Description
Requirements
Each Special Achievement Award submission consists of two distinct parts. Please review the requirements carefully to ensure your submission is completed correctly.
Part 1: Special Achievement Award (SAA) Submission (Multiple Projects Permitted)
For the Special Achievement Award portion, submitters are required to:
- Upload project photos.
- Provide a written description.
- Complete all SAA specific questions.
- You may include multiple projects within this portion of the submission, where applicable.
Part 2: People's Choice Award (PCA) Submission (Single Project Only)
For the People's Choice Award fields within the submission:
- Select one (1) project from the multiple projects included in your SAA submission to represent you in the People's Choice Award.
- All photos uploaded must be from this same single project (no mixing of projects permitted).
- The selected project must have been entered into at least one category in this year's awards.
- If you are named a finalist in this SAA category, the one (1) project you selected for the People's Choice Award will automatically be entered into the People's Choice Award program.
Please ensure all submissions, anonymity, and eligibility requirements are followed carefully, as entries that do not meet these guidelines may not be eligible for consideration.
These Special Achievement Awards recognize excellence, leadership, and consistency in residential construction and design. Submissions will be evaluated using the weighted criteria outlined below:
Design Excellence – 40%
- Forty percent (40%) of your overall score will be based on your two highest-scoring project submissions. These projects must be selected from your entries submitted in the current (2026) Housing Design Awards program within the following categories: Production Home, Production Kitchen, and Production Bath, as applicable to the specific SAA category.
- To be eligible, you must submit at least one (1) entry in each of two (2) different qualifying award categories.
- Submissions must include the exact project names and corresponding categories for all entries, entered accurately in the appropriate fields provided.
Questionnaire – 40%
- Forty percent (40%) of your overall score will be based on your responses to eight (8) structured questions that evaluate key areas of your business and professional performance.
- Please provide clear and complete responses to each of the questions. Each question field allows a response limited to 100 words maximum per question field. Your answers will be used by the judges to evaluate your experience, approach, and overall contribution to the industry.
QUESTIONS:
- 1) What unique services, features, or processes do you offer that set your company apart from other competitors?
- 2) Describe a challenge your company faced in the past year and how you addressed and resolved it.
- 3) What measures do you take to make your homes more energy efficient and environmentally responsible, both in design and during construction?
- 4) How do you stay current, innovative, and competitive in today's evolving home building industry?
- 5) Describe the steps you take to guide your clients through the home buying and building process, from initial purchase to final occupancy.
- 6) How do you support career development within your organization, mentor new team members, and promote employee growth and retention?
- 7) How has your company demonstrated involvement and support within the community and the Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association over the past three (3) years?
- 8) Why do you believe your company deserves to be recognized in this Special Achievement Award category?
Customer Testimonials – 20%
- Twenty percent (20%) of your overall score will be determined by the submission of three (3) client testimonials.
- Testimonials should highlight the client's overall experience, quality of workmanship, communication, professionalism, and overall satisfaction.
- All testimonials must be submitted as PDF documents and uploaded as part of your entry.
Anonymous Judging
- All judging is conducted anonymously. To ensure a fair and unbiased evaluation, all submissions must be fully anonymous.
- Do not include your company name, logo, branding, or any identifying information anywhere in your submission, including written responses, client testimonials, project descriptions, image captions, filenames, document headers, footers, or metadata.
- Any content that directly or indirectly identifies the submitting company may result in the entry being removed from consideration.
Criteria
| Criterion | Weight |
|---|---|
| Two Highest Scoring Entries | 40.0% |
| Eight Questions | 40.0% |
| Three Customer Testimonials | 20.0% |