(UNDATED) – The 15th annual Torch Awards for Marketplace Ethics, hosted by BBB Serving Northern Indiana, will hit the road for 2020. Due to COVID-19, the previously planned celebration has been swapped in favor of digital recognition of Torch Award winners who demonstrate outstanding character and ethical behavior.
Instead of a large-scale awards ceremony, BBB Serving Northern Indiana will present each Torch Award at the winners’ place of business during the week of Nov. 2-6. In addition to celebrating in-person with the winners and their co-workers, each ceremony will be livestreamed on social media to allow anyone from BBB’s 23-county service area to join in and celebrate the success of the 2020 winners.
“While the business community has faced unprecedented turbulence the past few months, the pandemic has only increased the importance of recognizing businesses that apply standards of fairness and trust in the marketplace,” said Marjorie Stephens, BBB Serving Northern Indiana President/CEO.
2020 nominations are open and must be received no later than Saturday, Aug. 15. Businesses with exceptional ethics can nominate themselves or be nominated by a member of the community at http://bit.ly/TAnom20. All business within BBB’s 23-county service area, BBB accredited or non-accredited, are eligible to be nominated. Nominees must have been in business for at least one year, be A+ rated with the BBB and do business and reside in the BBB Serving Northern Indiana’s service area.
Nominated businesses will be notified by BBB before Sept. 1 with the formal application due from each nominee by Tuesday, Sept. 15. An independent panel of local judges will review all applications through Oct. 15, followed by winner notification no later than Oct. 31. In-person award presentations will be scheduled for the week of Nov. 2-6.
Presented by the BBB’s Charitable and Educational Foundation, the Torch Awards for Marketplace Ethics is the premier celebration of marketplace ethics in Northern Indiana.
