From the Managers’ Conference: Winners of the COO X, Building the Bench, Services and UROC Awards

The Retail, Food and Services Managers’ Conference began on Monday with a round of awards presented by the Exchange’s Operations, Human Resources and Services and Food directorates. Top Exchanges were recognized for excellence, receiving the COO X Award, Building the Bench Award, the Services Cup and newly added UROC Award.

COO X Award

The Chief Operating Officer’s X Award is presented for operational excellence to one main Exchange in each store-size category (mega, large, medium and small). Winners are selected based on criteria including earnings, MILITARY STAR_® usage, gross margin return on investment and inventory variance.

“Exchange stores do a terrific job of supporting the mission daily and this year’s winners distinguished their performance from the rest with superior results across operational categories,” said Exchange President Jason Rosenberg. “Their hard-earned efforts and level of service have strengthened our success as an organization.”

The 2024 COO X Award winners are:

Mega: Fort Cavazos (Central)

Large: Fort Jackson (Eastern)

Medium: Los Angeles Consolidated (Western)

Small: Hanscom Air Force Base (Eastern)

Building the Bench Award

The Exchange is focused on ensuring the benefit for the current military community as well as future generations of military leaders, Veterans, retirees and families. This means preparing associates for success as they continue their careers with the Exchange.

The Building the Bench Award is given to one Exchange in each region based on a variety of factors, including mentoring; diversity and inclusion; associate retention; Retail Management Academy and Restaurant Operations Management Academy participation and graduations; and Human Resources marketing.

Eastern: Puerto Rico/Honduras

Central: Maxwell-Gunter AFB/Fort Novosel

Western: Colorado Consolidated

Europe: EUCOM Consolidated

Pacific: Yokota Air Base/Camp Fuji

“As family serving family, these stores embodied the mission by building the organization’s future leaders,” said Chief Human Resources Officer Dr. Patrick Oldenburgh Jr. “Through successful execution, the winners nurtured Exchange associates with mentorship, development courses and other programming to support the personal and professional growth of their teams.”

Services Award

Services Operations include a vast array of personal services, retail commodities, vending, health, wellness, and telecom outlets that are critical to the Exchange’s ability to serve a diverse and ever-changing customer base. The Services Award recognizes one exchange in each size category for its stellar financial, community, and customer service performance this year.

The winners of the 2023 Services Award are:

Mega: Fort Moore (Eastern Region)

Large: Fort Belvoir/Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall (Eastern Region)

Medium: Wiesbaden (Europe Region)

Small: Edwards AFB (Western Region)

“Our services operations extend our mission of serving our Warfighters and improving Quality of Life beyond our retail walls,” said Vice President of Services Operations Denise Hunter. “The Services award winners represent our best in class, a shining example of what it takes to serve the most amazing customers in the world. We are thankful to have you on our front lines.”

Ultimate Restaurant Operation Champion (U-ROC) Award

The inaugural Ultimate Restaurant Operations Champion (U-ROC) award recognizes food operators for the dedication and passion displayed as they provide extraordinary customer experiences every day. Award recipients are considered the best of the best in Exchange food operations worldwide, consistently adhering to established brand standards, exceeding financial metrics, and meeting training requirements.

Mega: Fort Bliss/Holloman AFB/White Sands Missile Range (Western)

Large: Keesler AFB (Central)

Medium: Redstone Arsenal (Central)

Small: Charleston Consolidated (Eastern)

“Preparing and serving meals to the America’s heroes is a critical part of military Quality of Life,” said Vice President of Food and Theater Danita Jones. “The winners of this important award have successfully demonstrated success in providing a superior dining experience for those who serve.”