Chartwell's Best Practices Awards: Excellence in Outage Initiatives

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

This category recognizes outstanding strategies and practices in business continuity, emphasizing comprehensive approaches to the crafting and implementation of documentation and testing of business continuity practices.

Entrants should showcase plan structure, incident mitigation strategies, methodology of risk assessment, training (who and how often), and plan testing (including drill strategy). Include any annex topics (wildfire, capacity, plant accident, etc.) along with their activation criteria. Submissions should highlight drill scenarios, lessons learned, especially if the plan has been revised at least once, and any response to actual events where the plan was activated.

Judges will evaluate the following criteria:

• Continuous performance improvement
• Linkage to risk assessment methodology
• Response strategy effectiveness
• Brand protection
• Impact on customer confidence
• Proven organizational agility

1. Entries are limited to two per category per utility.
2. Some or all of the effort should have been undertaken between January 2025 and February 2026.
3. Entry is being submitted by a utility professional with an electric, gas, or water utility who currently holds a position with the utility company that appears on the entry form.
4. Current utility leadership has given permission to have this entry submitted to The Chartwell Best Practice Awards and understands that, in the event of an award win, a utility representative will attend PowerUp to receive the award. The utility understands that should no representative be able to attend the conference to accept your award, Chartwell reserves the right to present the award to an alternate submission.
5. The utility understands that by submitting this award entry, the utility agrees that:
   a) If your utility is a Gold award winner, a utility representative will present your program in a session at the conference.
   b) If your utility receives Silver, Bronze, or Honorable Mention, a utility representative will be available for an interview as part of a case study that Chartwell will write and prepare based on submission materials. You also agree to present your program on a Chartwell webinar within 6 months of the conference if asked. Should your utility be unable to commit to these stipulations, Chartwell reserves the right to present the award to an alternate submission.
6. The utility understands that no vendors will be allowed to accept an award on their behalf or be present on stage during a presentation about the award should the utility be asked to speak at the conference or on a webinar.

NOW OPEN! (Submission Deadline: March 6)

Step 1:  Choose the category to enter.

Entries are limited to two per category per utility. Some or all of the effort should have been undertaken between January 2025 and February 2026.

Step 2:  Complete the award entry form and attach supporting documents

Submissions require a short summary along with a detailed project description (1,800 words maximum in PDF or Word format) that includes the following:

• A history of the project/program or effort.
• Details about the effort including significant dates, major participants and target audience. (Note: Some or all of the effort should have been undertaken between January 2025 and February 2026.)
• The goals and results of the project/program or effort, including how results were measured.
• The facts and features making the project innovative and unique.
• How the project meets the criteria for the respective award, as outlined above.
• The reason it should win the Best Practices Award.

You may upload supporting components along with the submission form, such as print or digital advertisements, video/audio files, social media posts and photographs.

Award entries will become the property of Chartwell Inc. and may be displayed or distributed during PowerUp: Chartwell’s Outage Conference or for Chartwell members on Chartwell’s websites.

The award winners will be announced during the Awards Ceremony and will be recognized in subsequent presentations as well as featured articles in Chartwell’s Insight Center. Images and videos of winners may be used in Chartwell promotional material.

Click here to submit your entry.

Questions? Contact awards@chartwellinc.com.