Revamps youth business award category

ABRAM-VILLAGE – Oct. 17, 2022 – The 2023 edition of Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards Competition launched by the Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI will continue to focus on sustainable development, while offering a revamped and better-defined youth business award category.

Chamber spokesperson Velma LeBlanc (who is also president of RDÉE Prince Edward Island) officially launched the competition and unveiled this year’s award categories during the Entrepreneurs’ and Co-operators’ Morning Conference Oct. 17 in Abram-Village. She then invited everyone to submit nominations of francophone or bilingual businesses, co-ops, organizations, or businesspeople by noontime on Nov. 17.

She first explained that competition wants to highlight measures that all candidates are taking to ensure a more sustainable utilisation of their human, financial, material and natural resources. In fact, that’s one of the main criteria for all the award categories.

LeBlanc then noted that the former award category “Young Enterprising Person” always caused confusion since it allowed candidates that were either actual young entrepreneurs or youth who were heavily involved in their communities. The Chamber realized that other organizations and awards already recognized youth for community involvement. It therefore decided to limit its youth award specifically to young entrepreneurs, but it also broadened the age range. At the same time, the Chamber didn’t want to step on the toes of the Young Millionaires awards, which it also presents at its annual Entrepreneurs’ Gala.

Another new requirement this year: all submissions must include a high-resolution photo.

The overall competition is designed to honour entrepreneurs, businesspeople, companies, organizations and co-operatives that have distinguished themselves through their excellence and high quality of their business products and/or services and for their contributions to the local and provincial economy.

CATEGORIES

• 2024 Remarkable Young Entrepreneur Award: The nominee must be aged 15-30 years as of March 16, 2024, and have demonstrated significant entrepreneurial initiative (including in innovation or in sustainable development), especially over the past year.
• 2024 Social Economy Business Award: The nominated business, co-operative or organization, which must have an economic vocation of some type, must have distinguished itself by its achievements and successes, including its impact on its community, especially during the past year.
• 2024 Distinguished Employee Award: The nominee must be an employee of a business, co-operative or organization who has distinguished himself/herself through quality customer service or business accomplishments or leadership, especially in the past year.
• 2024 Business Excellence Award: The nominated business must have stood out and demonstrated excellence, especially in the past year, in one or more of the following categories: sustainability, innovation, quality of service, job creation and community impact.
• 2024 Business Hall of Fame Award: The nominee must have at least 25 years of entrepreneurial experience as this award is intended to honor an entrepreneur or businessperson who has distinguished themselves through their efforts and accomplishments throughout their career (life-time achievement). The nominee may be working, retired or decdased. The winner will be officially inducted into the PEI Acadian and Francophone Business Hall of Fame.

RULES

A panel of business professionals will evaluate the nominations and select finalists and winners. Finalists will be announced publicly at the Chamber’s Christmas party on Dec. 1. The winners will be announced at the 22nd edition of the Entrepreneurs’ Gala, which will take place March 16, 2024. It is there that the award trophies will be presented to the winning individuals, businesses or co-operatives.

The nominated individual, business, organization or co-operative must be, or be ready to become, a member of the Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI. At least one of the owners, co-owners or officers of the business, organization or co-operative must be able to speak French.

Nominees cannot have won an award in the same category in the last three editions of the Gala.

The judges reserve the right to reject incomplete nominations or nominations that do not meet the criteria. They may also choose not to award one or more of the awards if the nominations for that award are not sufficient or appropriate. It will normally accept a maximum of three nominations per category, but may make exceptions, especially in the case of the Hall of Fame since “We want to be sure to honor our elderly entrepreneurs while they are still among us.”

The nomination form (in French only) can be accessed from the web page https://tinyurl.com/59danp7t.

The completed form should then be mailed to Selection Panel, RDÉE PEI Inc. 48 Mill Road, PO Box 7, Wellington, PE, C0B 2E0, or by email to raymond@rdeeipe.org or in person to the Wellington Rural Action Centre, also at 48 Mill Road, no later than Nov. 17 at noontime.

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PHOTO: Velma LeBlanc spokesperson for the Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI, and Raymond J. Arsenault, manager of the Chamber and coordinator of the Entrepreneurial Awards Gala, have officially launched the 2023 Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards Competition, which runs until Nov. 17.

 

 

For more information:
Raymond J. Arsenault
Event Coordinator
Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI
1-902-960-1285
raymond@rdeeipe.org