Judging Process

Presentations and Showcases

The judging process has been designed to be easy for you. There are no obstacles, no trick questions – it’s an opportunity for you to tell your story.

Stage 1 – Online Submission

The first round of judging is carried out entirely online. Nominations are submitted through the AwardForce platform for the judges to read. The judges identify the finalists by using a set criteria and their many years’ experience of working in the industry to determine who will go forward to stage two.

Stage 2 – Face-to-face Judging

Finalists are announced in August, and they will go through to stage two. Finalists will be invited to present to a panel of judges online or to showcase their customer contact operation with a presentation, interviews, and tour, which may be virtual or in person – this is determined by the category. The judges will be looking for relevant evidence that supports the nomination and for supplementary information to help decide on the winners.

The Criteria: What are the judges looking for?

In both the online submission and during the face-to-face judging, the judges are looking for nominations that tell a clear story – the motivations, the deliverables and how the results were achieved. What lessons were learnt along the way and how were challenges overcome? What’s next in your journey?

They are looking for evidence of the impact of what has been delivered and how the nomination benchmarks against other entries, with a particular focus on:

Purpose

The judges will be looking for a clear vision for what you have achieved. What is the rationale behind the story and how did you engage stakeholders? Describe the objectives, the strategy and how it aligns to the business.

Impact

What impact have you had? Let the judges know your performance against KPIs, covering customer, employee, operational and commercial metrics. Consider savings made, efficiency gains, changes in productivity, reassignment of resources and increases in revenue.

Experience

Explain to the judges how the customer and/or employee experience has improved. Evidence this with feedback from stakeholders, for example voice of the customer and/or employee feedback. Judges will be looking for a good understanding of customer and/or employee needs.

Innovation

Demonstrate creative thinking. The judges want to hear how you approached things differently. What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them? Share your plans for the future and how you intend to continually improve.

Best Practice

The judges will be looking for examples of great practice. They want to see approaches and experiences that others can learn from. How do you really stand out from the crowd?

Chair of the Judges is Helen Wilson

Helen is Global Chief Experience Officer for Customer Experience and Channel Performance at Ipsos, with a focus on helping organisations to deliver a return on their CX investment. Helen has significant CX experience across markets, sectors, and channels, with a significant focus on the contact centre.

Integrity and credibility in the judging process is championed by Helen and delivered though the highly proficient judging panel.

Two Opportunities to Wow the Judges

The judging process has been designed to be easy for you. There are no obstacles, no trick questions – it’s an opportunity for you to tell your story.

Stage 1 – Shortlisting

Nominations are reviewed online against the judging criteria by a panel of expert industry judges to identify between 6 and 10 Finalists for each category.

Stage 2 – Facing the judges

Face the judges either through a virtual panel session or a showcase visit, following a preset agenda.

Judging you can trust

We’ve earned the respect of entrants and judges alike through a judging process that is well-governed, independent, fair and consistently applied. Every nomination is assessed against clear criteria by experienced customer contact leaders, with conflicts of interest carefully managed and oversight provided by a respected Chair of Judges.

This depth‑led approach creates a safe, confidential environment where organisations can share the full story behind their success. The result is recognition that stands up to scrutiny, benchmarking that genuinely adds value, and awards that continue to be trusted across Europe’s customer contact community.

Who are the Judges?

The ECCCSAs are judged by the largest panel of industry leaders and experts in European customer contact. We actively seek a diverse and inclusive judging panel, reflecting the breadth of perspectives, experience and cultures across Europe, so every entry is reviewed fairly, thoughtfully and consistently. Bringing together senior practitioners and independent specialists, all judges are volunteers and accredited to ensure they meet the high standards of judging that these awards have become renowned for.

The Chair of the Judges oversees a team of around 100 judges support the programme. Here are some of the judges from last years’ programme.