Welcome to the
Australia & New Zealand
Inspiring Workplaces Awards.
2024 Finalists Announced March 21, 2024
Congratulations to our 2024 finalists
Celebrating in style
Attending our awards ceremony provides a valuable opportunity to celebrate your achievements, network with industry peers, gain recognition for your work and showcase your expertise.
In Australia we will be planning a unique lunch for our finalists and winners. Details will be published here soon
Some of our
Top Inspiring Workplaces
Open for entries in 2025 now!
For the first time in our history, we are opening for next year immediately. We want to make it easier than ever to enter, by being open all year round. 2025 will be an extra special year to win too, as we will be celebrating our 10th edition of the awards.
The Inspiring Workplaces Awards recognize and celebrate organizations that have created exceptional PeopleFirst workplaces. For over a decade, the awards have honored those that have created a positive and inspiring work culture for their people – where they feel like they belong, resulting in increased engagement, productivity, and overall success.
The awards are open to organizations of all sizes and industries. Your entry is reviewed by an independent expert judging panel. Their knowledge and experience and our key criteria is used to determine the Top Inspiring Workplaces.
Being named as a Top Inspiring Workplace in Australasia is a significant achievement for any organization. It not only acknowledges the company’s commitment to creating a positive and inspiring culture people believe in, but it also helps attract and retain top talent, boost morale, and enhance your organization’s reputation.
Who we are
Why Enter?
The long list of benefits of entering the Awards, and being named a Top Inspiring Workplace, include:
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Win worldwide acclaim and demonstrate you put your people first
Internally and to the outside world
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Retain and attract the best people
Strengthen your employer brand by being recognised as a Top Inspiring Workplace
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Recognizing your team’s hard work
They work all year round to help enhance your people experience
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Customers buy from Inspiring Workplaces
Gain trust and a competitive advantage in the modern marketplace where values matter
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Promoting your achievements
To our global community of organisations and social media following with a reach of 100,000+. As well as, to new and old media all over the world
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Powerful marketing materials
From logos, certificates, press releases and social posts, we provide you with a host of materials to promote your success far and wide. There is also the option to have your own iconic trophy too.
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Your achievement recognised forever
A new dedicated profile page for your organisation to share far and wide. Which can be added to over the years…
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Opportunity to share your story & inspire
We will provide you opportunities via our global community, events, podcast and case studies to share your story far and wide
The entry form explained
There is ONE entry form. It has SIX key facets we believe create an Inspiring Workplace. There are then two extra questions on results and what’s next.
We know that every single organization that enters will be strong in some areas and weaker in others. Don’t let that stop you from entering, as judges take this into consideration.
This is all covered in the entry pack.
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Purpose & Culture
Question we ask:
What is the purpose of your organization and how does it feed into your culture?Why are we asking?
People are driven by a purpose and want to be fulfilled. This is more apparent post-pandemic than ever before.To understand what the purpose, goals and strategy of your organization are and how your people demonstrate this is imperative.
What judges are looking for?
Clear communication of purpose and how it is lived and breathed within the organization to the positive impact on the business and people. Evidence of how your organizational purpose is intertwined with everything you do across every level.Score: Will be marked out of 12
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
Leadership
Question we ask:
How does your leadership inspire its people to achieve success?Why are we asking?
Inspirational leadership is the key to high performance. Value driven, authentic and honest leadership will unlock talent and create an inspiring culture throughout the organization.What judges are looking for?
Examples of inspiring leadership and the impact this has on both people and business success. A clear focus on continuous development of your leaders.Score: Will be marked out of 12
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
Wellbeing
Question we ask:
How do you protect your peoples’ wellbeing day-in-day-out?Why we are asking?
The overall wellbeing of your people is paramount to individual and organizational performance. In our eyes, wellbeing encompasses the mental, financial and the physical aspects. It shows you care for the person that works for you. They’re not just a numberWhat the judges are looking for? (these are examples of and not direct requests)
Evidence that your wellbeing strategy positively impacts your people – from health to performance. Initiatives, statistics and stories of how your focus on wellbeing has delivered individual and company happiness and performance.Communicating measurable outcomes will improve your score.
Score: Will be marked out of 12
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
Inclusion
Question we ask:
How do you continue to create an inclusive culture?Why we are asking?
An inspiring workplace requires a truly inclusive culture; where people can bring their true selves to work in a psychologically safe environment and perform at their best.What the judges are looking for? (these are examples of and not direct requests)
An understanding of your Diversity, Equality and Inclusion strategies. Evidence of the impact your efforts have made on individuals and the organization. Your goals and achievements in creating an inclusive workplace.Communicating measurable outcomes will improve your score.
Score: Will be marked out of 12
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
Employee Voice
Question we ask:
How do you listen and communicate effectively with your people?Why we are asking?
