Public Pension Member Impact Award
NCPERS recognizes innovative projects that have improved the public pension member experience.
The Public Pension Member Impact Award recognizes a project, program, service enhancement, or technology solution that has produced measurable improvements in the member experience. The award, presented by NCPERS, honors public retirement systems whose initiatives have made it easier for their members to access services, understand benefits, prepare for retirement, or engage with their pension system.
This new award is designed to complement the Public Pension Communicator of the Year Award, which celebrates individuals making a difference, while the Public Pension Member Impact Award recognizes innovative projects.
The nomination deadline is Wednesday, December 16, 2026. Examples of initiatives may include enhanced member portals, call center improvements, or other creative solutions that increased participation and strengthened outcomes for plan participants. Find answers to FAQs, get tips for your nomination, and review the judges' scoring criteria.
One staff person representing the winning retirement system will receive complimentary registration to the 2027 Communications & Member Services Summit, held March 1-3 in New Orleans as we celebrate excellence in public pension communications and innovative initiatives that improve the member experience.
Which Award is Right For You?
The Public Pension Member Impact Award recognizes the best project, while the Public Pension Communicator of the Year Award recognizes the people behind exceptional communications. The nomination deadline for both awards is Wednesday, December 16, 2026. Please contact communications@ncpers.org with any questions.
Public Pension Member Impact (New!)
- Recognizes a project or initiative that was completed in the past 12 months
- Focuses on member outcomes, including measurable improvements to service
- Open to teams and cross-functional efforts (or teams of one)
Public Pension Communicator of the Year
- Recognizes an individual professional for accomplishments over the past 12 months
- Focuses on communications leadership, creativity, and innovation
- Opportunity to nominate Rising Stars (with less than 5 years of experience)
Frequently Asked Questions
You can either nominate an initiative from your own public retirement system, or you can nominate an initiative from a different public retirement system. We strongly recommend reviewing the scoring rubric and FAQs below before beginning your submission.
Tips for Your Nomination
- Please keep the criteria outlined below in mind when completing the nomination form.
- We strongly suggest including metrics to clearly demonstrate the impact to the judges. As an example, this might include year-over-year participation rates or satisfaction scores.
- Where possible, please specify how the project met strategic targets or how the work has contributed to meeting organizational goals.
- When referring to visual communications (e.g., educational video), please include graphics and/or screenshots if possible.
- For larger documents or reports, please limit attachments to the most relevant sections (ideally 10 pages or less).
- Testimonials or letters of recommendation from peers or fund leadership are strongly encouraged.
- As a reminder, nominations should be based on work completed in the past 12 months.
Public Pension Member Impact Award: Judging Criteria
| Core Criteria | Definition |
|---|---|
| Improving Member Services or Education | Initiative introduced a program, tool, technology, process, or educational initiative that meaningfully improved the member experience. The solution addressed a clear member need and represents a new or enhanced approach. |
| Member Impact and Measurable Results | Initiative produced demonstrable outcomes among pension participants, such as increased member engagement, improved retirement readiness, higher participation rates, stronger satisfaction scores, greater accessibility, reduced service barriers, or improved understanding of pension benefits. |
Supporting Criteria (Optional)
| Supporting Criteria | Definition |
|---|---|
| Scalability and Sustainability | Initiative demonstrates long-term viability and could be expanded, replicated, or adapted by other pension organizations to improve member outcomes. |
| Overcoming Challenges and Constraints | Program achieved meaningful results despite limitations such as budget constraints, staffing shortages, technology barriers, regulatory requirements, or changing member demographics. |
| Recognition and Adoption by Stakeholders | Program received positive feedback from members, leadership, trustees, industry peers, or external organizations, demonstrating its value and effectiveness. |
Other Factors Considered by Judges
- Resources available (e.g., size of team, budget, technology resources)
- Complexity of the challenge or opportunity addressed
- Scope and scale of member impact
- Experience level of the team or individuals leading the initiative
Please direct any questions to communications@ncpers.org.