INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The owners of 14 J.D. Byrider franchises were recently recognized by the company for being top performers. The President's Awards were given out to the dealers during Byrider's annual conference in November.

The awards recognize the top 10 percent of stores based on operational numbers, including earnings, portfolio quality and CSI, executives pointed out. Additionally, the Most Improved Franchise Award is based on the same criteria as the President's Award, but it honors stores that demonstrate the most improvement in operational numbers.

Franchise of the Year is also based on the same criteria as the President's Award but also takes into account subjective issues, such as activity in dealer associations and committees, according to the company. Does the store help other franchises? What has the store done to improve the entire franchise system? These are a few of the questions Byrider executives ask as they're looking for possible winners.

"These 14 stores and their owners embody the best qualities of our business model, particularly when it comes to customer satisfaction," explained Jim DeVoe Jr., Byrider's chief executive officer. "This year, award winners were required to have a customer satisfaction rating of more than 90 percent."

Steve Wedding, Byrider's president of franchising, added, "Our franchises represent the best in our industry. These award winners represent the cream of the crop."

This year's President's Awards went to franchises based in Greenwood, Ind.; Indianapolis, Ind.; Burlington, Iowa; Florence, Ky.; Brockton, Mass.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio (two locations); Fairfield, Ohio; Toledo, Ohio; Lancaster, Pa.; Longview, Texas; Lynchburg, Va.; and Roanoke, Va.

As for Most Improved Franchises, those awards went to owners based in Las Vegas; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Milwaukee, Wis.

Franchises in Lynchburg, Va.; Burlington, Iowa; Davenport, Iowa; Tyler, Texas; and Cleveland, Ohio, were all recognized as Franchises of the Year.