Effective two-way communication is essential in every part of our lives. Getting it right in the workplace increases trust, improves morale and enhances performance at every level. It also creates brand advocates for your organization externally too.What the judges are looking for? (these are examples of and not direct requests)
Methods of how you communicate with your people, listen to their opinions, act upon their ideas and the impact this has on individual and organizational success.Communicating measurable outcomes will improve your score.
Score: Will be marked out of 12
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
Experience
Question we ask:
How do you create an employee experience that your people feel like they belong to?Why we are asking?
It’s more important than ever to focus on the EX. To empower your people to do their best work, think creatively and be adaptable.Empowering others and ensuring everyone has a voice is critical to success.
What the judges are looking for? (these are examples of and not direct requests)
Examples of agility, flexibility, decision making and resourcefulness with your people and the impact this has on them and the wider business.Real world examples could be: remote working, tools you have given them to do their job, new work policies that provide autonomy. The development of management and leadership skills with a focus on empowerment of others.
Communicating measurable outcomes will improve your score.
Score: Will be marked out of 12
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
Outcomes
Question we ask:
What are the measurable outcomes from this overall people strategy?Why we are asking?
Having completed the other questions and communicating the impact of each this is your chance to bring it all together and show demonstrably the benefit to the organisation and the people within it.What the judges are looking for? (these are examples of and not direct requests)
It is vital for the judges to see clear proof of your hard work, whether it be changes to certain metrics such as churn, sick days, engagement scores, accolades won, the increase in phycological safety etc..We want to see how you have measured up against your own metrics of success.
Score: Will be marked out of 20
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words -
What's next?
Question we ask:
What’s next for the organization?Why we are asking?
A peoplefirst strategy never stands still. It is continuously evolving every time you receive feedback, every time external forces dictate, every time you have senior personnel changes etc.What the judges are looking for? (these are examples of and not direct requests)
So we would love to know your ambitions for the rest of 2024 and beyond. What you hope to achieve and how you plan to continue to put your people at the heart of your organisation.Score: Will be marked out of 08
Word limit for this section: A maximum of 400 words
Four ways to win
There are multiple ways to be recognised in the Inspiring Workplaces Awards
- Finalist (not a winner yet) – once the judges have reviewed all entries we publish a shortlist of finalists. Finalists are announced and receive marketing badges and logos to promote far and wide. This is a big achievement but you’re not officially a winner at this stage
- Overall Inspiring Workplace – From the shortlist of finalists, we then countdown the official list at a special dedicated awards events. Trophies, logos, certificates are all obtained at this stage
- Business size category – We also announce the Top organisations in each category, further logos and certificates are awarded. Due to the volume of submissions, it is possible to be recognised in the Top in your category and still not make the overall List. See more below
- Special recognition (optional) – For those that choose to enter Special Recognition, we provide logos and certificates to those that the judges deem worthy of recognition. Again, you could win in this category and not make the overall list. See more below
The categories
Choosing your category could not be easier.
When entering just select based upon the size of your organization.
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Small
This category applies to all organisations from 0 – 49 employee
As budgets and challenges vary wildly based upon the type/size of organisation, we will also announce the Top 5 per category. So you could win multiple awards from just the one submission.
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Medium
This category applies to all organisations from 50 – 499 employees
As budgets and challenges vary wildly based upon the type/size of organisation, we will also announce the Top 5 per category. So you could win multiple awards from just the one submission.
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Large
This category applies to all organisations from 500 – 4999 employees
As budgets and challenges vary wildly based upon the type/size of organisation, we will also announce the Top 5 per category. So you could win multiple awards from just the one submission.
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Enterprise
This category applies to all organisations from 5000+ employees
As budgets and challenges vary wildly based upon the type/size of organisation, we will also announce the Top 5 per category. So you could win multiple awards from just the one submission.
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Government
This category applies to all businesses listed as government or public sector organisations.
As budgets and challenges vary wildly based upon the type/size of organisation, we will also announce the Top 5 per category. So you could win multiple awards from just the one submission.
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Non-Profit
This category applies to all businesses listed as non-profit or charity organisations.
As budgets and challenges vary wildly based upon the type/size of organisation, we will also announce the Top 5 per category. So you could win multiple awards from just the one submission.
Special recognition
IW understands that each organisation is at different stages of a journey and will be stronger in some areas than others.
These 6 elements of the entry form are able to be specifically judged for special recognition should the organisation wish.
All you need to do is tick a box when submitting the entry.
It is AUD$50 per section you submit.
What happens once you have entered?
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Entries to judges
They will then review and send us their scores
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Finalists announced
You are one step closer to being named a winner
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Winners announced
At our exclusive event all will be revealed.
FAQs
We understand you will have questions. We have detailed the most popular below but there is a whole page dedicated to them. Access them by clicking below. If you can’t find the answer, please contact us and we’d be happy to help.