does not look at the size of a company but rather at the professionalism and profitability
  
• The panel is not aware if an entrant is a past or current Board member
  
• All information is assembled by an independent attorney and is judged by independent parties, being an accountant, an MBA, and an attorney. At no time will the financial information be shared with the board or staff of CEDIA

CEDIA’s Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year Award was established to award forward thinkers and industry leaders. We believe that these leaders can be a small or large company that is improving overall performance in all aspects of business. By recognizing superior performance CEDIA’s Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year Award establishes a benchmark for achievement. This year’s winner will raise the mark from last year, and next years winner will raise it even higher. Due to the high prestige of this award, past winners may not enter again.

Eligibility, Materials & Rules

Please compile your answers to the following questions, along with all requested materials and a copy of the entry form, into a presentation folder for the contest judges. You will need to provide a total of three (3) presentation folders, one for each of our judges. You must also fill out the online entry form. Please also provide one (1) additional presentation folder of only bullet point G-1.

Announcement of Winners

The Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year will be announced and the award will be given at CEDIA’s 2008 Electronic Lifestyles^® Awards Banquet, Saturday, September 6, 2008. Details on this formal awards banquet can be found in your EXPO 2008 registration brochure or online at www.cedia.org/expo. You are strongly encouraged to have at least one (1) company representative attend the banquet.

Award Use Rules

Recipients of awards presented by the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association “CEDIA” are allowed to display the awards that they have won from CEDIA. All display or advertisement of such awards must be truthful and may not be misleading, inaccurate or ambiguous. Specifically, but without limitation, the recipients and member companies who employ individual recipients, must abide by the following rules.

1. Any company which displays or advertises a CEDIA award must correctly identify the recipient of the award, and if the recipient is an individual employee of the company, the company must state so.
   
2. If the award recipient is an individual, a company may display the award only so long as that individual is employed by the company, unless the individual grants express permission for the company to display the award after termination of the employee’s employment.
   
3. All awards must be displayed or advertised with the correct name of the award.
   
4. The entity that displays the award must state conspicuously: the year in which the award was won, or that the recipient is a “past recipient” of the award.
   
5. Any display or advertisement of the CEDIA award may not include any statement or implication of CEDIA’s approval or sponsorship of the entity displaying the award or any other entity, other than the fact that the award was presented by CEDIA to the recipient.
   
6. No company may display CEDIA’s logo in connection with displaying or advertising the award unless that company is a member of CEDIA, or unless the CEDIA logo is incorporated into the award as presented by CEDIA.
   
7. No entity may alter the appearance of the award itself or any reproduction of the award for display purposes.
   
8. No award may be duplicated or copied except by photographic means and then only for inclusion in advertising the award.

Entry Fee and Deadline for Submission

There will be a fee of $190.00 for your entry. The cost includes one ticket to the 2008 Electronic Lifestyles^® Awards Banquet where the winners are announced. The ticket will be registered under the person submitting the entry. Entries must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. (Pacific) June 6, 2008. Entries received after June 6, 2008 will not be returned.

Send your entries to:

Conley & Rosenberg, P.C.
Attn: Philip Conley
5080 Spectrum Drive
Suite 950 E
Addison, TX 75001
Ph: 972-364-9700

Submission Confirmation

Please do not call to verify that your materials were received. Confirmation will be emailed to you, so please be sure to provide a correct email address.

Any entry that fails to follow these rules may be graded down or disqualified from this competition.

ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS CONTRACTOR OF THE YEAR SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

About Your Business:

A. Company structure

Tell us about your business philosophy. If you have a formalized philosophy and/or mission statement, please provide a copy.

Provide a copy of your company’s organizational chart, or list the positions and responsibilities of those in your organization (directors, project managers, service technicians, sales, etc.)

List the type (showroom, retail, commercial, home office, etc.) and number of location(s) your company operates. Include any model or showcase sites. Do NOT include any clients’ homes.

Photo essay: Include photographs of your business location. The number and breadth of these photos is up to you. Organize the photos in a photo album or in plastic photo sheets in a 3-ring binder. Include a brief description of each photo.

Provide samples of your standard company paperwork. At your option, you may include a proposal, work order, change order, field documentation, etc.

Outline your project flowchart from first client contact to final project “sign off”.

Describe your company’s PR efforts.

B. Professionalism

List all of the services your company offers clients, including after the sale services.

Do you maintain contact with your clients after the sale? If yes, how and what materials, if any, do you use (e.g. brochures, newsletters, etc.). Please provide a sampling of any materials.

Submit any additional information that demonstrates your commitment to quality.

C. Profitability/Growth

Include the three most recent federal income tax returns for your business, along with end-of-year balance sheets and P & L statements for all three years. For instance, if your fiscal year runs from January 1-December 31, you would provide information from 2004, 2005, and 2006. If you do not maintain end-of-year balance sheets and P & L statements, provide other verifiable evidence of financial performance. (This information will be kept confidential by the judges and will not be reviewed by any CEDIA members or staff. All financial information will be returned to you after the judging.)

D. Recognition in the industry

Provide at least three, but no more than ten letters of reference from manufacturers or distributors.

E. Service to the industry

List the names of any professional associations/organizations of which your company is a member.

Outline any in-house training programs that you may have.

F. Service to the community

List any community or trade organizations that you, the company CEO or owner actively participate in, and briefly describe the activities and positions held.

Outline any volunteer or pro bono work you or your employees do/have done on your company’s behalf.

G. Overall success

Submit information on three design/installation jobs your company completed in the past 12 months. You must include at least one photograph of each finished project and your client’s contact information, including phone numbers. Contest judges may contact these clients to discuss the clients’ satisfaction with your company. Include any documentation produced by your company in your execution of the job. (e.g., wiring schematics, project schedules, equipment lists, project tracking info, etc.). The projects don’t need to be your biggest or most complex; small projects are sometimes the hardest to document cost-effectively. If you do include a large project, restrict its documentation pack to less than 200 pages. Do NOT include any blueprints unless they were specifically produced (or modified) by your company for the project.

You may provide no more than 10 thank you letters or letters of referral from clients.

H. Other

Briefly provide any additional information you feel the judges should know about your company, which has not been covered above, as they select the Electronic Systems Contractor of the Year.

Click here to enter.