by Julie White, chief operating officer, Hospitality New Zealand
"Entry to Hospitality New Zealand’s Awards for Excellence 2019 is now open. Every year Hospitality New Zealand hosts NZ’s leading nationwide hospitality industry awards, recognising excellence among businesses all over the country in the accommodation, and food and beverage sectors.
The 22nd annual Awards for Excellence ceremony and dinner will take place in Hawke’s Bay on October 17, as part of Hospitality New Zealand’s annual conference (which takes place from October 15-17).
Hospitality New Zealand introduced the Awards for Excellence to celebrate the successes and achievements of our members, and to showcase the high standard of experience they work hard to create for both their guests and the teams that work for them. We know that hospitality operators are often time poor, and the chance to take a step back and take stock of what you have achieved so far, and what your future goals for your business are, can sometimes feel like a luxury.
The Awards for Excellence provide a fantastic opportunity for hospitality professionals to take that time to acknowledge and be acknowledged, for their dedication and commitment. The Awards are a great time to look up and celebrate the good work that the hospitality industry does, and the great services and benefits that it provides to guests, to staff and to the wider community.
For the finalists and winners at the Awards for Excellence, the experience is a fantastic opportunity for them to be recognised by their peers as industry leaders. Many award-winners have fed back to Hospitality New Zealand that the experience has also been morale-boosting for their employees, who feel that their hard work has been recognised and rewarded. Being able to place a winner or finalist plaque in pride of place, on your reception desk, or as a logo on your website or social media, has also helped several successful participants to boost their profile and image among guests, and potential guests, who are swayed by the chance to stay at an award-winning establishment over a competitor.
According to Michael Friend, who has been an Awards for Excellence judge for four years, and is also a member of Hospitality New Zealand’s Hall of Fame, the benefits of entering the Awards for Excellence are numerous and significant. Here are just a few of the benefits Michael told us could be gained by making an entry application and kick-starting your Awards for Excellence journey:
- “The opportunity to engage further with your staff, patrons and the community to complete a full ‘health check’ of your business.”
- “The opportunity to celebrate all of the great things you have collectively achieved and to ‘flush’ out good ideas for the future.”
- “The benefits of being judged against your peers.”
- “The benefits of being recognised as an industry leader in your field and the opportunity to widely promote your excellence.”
For 2019, we will be introducing a number of new categories which will benefit accommodation members. This year, for the first time, we will be celebrating New Zealand’s growing luxury market in its own category, with the introduction of the award for the Best Luxury Accommodation. Also, for the first time, we will be opening up the award for Best Redeveloped Accommodation, in to two accommodation categories, one for Best Redeveloped Motel, and one for Best Redeveloped Hotel. Out of a total of 19 award categories this year, there are plenty of other accommodation categories to consider entering, while larger hotels with restaurants or bars may also want to consider entering our food and beverage related categories, such as Best Bar or Best Restaurant.
This year, Hospitality New Zealand will be operating a self-nomination process to enter the Awards. Entry to the Awards for Excellence 2019 is open to all Hospitality New Zealand members. If you wish to join us at the Awards for Excellence 2019 you can join Hospitality New Zealand and then make your Awards entry. You can find the full list of categories and information on how to enter the Awards for Excellence 2019 at our dedicated award website.
To join us this year at the industry’s most prestigious event, make sure you head to awards.hospitality.org.nz to enter the Awards for Excellence 2019."
Julie White is the chief operating officer of Hospitality New Zealand.
