Awards offer well-earned time in spotlight

INSIGHTS from expert judges and fellow Geelong businesses are among the top benefits of applying for the Geelong Business Excellence Awards (GBEAs), a previous winner says.

HPS Tech was the winner of last year’s Advanced Manufacturing and Industry Award (sponsored by the Southern Star Group).

HPS is a manufacturing technology business that specialises in hygienic design and separation techniques for food, beverage, brewery, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical industries.

While the engineering specialists admit self-promotion is not among their usual strengths, the annual awards provided the ideal forum to discuss their achievements.

Chief operating officer Matt Willocks said his interactions with judges and their generosity of advice was a highlight of the process.

“The thing that surprised me the most was how engaged the people judging it were and how open to giving us some hints about what we should be highlighting about our business to give us a good chance of winning the award.

“We had some judges come to our office, we had a couple of phone calls and their openness in saying, ‘We think you guys are really good for this particular category for these reasons’ was great.”

HPS commercial manager Leanne Drzewucki said the awards gave the business a chance to step back and reflect on their strengths and the input of their staff.

“I found they were so passionate about what they did and about Geelong businesses and supporting and helping us to identify our strengths and weaknesses, and the way that they see that we’re contributing to business and society.

“It was a good validation of what we do as a business and how that operates.

“When you’re stuck in a business day to day that you can always see the negative things, but they really helped us highlight how strong we actually were.

“It made us think about how we’re positioned in the community and what we contribute and how we can contribute more both on sort of a personal employee level and as a business.

“I think it was an important thing to do for our staff to help them feel proud of the workplace and also see their their hard efforts rewarded… to show that you know their contributions to our business is what makes us strong in the greater business community of Geelong.”

The GBEAs are the flagship awards ceremony of the Geelong Chamber of Commerce and recognize a host of businesses of all sizes for their outstanding contribution to Geelong each year.

Nominations for the 2023 GBEAs are now open at gbea.com.au