Oranjestad – The Aruba Hotel & Tourism Association recently revealed details of the award process, overview and timetable.
According to the AHATA the official Applications are due on October 1, 2007. Then the Consensus Meeting will take place on October 15, 2007 with the Site Visit Notification given by October 22, 2007. Site Visits will follow between October 29- 31, 2007. At that time the Judges Recommendation Meeting will take place, on November 5, 2007, with the much awaited Awards Ceremony unfolding on November 30, 2007.
The Shoco Awards of Excellence is AHATA’s official recognition program focusing on excellence in service, hospitality and outstanding contribution to the sustainability of Aruba’s tourism industry.
As for those eligible to participate in the award process, the following categories are include: Allied Employee of the Year; Allied Supervisor of the Year; Allied Member of the Year; Hotel Employee of the Year; Hotel Supervisor of the Year; Hotel of the Year & Young Tourism Professional of the Year.
Award applicants are expected to provide detailed information for each of the individual awards as well as data for each organization’s key processes and
results. This information and data must be adequate to demonstrate and support that the applicants’ approaches are effective.
The award application requirements are the following:
Applicants need to submit complete nomination application based on the criteria requested along with copies of the required supporting documentation, for individual awards.
Hotel and Allied Member Award Applications must submit the self evaluation for each of the 7 criteria levels as well as the supporting documents requested with an explanation of how the organization is meeting the self identified levels of the criteria for success.
The Application Review will be orchestrated by a group of qualified independent professionals selected by the Award Committee which will evaluate all applications. These individuals will be selected locally as well as internationally. They meet the highest standards of qualifications and peer recognition.
The Interviews and Site Visits will be used to verify the information provided by the application and to clarify issues and questions that have arisen during the application review process. Applicants for the individual awards will be selected for an interview by a selection committee determined by the Award Committee. Organizations will receive a site visit during which the committee will have discussions and interviews with the management team and the staff. This is done to verify the information on the application form. Applicants will be responsible for scheduling introductory and concluding presentations.
The Shoco Awards Program is available for all hotel and allied members of AHATA.
Strict conflict of interest rules apply throughout all Shoco processes. Individual applications, responses to criteria, commentary and scoring information developed during the review of the application are kept confidential by the Panel of Judges and AHATA.
Go to AHATA.com to download all application forms.
