Great Game^™ All-Star Awards

At the 28^th Annual Gathering of Games Conference™, The Great Game of Business® will announce the 20th annual All-Star Award Team and All-Star Champions!  These prestigious awards recognize and celebrate the remarkable achievements of companies from around the globe that have fully embraced the principles of open-book management and The Great Game of Business and have demonstrated outstanding results.

What are the All-Star Awards?

The inspiration for the All-Star Awards came from the pioneers of open-book management themselves. This recognition program was created in 2001 to highlight the companies on the leading edge of this innovative management practice, who have discovered first-hand that when you harness the collective wisdom of your people, great things can and do happen.

But as Great Game™ practitioners know - it’s not just about generating profits, cash and wealth, but also about distributing it for the good of everyone involved. The Game starts with a sincere belief in people along with fostering trust and mutual respect. The companies recognized as Great Game All-Stars embody these concepts to the fullest. All-Star companies show tenacious dedication to open-book management and business transparency and continually spread the word to help others succeed as well. 

The All-Star Awards include:

Rookie of the Year – This award recognizes those companies that have been practicing open-book management and The Great Game of Business for less than two years and have already achieved some remarkable results.

Social Sector Award – This award honors a social sector organization -a not-for-profit, education, government entity - playing the Great Game of Business at a high level, proving that The Game can be effective and impactful in all types of organizations.

Hall of Fame Inductee – The Hall of Fame honors organizations that have operated using the principles of open-book management for more than a decade with lasting, proven results, and have demonstrated a willingness to spread the word on open-book management in order to help others succeed. 

All-Star Champions Award - The cornerstone of the All-Star Awards, the winners of the All-Star Champions Award are the best of the best. They have been playing GGOB at a high level for two or more years, and as a result have seen impressive results in their financial performance and their company culture.

Check out all our past Great Game All-Stars.

Who Should Apply?                    

Any organization, small or large, for-profit or non-profit, that operates using the principles of open-book management and The Great Game of Business are invited to apply.

There are only two application requirements:

1) The organization must have been operating using the principles of open-book management and The Great Game of Business for a minimum of six (6) months for the Rookie of the Year or Social Sectors Award, and two (2) full years in order to be eligible for the All-Star Awards.

2) The organization must have a minimum of five (5) full-time or part-time employees. 

Why Apply?

Recognition. What organization couldn't use more recognition?  As a Great Game of Business practitioner, you already know the value in recognizing and celebrating company-wide accomplishments.  The All-Star Awards are a public acknowledgement that your company is unique - an organization that runs their business in a way that includes trust, business education and involvement, shared risks and shared rewards, and open communication.  It’s your chance to let everyone know what you have achieved.  Send out a press release, tweet about it, make t-shirts, call your local business journal or TV station, hang banners, make a YouTube video of the celebration.  Go ahead, do what you do best… Recognize and celebrate the win!

Evaluation. Remember it’s about continuous learning.  Use the process to evaluate how you’re doing in practicing open-book management.  Reflect on what’s working and what’s not, listen to your employees, review the ‘Practice Scorecard,’ and see where improvements can be made.  Let’s face it; we all want to know how we stack up to the ‘Best of the Best’ – that’s how we get better!

 The Swag.  Each finalist will become part of an exclusive All-Star Team and will receive:

• results of their employee surveys indicating the strengths and weakness of their open-book management practices
• an industry-focused financial benchmarking tool
• a written case study highlighting their story and results from practicing The Great Game of Business
• and promotion by GGOB throughout the year

Additionally, All-Star Award Champions will receive:

• a highlight video, documenting their Great Game journey and accomplishments
• on-stage recognition by Jack Stack at a trophy presentation during the Annual Gathering of Games conference 

Application Process

The first step is to fill out the Nomination Form.  After your nomination has been reviewed and approved, we will provide you with instructions on how to complete the full application process, which includes:

• Entry Form - outlining your Game and the successes you have achieved.
• Financial Worksheet - highlighting your sales growth over the last five years, including benchmarking data as available.
• Employee Surveys - administered online to all employees [participation threshold must be met].
• Additional collateral material, including pictures or other documentation of Huddles, scoreboards, MiniGames™, etc.
• Upon completion of the application and surveys – a Great Game representative will contact you for an interview.

How do we choose the ‘Best of the Best’?

We understand that ‘Winning is a Process.’  Open-book management and The Great Game of Business is a journey, not a destination and the degree to which it’s practiced can vary considerably.  Therefore, we’re looking for the ‘Best of the Best’ – those organizations who clearly stand-out and can be called ‘The All-Stars.’ 

We make this challenging decision based on three specific measures:

The voice of the employee. Who knows best if the organization is living the principles of The Great Game of Business than your people?  It isn’t about theory -- it’s about practice.  So, we use an employee survey to measure how well the organization is living the principles and practices of the Great Game.  [Organizations with fewer than 10 employees must ensure the entire workforce completes the survey.  Those with more than 11 employees will need at least 70 percent participation.]

The bottom-line business results the organization has achieved.  The judges take into consideration the organization’s profit and revenue growth as well as other critical business outcomes and compare those outcomes to their industry peers.

The organization’s ‘Story Behind the Numbers’.  Lastly, we want to hear the organization's compelling story:  How has the practice of the Great Game of Business changed their company? Has it created a stronger culture and a better place to work?  They tell us about their MiniGames^™, Huddles, broad-based financial and business education, bonus plans, rewards & recognition program, celebrations, planning processes, scoreboards, etc.  They share the play-by-play commentary on how they are improving business results and the lives of the employees who drive those results.

Announcement of Winners

At the Gathering of Games conference in September, the open-book community honors the entire team of finalists, and recognizes those who earn the coveted All-Star Champion Award, the Social Sector Award, the Rookie of the Year designation, and Hall of Fame honors. 

If you need additional information or have questions, please contact Donna Petiford or at 1.417.380.5242.

Nominations for the 2020 All-Star Awards are open through February 15, 2020.