Chartwell’s Best Practices Awards

This category recognizes initiatives focused on improving customer service and satisfaction related to billing and/or payment programs. Entries may include, but are not limited to, bill redesign, online bill pay, leveraging data and integration of new technologies.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Quality of the effort
• Operational efficiency gains or savings
• Measured results in customer satisfaction

This category recognizes initiatives focused on improving customer service and satisfaction through interactions with customer service professionals via phone, social media, chat, or other channels. Entries may include, but are not limited to, efforts related to training, systems, or technologies.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Quality of the effort
• Operational efficiency gains or savings
• Measured results in customer satisfaction

This category recognizes initiatives focused on improving customer service and satisfaction through digital self-service channels such as web, mobile, chat, or virtual assistants.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Quality of the effort
• Operational efficiency gains or savings
• Measured results in customer satisfaction

This category recognizes initiatives designed to enhance a utility’s image or brand, educate customers on issues, increase brand awareness, promote products and services, and effectively relay corporate strategy.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Innovation and originality
• Implementation and execution
• Appeal or attractiveness of campaign or program materials
• Measured results in areas such as engagement tracking, increased brand awareness, customer education, and promotion of products and services

This category recognizes initiatives focused on serving customers experiencing vulnerability due to financial or social insecurity. Entries may include, but are not limited to, identification tools, customer/community engagement, leveraging data, and developing assistance programs.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Quality of the effort
• Operational efficiency gains or savings
• Measured results in customer satisfaction

This category recognizes initiatives, programs or processes focused on improving the business customer experience. Entries may include, but are not limited to customer segmentation, relationship management, products and services, VOC research and strategy, internal organization and process optimization.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Quality of the effort and/or program materials
• Operational efficiency gains or savings
• Measured results in customer satisfaction

This category recognizes initiatives that realize transportation electrification benefits for the utility, its customers, and/or served communities. Entries may include, but are not limited to EV community engagement and marketing, charging infrastructure, fleet electrification, grid integration, multifamily support and inclusion.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Promoting the utility as the EV Trusted Advisor
• Innovative approach and/or solution
• Quality of effort and strategic partnerships
• Measured impact and how it aligns with the utility’s strategic objectives

This category recognizes outstanding creative achievement in short video marketing/communications efforts, such as TV spots or digital pre-roll. Chartwell judges will select the Top 3 entries, and the recipients of the People’s Choice Award will be chosen by EMACS attendees. Winners will receive their trophies at the conference.

Submitted videos should be no more than 1 minute long. Each utility can submit up to two videos. Videos must have been released between January 2024 and May 2025.

Chartwell’s award for Excellence in Customer Transformational Leadership recognizes a North American utility that has undertaken groundbreaking efforts to lead its customers and stakeholders toward the clean energy future, as well as the individuals in executive leadership positions who are driving those initiatives.

• As this award is the highest Chartwell honor, there is only one award presented in this category each year.

• Since we know a transformational effort takes a village, we request that the sponsoring executive from your utility accept the award on behalf of the utility team’s effort.

• The winning utility will be notified in late June 2025.

This category recognizes innovative communication initiatives designed to improve the customer experience before, during or after an outage event, regardless of size and scope. Entries may include, but are not limited to, efforts related to strategic planning, contact centers, web and mobile services, employee training, changes in messaging and streamlining of processes.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Innovation or originality
• Quality of the effort
• Measured results in customer satisfaction related to outage communications
• Operational efficiency gains or savings

This category recognizes initiatives demonstrating excellence or innovation in outage operations practices and procedures that prevent customer outages and/or improve restoration efficiency. Entries may include, but are not limited to, efforts related to strategic planning, employee training, dispatch and coordination, improvements in damage assessment procedures or tools, distribution automation and other improvements in systems and technologies.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Improved service through innovation or technology
• Innovation or originality
• Quality of the effort
• Measured results in customer satisfaction related to outage duration
• Operational efficiency gains or savings

This category recognizes outstanding strategies and practices in emergency management, emphasizing comprehensive approaches to handling incidents like natural disasters, cybersecurity breaches, and equipment failures. Entrants should showcase unified communication, demonstrating “one voice” coordination with stakeholders, agencies, and regulators. Submissions should highlight successful incident command, response planning, and training, illustrating an organization’s resilience during heightened challenges.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Continuous performance improvement
• Response strategy effectiveness
• Brand protection
• Impact on customer confidence
• Proven organizational agility