Press Releases
Hill, Barolet & Associates LLC Receives WBE Certification from the California Public Utilities Commission (April 11, 2011)
Houston, TX – Hill, Barolet & Associates LLC, a full-service employee communications agency, recently received its certification as a Women's Business Enterprise from the Supplier Clearinghouse for the Utility Supplier Diversity Program of the California Public Utilities Commission.
Hill, Barolet & Associates has been creating award-winning employee communication campaigns for a variety of clients, in a wide range of industries, for over eight years.
WBE Certification is a meticulous process, including a lengthy review of the business and a site inspection. The certification process is designed to confirm the business is at least 51% owned, operated, and controlled by one or more women. The WBE Certification is one of the most widely recognized and respected certifications in the nation. Thousands of corporations and many federal and government agencies recognize and accept the certification into their vendor-business relationship selection processes.
This certification is a significant achievement for Hill, Barolet & Associates. Many companies look for partnerships with a minority-owned firm in order to adhere to diversity guidelines. "This is tremendous news for us. If a company belonging to the CPUC is looking for help with their internal communication efforts, Hill, Barolet & Associates is certified to perform the work under WBE Certification. It's a great benefit for us to have this certification, so that more CPUC companies can take advantage of the amazing talent we have on staff," said Sara Hill, Principal of Hill, Barolet & Associates.
Hill, Barolet & Associates garnered several honors at the 2008 Magellan Awards (01/06/09)
Houston, TX – Hill, Barolet & Associates, a full-service employee and benefits communications firm, garnered several honors at the 2008 Magellan Awards, sponsored by the League of American Communication Professionals LLC (LACP), including an award for one of the “Top 50 Communication Campaigns of 2008”. This achievement marks the second year in a row the firm has placed in the Magellan Awards “Top 50.”
“At Hill, Barolet & Associates, we help clients engage their employees to listen, understand and take action,” said Sara Hill, Principal and co-founder of the firm. “This latest recognition from the LACP confirms that we’re doing our job.”
In addition to the “Top 50” award, Hill, Barolet & Associates also received Gold and Bronze recognition – placing at the top of their competition class. Taking Gold for the “Employee Communications – Corporations (Up to $1 Billion)” category was Chevron Phillips Chemical Company’s Open Enrollment campaign, “Smarter. Healthier. Better.” “This year was unique in that there were no takeaways or premium increases to announce,” said Hill. “So our task was to keep employees committed to managing health care costs and inspire them to be vigilant and focused on health care consumerism.”
Bronze recognition in the same category went to Marathon Oil’s Benefits Open Enrollment campaign, “Back to Basics.” “For Marathon, the “basics” refer not only to their core benefit plans, but also to the fundamentals of healthy living: eating right, getting exercise, making sound lifestyle choices,” says Hill. “So our materials educated employees about using their plans wisely, as well as taking an active role in their health care.”
“The 2008 Magellan Awards Communications Campaign Competition drew an unprecedented number of submissions representing a broad range of industries and organizational sizes,” said Tyson Heyn, APR, LACP Principal. “More than 450 entries representing upwards of half a dozen countries were received, so competition was exceptionally tough. Winners demonstrated a laser focus on communications grounded in creativity and passion, which ultimately helped message recipients understand and appreciate its relevance and importance.”
Hill, Barolet & Associates receives two “Awards of Excellence” from APEX 2008 (07/14/08)
Houston, TX – Hill, Barolet & Associates, a full-service employee communications firm, received two Awards of Excellence for its employee communication work from APEX (Awards for Publication Excellence) 2008, sponsored by Communication Concepts.
“This is truly an honor, especially in light of the amazing competition,” said Sara Hill, Principal and co-founder of Hill, Barolet & Associates.
Awards were received under the categories of “New Web and Intranet Sites,” for the MyMarathonBenefits.com website and “Employee and Benefits Communication” for the Chevron Phillips Chemical Company Retirement Guide.
APEX Awards are based on excellence in graphic design, editorial content and the ability to achieve overall communications excellence. With almost 4,500 entries, competition was exceptionally intense.
The panel of judges included John De Lellis, Concepts Editor & Publisher, Carolyn Mulford, Concepts Senior Evaluator for the Publication Evaluation Program and Senior Writer & Editor of Writing That Works, Christine Turner, Contributing Editor of Writing That Works: The Business Communications Report, and Bill Londino, Consulting Editor of Writing That Works.
“Overall, this year’s entries displayed an extraordinary level of quality. The APEX judges saw only the most promising publications that professional communicators could enter. From them, they had the truly difficult task of selecting award-winning entries,” states John De Lellis, Editor and Publisher of “Writing that Works.”
Hill, Barolet & Associates receives top honors at the 2007 Magellan Awards (02/20/08)
Houston, TX – Hill, Barolet & Associates, a full-service employee communications firm, received Platinum, Gold and Bronze awards at the 2007 Magellan Awards, sponsored by the League of American Communication Professionals (LACP). In addition, one of the campaigns submitted by the firm received recognition as one of the “Top 50 Communication Campaigns of 2007.”
“We couldn’t be more thrilled with the recognition,” said Sara Hill, Principal and co-founder of Hill, Barolet & Associates. “We have such a passion for helping companies communicate effectively with their employees, and it’s nice to know that passion shows through in our work.”
Through several hundred hours of judging, LACP identified winners within peer-level competition classes. The entry with the highest score within its competition class was presented with the Platinum Award. The entries with second-, third- and fourth-highest scores within their competition class garnered Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards respectively. Top 50 awards were given to the highest-scoring entries regardless of competition class.
The Platinum and Top 50 Awards were awarded to Chevron Phillips Chemical’s Open Enrollment communication campaign “High Performance, Cost Effective Healthcare,” which focused on raising employee awareness around the subject of healthcare consumerism.
The Gold Award was awarded to Rich Product’s communication campaign “Back to Basics,” which tied issues essential to the company’s success, such as living its values, being a long-term business partner, recruiting and retaining the right talent, and managing expenses as efficiently as possible to its 2008 benefits communication campaign.
The Bronze Award was awarded to Marathon Oil’s Annual Change campaign “Reaching Out.” The main goal of the campaign was to give employees and their families convenient access to information, tools and educational resources to support smart decision-making and healthcare consumerism.
Jerry Zimmerman, HR Benefits Manager at Chevron Phillips Chemical Company thought the recognition given to their campaign was “a proper reflection of a continuing collaborative effort between two first-class organizations.”
About Hill, Barolet & Associates
Hill, Barolet & Associates is a full-service employee communication agency made up of seasoned strategists, writers and designers who are passionate about helping their clients get their message across to their employees. Hill, Barolet’s team of internal communication experts specializes in communication solutions that are smart, imaginative and practical for a wide range of companies – from small start-ups to Fortune 500 companies.