2021 Economic Impact Awards: Editor's Note

Four of the five companies receiving top honors from this year’s Economic Impact Awards are health care agencies. I’m sure, like me, you’re not surprised. The past 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic have taxed health care systems, and they rose to meet the challenge. 
They cared for our community’s health, which is a key factor in its economic recovery.

A heartfelt congratulations to all the honorees for driving this community forward. I also give a round of applause to the judges who took their time to read and score the nominations, and a big thanks to you, our readers, for your continued support of our local company as Springfield Business Journal heads into its 42nd year.

—Christine Temple, Executive Editor

Here’s the Economic Impact Awards selection process from start to finish:

1. Nominations are submitted from across the community.
2. Nominees are notified and given questionnaires to fill out for judges’ consideration.
3. SBJ selects an independent panel of judges to evaluate each submitted questionnaire, along with a resume and letter of recommendation for individual nominees.
4. Judges individually score each applicant based on their financial performance, community involvement and overall impact on the Ozarks region. 
5. Judges are asked to recuse themselves from scoring any nominee who would be considered a conflict of interest.

6. SBJ tallies all judges’ scores to determine the top three companies in each category. In each of the five categories honoring businesses based on years of service, a top honor is given based on judges’ scores.
7. SBJ announces the honorees and reveals the year’s judges.