Silver Medal for Stepwise HR at the Greek Hospitality Awards 2023

By Anthi Boskou

“Stepwise HR is honored for its innovation and contribution to Hospitality and Tourism”. This phrase may sound like a dream for a start-up that has been operating for just two years in the competitive fields of Tourism and Hospitality. However, for the Greek Hospitality Awards, vision, passion, innovation, and hard work are obvious reasons for recognition. In a splendid ceremony held on October 20, 2023, at the Athenaeum InterContinental in Athens, among prominent figures from the hospitality industry, distinguished representatives of the Greek press, and the political scene, Antonia Karagia, the founder and representative of Stepwise HR, was present to personally receive the award.

The Greek Hospitality Awards, a successful institution organized by ethosEVENTS under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourism Organization for the ninth consecutive year, highlight the “gold,” “silver,” and “bronze” in Hospitality. This institution aims not only to inspire entrepreneurs and professionals in the field to give their best but also to promote the domestic tourism product and the supporting services of the Hospitality sector as fundamental for the region’s development. Awards are given following evaluations by a distinguished academic and expert judging committee, as well as the “consensus” of the public, as they have the opportunity to support their chosen candidate through online voting.

Antonia Karagia was there, and after receiving the award, she narrates:

“It is an important moment for us. We competed for the special contribution award in an event that truly rewards only excellent and innovative businesses. We stood next to ‘prominent names,’ hotels and resorts, but also software development companies. What was most important for us was that, beyond evaluation criteria such as sound business practices, excellent facilities, architecture and interior design, location, sustainable development, and the natural environment, the recognition of Stepwise HR highlights a fundamental criterion. The award for Stepwise HR means an award for human resources. This is because behind the name Stepwise HR lies a large community of people who earn a living, grow, and succeed professionally in Hospitality and Food Service sector. With this award, we want to believe that we have shed light, once again, on the contribution and the tremendous role played by human resources in the industry’s development. It is an honor for us to represent this criterion of ‘excellence.’

We are grateful for our collaborations, proud of our clients, the people who trusted us, and I personally thank my team very much for their tireless efforts in promoting Stepwise as an innovative human resources agency. Of course, I also thank every person who has encountered Stepwise and gave their vote, so that we find ourselves today with this silver medal ‘in hand.’ We are committed to even more fresh ideas, which I cannot reveal yet 😊, for even greater effort and belief that 2024 will be the year when the human factor will make Tourism and Hospitality shine. I cannot hide that our joy was twofold: in addition to our award, we proudly witnessed the awarding of one of our most beloved clients, Eliamos Villas & Spa Hotel, which rightly received the Gold Medal in the Best Greek Villa Resort category. We have been with them from the beginning of their titanic effort, which led to the creation of a unique resort, in one of the most beautiful corners of Kefalonia. We have been and continue to be steadfast allies in their journey, providing unwavering support in staffing, refining skills through training, and shaping an agile, thriving workplace.”.