BuPers:AwardsManual:Nominations

Award Nominations

Introduction

It is important, when issuing awards, to understand the purpose of awards. This is something that many fan clubs, and evensome countries, in the past have failed to do properly. The philosophy of the The Royal Manticoran Navy: The Official Honor Harrington Fan Association (TRMN) with regard to awards can be encapsulated in the following statements:

• Not everyone will receive every award.
• We wish to ensure that members are recognized for the work they do.
• We want to ensure that awards are issued for valid reasons.

In keeping with this philosophy, it is essential that award recommenders understand how to write a good award citation that clearly and effectively states what the potential recipient has done to earn an award.

Writing Citations

For most people, writing the citation and/or justification for an award is the most difficult part of the entire awards process. In order to make this easier, this chapter will provide guidance and examples of various award citations and award language in order to help focus your efforts. A citation is a formalized, concise and straightforward account telling a story to everyone about what the person receiving the award has done. Writing a good, concise citation can be a challenge, but the following guidelines will help you develop them and improve the chances of approval for your award nominations. Every award citation is made up of an Introductory Sentence, Citation Body, and a Closing sentence (or section since it could be more than one sentence).

In general, the introductory sentence should contain the date of the action which is cause for the award, the name and rank of the individual who is to receive it, and what that action was. While these elements could be broken up into multiple sentences, a good, strong introductory sentence with all three elements is much more likely to garner the kind of award that is deserved by the individual.

The body of the citation should contain full and complete sentences for each accomplishment, which emphasize results. Use as many sentences as required to adequately justify the award or decoration, but avoid run-on sentences and / or run on paragraphs. The justifications should provide specific, hard hitting facts which state what the individual(s) did, how it benefited the TRMN, what level of the TRMN benefited (Chapter, Fleet, Regiment, Bureau, Admiralty House, etc.) and how this individual’s actions are clearly superior to others in a similar position. For each item, be specific and ask yourself “What was done?”, “How did they do it?”, and “What was the result?” Steer away from using specific jargon or acronyms or names of equipment that are not commonly used in the English language. Also avoid gushy or using “puffed up” words that seem phony or pompous.

In general, the closing sentence of any award ties the entire citation together by stating how the actions for which the award is being given are a reflection of the conduct of the individual and the organization itself.

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