/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ - The Incentive Marketing Association (IMA) has named Harco Industries, Inc., Englewood, N.J., as its 2011 winner of the IMA Circle of Excellence Social Responsibility Award. The award was presented to Harco CEO Saro Hartounian at the recent Motivation Show in Chicago.

According to IMA Executive Director Karen Renk, "The award recognizes incentive suppliers that have gone above and beyond in their efforts to have socially responsible practices and policies, to actively protect the environment, and to contribute to the welfare of the local and global community."

Harco was chosen for the IMA Social Responsibility Award for its leadership in several areas, including its employee diversity, recognition and wellness programs, its use of solar panels at its New Jersey headquarters, material recycling and use of biodegradable products. In addition, Harco is engaged in several philanthropic activities, including primary sponsorship of the Naregatsi Art Institute in Armenia, which helps underprivileged children receive arts education, its development of the Armenian village of Knaravan, and its support of ClassWish.org, a nonprofit organization that helps teachers obtain classroom supplies at wholesale prices.

"Harco is an excellent example of a company that is an outstanding corporate citizen, has a culture of philanthropy, proactively protects the environment, and includes products in their award mix that promote economic justice," Renk said at the awards ceremony.

IMA also presented four Circle of Excellence Awards at the Motivation Show in Chicago. This year's award winners creatively used incentive campaigns to achieve their desired results. Dex Imaging, Tampa, Florida, worked with Dittman Incentive Marketing to develop a sales campaign that boosted sales by more than 18 percent; Travel Tags, Inc., Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, collaborated with Anderson Performance Improvement Company to create an online employee rewards and recognition program that helped reduce safety incidents by 70 percent and improved on-time delivery to more than 99 percent; AstraZeneca Australia, North Hyde, New South Wales, retained Accumulate to develop a peer recognition program that realized 95 percent participation; and Europcar - Tattersall Rent a Car, Santiago, Chile, partnered with Megaclub to create a multi-layered campaign that led to a 115 point sales gain versus goal.

In-depth case studies of the 2011 Circle of Excellence winners are available at www.returnonperformance.org and www.incentivemarketing.org.

About the Circle of Excellence Awards
Past Circle of Excellence Award winners have included noted companies such as GE Financial Services, Glaxo Smith Kline, Kohler, Kraft Foods, Purina, Microsoft Corp., and Sprint Communications. The growing archive of Circle of Excellence Award case studies illustrates the power of incentives, setting even higher standards for the incentive marketplace. Judging criteria includes overall success in meeting program objectives, program originality/creativity, appropriate incentive selection, perceived value of the incentive, and effectiveness of communication strategy and promotional materials.

About the Incentive Marketing Association
Business improves when employees and customers are recognized, rewarded, and engaged through effectively structured programs with defined goals and proven returns. The Incentive Marketing Association (IMA) is comprised of the companies who are leaders in the incentive industry. IMA provides education, resources and research to promote the use of incentive programs to the business community and is the umbrella organization for the Global Incentive Council (GIC), the Incentive Gift Card Council (IGCC), the Incentive Manufacturers & Representatives Alliance (IMRA), the Incentive Travel Council, the Performance Improvement Council, the Promotional Products Provider Council, the Recognition Council, IMA-Australia Council, IMA-Canada Council and IMA-Europe Council.

More information about IMA and the incentive marketplace is available at www.incentivemarketing.org.

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Karen Renk
http://www.profnetconnect.com/karenrenk

Incentive Marketing Association

Incentive Marketing Association

About the Incentive Marketing Association Business improves when employees and customers are recognized, rewarded, and engaged through effectively structured programs with defined goals and proven returns. The Incentive Marketing Association (IMA) is comprised of the companies who are leaders in the incentive industry. IMA provides education, resources and research to promote the use of incentive programs to the business community and is the umbrella organization for the Global Incentive Council (GIC), the Incentive Gift Card Council (IGCC), the Incentive Manufacturers & Representatives Alliance (IMRA), the Incentive Travel Council, the Performance Improvement Council, the Promotional Products Provider Council, the Recognition Council, IMA-Australia Council, IMA-Canada Council and IMA-Europe Council.

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