The Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship Innovation Awards honor and celebrate the achievements of forward-thinking companies and individuals that have applied the assets of their business to create positive social and/or environmental impacts. We recognize with these awards the individuals and companies that create the world we want to live in and the world we want to do business in.
This is an opportunity for companies to showcase their successes and highlight their innovation leadership. Each year, BCCCC Innovation Awards winners set new standards for creating value, contributing to communities, and improving lives.
Recognizes companies that have developed unique and differentiated approaches employing multiple company assets (i.e., more than one of the following—philanthropy, volunteering, expertise, know-how) with solutions to create positive social, environmental, and/or economic impact, and shared purpose in helping the world run better and improving people’s lives.
Recognizes corporate citizenship programs that result from dynamic partnerships with nonprofit ESG & community organizations. The nominated company should demonstrate that they have gone above and beyond to develop problem-solving and operational capacity within their partner organization while working in tandem to address an important social or environmental challenge.
Recognizes a company that has marshalled the financial and human resources at its disposal to address an environmental issue affecting or relating to that company’s core competencies. Innovations may occur within internal processes/programs, external products/efforts, or both. The company should demonstrate how the effort benefits specific aspects of the environment in tangible/measurable ways AND how it translates to broader global efforts.
Recognizes a company that has elevated a social and/or environmental program or issue to ensure greater understanding by a wider array of stakeholders, and covers efforts such as corporate advocacy, strategic reporting, internal engagement, corporate communication efforts, and public policy engagement. Companies should outline which groups where integral to the effort’s success as well as which audiences were targeted.
Innovation is the process that an individual or organization undertakes to conceptualize new products, programs, processes, and ideas, or to approach existing products, programs, processes, and ideas in new ways. Companies may submit any CSR effort the nominee deems innovative. These efforts may involve partnerships (both nonprofit and/or cross sector) or may be solo corporate ventures. They may target internal audiences, external audiences, or both.
The selection committee is comprised of members of BCCCC's Advisory Boards, a representative from the event's annual sponsor, and a representative from the previous year’s Award in Innovation overall winner.
The Innovation Awards are open to all for-profit corporations who have a dedicated corporate citizenship/sustainability department or an individual employee heading up such efforts. In some cases, we will consider submissions from nonprofit healthcare organizations, credit unions, and consulting firms if they have their own dedicated corporate citizenship/sustainability department. If you represent a nonprofit organization, please contact us at cccinnovation@bc.edu to confirm your eligibility before submitting.
Anyone can submit their innovative CSR program(s) on behalf of a company that was involved. This includes consultants, nonprofit partners, agencies, service providers, vendors, etc. However, only for-profit companies and eligible nonprofit organizations can win the awards.
When completing the submission form, please note the company representative who would accept if selected as a winner. Please also note that BCCCC corporate members can submit their entries for free; non-members must provide a $500 entry fee along with their submission.
Although submitting in multiple categories is permissible, each entry must represent a separate program example. Multiple entries from a non-member would also require separate entry fees. We recommend focusing on a single, well-developed entry rather than multiple submissions.
If you have questions about your eligibility, please email cccinnovation@bc.edu.
Each submission will be scored by a selection committee, on a 1-to-5 scale, based on the following criteria:
Program Design & Creativity: How compelling and disruptive is the program described in the entry? Does the program involve a big idea, innovative approaches, or both? Can it drive significant change in other companies or communities?
Tangible Outcomes: What was the result of the project? What is the magnitude of the outcome? What is the environmental or social outcome(s) achieved? What is the impact on communities? On individuals? How compelling are the quantified results? Does the program deliver business value as well as social or environmental results?
Citizenship: How well does the entry demonstrate the company’s journey to becoming a great corporate citizen leading positive change? Is the company effectively using the assets of its business to help make itself and the communities in which it operates resilient, profitable, and sustainable?
Disruption Potential: Can this idea be adapted and used by others to drive more systemic change? Does it translate to broader progress or address more specialized concerns? What is the company doing to make the effort available to those who want to make use of it?
Winning programs will be featured throughout 2023, in a variety of BCCCC outlets, including our quarterly magazine, The Corporate Citizen, with a readership of over 10,000.
Winners will be announced at the 2023 International Corporate Citizenship Conference, happening in Minneapolis, MN, April 30 - May 2, 2023. Ideally, winners will be on site to accept their awards and share their projects with Conference attendees. Winners who cannot attend the Conference will be asked to submit a short video of acceptance, to be shared at the live event.
Looking for more information about the 2023 Innovation Awards? Email us at cccinnovation@bc.edu.
Meanwhile, browse the programs submitted by last year's winners: Dow Chemical, DTE Energy, FedEx, and Popular!
Entrants must submit, via the submission form below, two separate items: 1.) an entry pitch deck (PPT), following the guidelines noted in the entry pitch deck requirements document below; 2.) a two-minute iPhone or iPad video (not professionally produced), outlining the program. Guidelines for the video requirements can be found in the Video FAQ available below.
All submission must be uploaded by March 24, 2023.
We want to get a sense of the people and passion behind the program, which is why we’re asking that you create and upload a SHORT (<2 min) and SIMPLE (PHONE or TABLET) video that features a member of the company’s program team describing the initiative in their own words. Videos over two minutes in length will not be considered.
What the video MUST include:
What the video MAY include:
What this video is NOT:
Please keep in mind that this video, much like the rest of the submission materials, should be appropriate for public consumption and will be used by the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship and its partner judges to evaluate and communicate the award submission.
