What Makes a Strong JEDI Award Entry? A Guide for Retailers
Rather than rely on rhetoric or policy-driven promises, the JEDI Retail Award recognises businesses that actively work to promote diversity, inclusion, equity, and justice through concrete, measurable actions.
As expectations about fair treatment and better representation and inclusion grow across retail, more and more retailers who are driving real change are coming forward to show the work that they are doing.
A strong JEDI award entry is much more than merely listing initiatives. Judges are interested in your goals, how you adapted your strategy on the fly and what tangible effect it produced. It may sound like a cliché, but good evidence, supporting materials and long-term engagement are key to the success of an award entry.
In this guide, you can find out what the judges are looking for in entries, the key criteria you need to meet and top tips to help retailers create an engaging awards entry. The end goal is to assist retailers in making entries that will resonate with judges and truly stand out when competing for a JEDI Award.
Understanding the Jedi Award Criteria for the People in Retail Awards
To enter for a JEDI retail award and submit a competitive entry, it is important to consider how applications are scored. Entries are judged against specific judging criteria designed to encourage meaningful action, measurable results and sustainability.
Clear Strategy and Intent
Judges are looking for what’s behind your justice, equity, diversity and inclusion statement. Share why the project was implemented, what triggered it and what you were hoping to achieve.
The best submissions should:
- Explain what specific challenges or injustices you are addressing. This may have to do with race or ethnicity, resources, parental help or anything else that has been identified as an issue. The judges will be on the lookout for how this issue was identified in your organisation and why it needed to be addressed.
- Show how JEDI fits into your broader people, CSR or business strategy, and how it supports your overall awards strategy. Instead of showing the JEDI In one isolated case, excellent entries demonstrate how this activity fits within wider plans and longer-term decisions.
- Explain the importance of this work for both the staff and the organisation. Use culture, engagement, retention, well-being, or progression as evidence. Making it clear to the judges why these outcomes are important will help them understand how important your plan is.
A detailed, targeted approach demonstrates that your submission is conscious, thoughtful and based on real commitment to justice, equity, diversity and inclusion.
Action and Implementation
This is where you show how your idea became real. Think about what has been done and how the rules have been put into action.
Your entry should include:
- Concrete initiatives, programmes or policies you implemented. Clearly outline what you delivered, the launch date, and how each initiative directly responded to the strategic challenges you outlined.
- How were teams, stores or regions introduced to these initiatives? Outline rollout plans, internal comms, diversity and inclusion training, and stage-by-stage implementation where applicable.
- Facilitation strategies and active participants. These range from leadership participation to employee user groups, third-party stakeholders or champions that assisted in driving engagement and usage.
Practical details that are set out clearly will enable judges to get a handle on the volume and nature of the work you do and really make your award entry stronger.
Impact and Measurable Outcomes
Impact is one of the most important aspects of a JEDI award entry. Judges need to be shown hard evidence that it did the job.
- The best award entries often include data or other measures that show progress. This includes improvements in representation, higher rates of engagement or participation and better retention. In short, any changes over time that show that your initiatives are responsible for moving the business along.
- Feedback from employees and/or the local community, like survey responses, quotes or more casual feedback. These show how people actually experienced the change and what it meant to them personally.
- Provide before-and-after comparisons where this is possible. These comparisons help judges to see quickly what exactly changed as a result of your activities, rather than having to connect the dots themselves.
Short case studies can increase the chances of success. These are particularly effective because they allow judges to see how initiatives translated into real change rather than good intentions only.
Commitment and Continuous Improvement
Work on justice, equity, diversity and inclusion does not end with an initiative’s launch. Judges are looking for evidence that your organisation truly is working towards long-term change and is capable of learning, adaptation and development over time.
This section should explain:
- How initiatives are evaluated and improved, including how you track progress, seek feedback and make fine adjustments when something isn’t working the way that you hoped.
- What you have learnt so far, whether that’s insights from employees or obstacles you’ve removed in your journey of reflection and listening.
- How JEDI will impact future plans, showing that this work is integrated into your ongoing business, culture and people strategy, and not treated as a one-off project.
How to Craft a Strong JEDI Entry
Knowing what the criteria are is only half the battle; writing an award-winning entry and how you write it are equally important.
- Answer the question appropriately and to the point, while staying within the word limit. Judges read many submissions, so clear writing is key. Keep it within the word count, avoid departmental jargon and concentrate on outcomes rather than shedding light into the back story.
- Evidence is key. Claims should be supported by data, feedback, or measurable results whenever available. This could include involvement rates, engagement scores or progression data. Connecting your efforts to broader diversity, equity and inclusion trends in retail will also help place your work within the broader industry context.
- Applicants might as well learn from best practices. Present responses in a structured manner and base them on the importance of examples. Reviewing previous winners, such as the retailer recognised for pioneering diversity and inclusion programmes, can help you understand what judges value, but still let you apply your own organisational story to your entry.
- And most importantly, make sure that your submission reflects justice, equity, diversity and inclusion at every stage from strategy through action to impact. Honest, well-supported entries are almost invariably more convincing than the over-polished ones.
Why Should You Enter the JEDI Retail Award, and Why Does Your Entry Matter?
There’s more to apply for the JEDI Retail Award than recognition. It is about recognising, validating and accelerating meaningful change in retail. The JEDI Award gives organisations the opportunity to show that their work is intentional, measurable and genuinely impactful.
By entering an award, such as the JEDI award, retailers can:
- gain credible recognition for real action
- Amplify learning and best practices across retail
- engage and motivate retail employees
- strengthen long-term strategy and brand reputation
A well-completed award submission enables retailers to measure their progress, prove accountability and share their dedication with employees, customers and stakeholders.
Just being shortlisted can boost your brand, aid recruitment and foster trust. Writing an award-worthy entry is a helpful exercise because it makes retailers think about what’s going well and what could be done better in their business approach.
Final Thoughts
The top JEDI retail award entries are targeted, evidence-based and honest. They both describe what was done and what it means, as well as how they expect this work to continue to develop. By adhering to the Judging Criteria, using hard evidence and staying within word count, retailers can improve their chances of winning.
When you devote time to creating a thoughtful, well-structured award entry, you’re not only boosting your chances of success, but you are also building the case for justice, equity, diversity and inclusion output across your organisation.
Make sure the story your award entry tells is concise, but powerful and that real determination shines through in every detail.
Make your JEDI retail award entry stand out. Ensure your submission hits every mark and take the first step toward becoming an award-winning retailer. Apply for our Retail Awards today!
