Aspire Announces Winners of Business Awards
Award recognizes business success and employers’ innovative talent attraction strategies
Aspire Economic Development + Chamber Alliance proudly announced today the winners of its esteemed Business Awards. Among them, Aspire’s Business Success Award celebrates organizations that have showcased outstanding achievements in areas such as growth and stability, commitment to quality, innovative problem-solving, and entrepreneurial spirit. The Diversity in Business Award acknowledges businesses that embrace diversity within their workforce, community, and industry. Lastly, the Green Business Award celebrates companies that excel in social and environmental responsibility, climate justice, and sustainable or eco-friendly products or practices. Finalists were previously announced April 16th. The winner in each category was revealed at the annual “Celebrate Aspire” event held on April 25th at the Garment Factory in Franklin.
Winners by category are:
- Business Success, For-profit 1-9 employees – Elevated Marketing Solutions.
Elevated Marketing Solutions is not a dot com marketing company. Rather, they are a dot solutions agency. Their reporting process identifies what is working, what is not, and what they are going to do about it. With their data-driven strategies they can take the emotions out of the decision-making process. 2022 was a difficult year for Elevated Marketing Solutions regarding staffing, yet the company still saw an almost 3% increase in annual sales from 2021 to 2022. From 2022 to 2023, annual sales increased 46.7%. The company’s workforce is virtual, and consistent coaching on how to work for clients and with teammates in a virtual environment has helped with the company’s retention and growth. - Business Success, For-profit 10+ employees – Door Services of Indiana
Door Services of Indiana is a small, locally owned, Women’s Business Enterprise that distributes and services commercial frames, doors, and hardware. Through strong leadership and strategy, they overcame obstacles created by moving from Indianapolis to Franklin and increased their annual sales from 2022 to 2023 by 74%. The company also created an environment that fosters motivated, engaged, and productive team members. They initiated quarterly incentives and employee benefits, training, and team building events to promote a healthy workplace culture. They made the bold decision to not use voicemail, and their Estimators and Project Managers personally call customers and talk with them directly. Their goal is to support $4-6 million dollars in revenue per year by providing quality products to fit their customers’ needs, budgets, and construction schedule. Their current backlog for 2024-2025 is approximately $11 million dollars. - Business Success, Nonprofit – Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial
Modern Woodmen of America is a fraternal financial services organization built to help families and communities. 2022 brought challenges in growth. A decision to restructure internally led to a short-term setback resulting in a decrease of 55% in annual revenue. They overcame this challenge through direct clear communication, critical hiring, and a firm conviction in developing processes. Modern Woodmen piloted a program designed to help onboard and train new associate financial representatives. They have been able to increase the retention and success rates of their first- and second-year advisors, as well as increase their client/member base by 77%. Overcoming their challenges from 2022, Modern Woodmen has seen an increase of 113% in annual sales from 2022 to 2023 and reached their highest ranking amongst the entire organization, ranking 21st out of 78 firms. - Diversity in Business Award – CMP Corporation
CMS is a construction contractor with design-bid-build and strong self-performance capabilities in mechanical, piping, and fabrication work. Diversity for CMS is woven into who they are as a company, with all three of their owners coming from ethnically diverse backgrounds. 29% of their staff team hail from various ethnic and cultural backgrounds and nearly one third of their team members are women. This sets a new standard for the construction industry. CMS enjoys quarterly celebrations featuring cuisine and traditions from various team members’ cultures. They also have staff participate in multi-generational and DEI training yearly to combat unconscious bias and collaborate with all team members most effectively. Through their training programs, resource groups, and outreach initiatives, CMS provides the tools and resources needed to help everyone reach their full potential. They have created a culture where everyone has a voice and can thrive, which is the key to unlocking the full potential of their team. - Green Business Award – Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County
Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County’s ReStore provides an environmentally and socially responsible way to keep re-usable materials out of landfills, all the while raising funding to help build future homes. Since opening ReStore here in Johnson County in 2016, they have diverted 1,300 tons of materials from landfills. Donation pickups are strategically mapped out to utilize the most efficient routes for trucks, saving fuel pollutants.In 2023, ReStore made 847 pick-ups throughout Johnson County. The first quarter of 2024, they have already made 229 pick-ups and are on pace to surpass last year's number. ReStore works to continue Habitat for Humanity’s commitment to sustainable and responsible building practices.
In presenting the awards, Aspire Board of Directors President Leeanne Lollar with Donaldson Capital Management said, “Today’s business environment is ever changing, and success does not come easy. Our award finalists have discovered ways to navigate all the known aspects of running a successful business while managing the unknown and unexpected that comes along the way.”
The “Celebrate Aspire” event was presented by First Financial Bank. Aspire’s 2024 business awards were sponsored by Citizens Bank and Johnson Memorial Health.