The Excellence Awards are simple to enter and whatever sector you are in, there will be a category that your achievements fit into. From Best Event to Best Website, Not-for-Profit or Public Affairs campaign – these are just four of 28 categories.
The CIPR Excellence Awards (Originally known as the IPR Sword of Excellence Awards) have been recognising excellence in PR & communications for over 20 years. The number of entries we receive grows year-on-year, and the standard of those entries is impressively high. Find out more about the 2008 Excellence Awards at www.cipr.co.uk/excellence
Boost your team morale
So why enter? In an article first published in Personnel Today magazine, Christine Cryne, then CEO at the Charted Institute of Marketing, pointed out that the whole awards experience can be as enriching as a team night out or work party. “Awards are great. They recognise success, improve morale and provide a perfect opportunity to take the team out for a celebration.” Read more about awards and their positive impact on staff morale at http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2006/01/31/33651/everyones-a-winner.html
Enhance your reputation
Winning an award sets you apart from your competitors and is recognition for the great work you and your team do. Proud winners take away a trophy, a certificate for the office wall, and can add our ‘Winner’ or ‘Finalist’ logo to their website and email signatures. And for the runners-up, just to be a finalist is a huge achievement. Minus the trophy, the other benefits remain.
Talk through your possible entries
So if your brain is now swimming with ideas for entries, sit down with your colleagues and look at the campaigns you’ve managed in the last 12 months. Pinpoint what was special about them and then look at the categories you could enter them into. Maybe it’s your team or company you are especially proud of this year – or your newly promoted Account Director, whose achievements have seen them climb the company ladder in an astoundingly short time. The Individual & Team Awards categories allow for reward in all of these areas and more.
Find out how to make the grade – Judgement Day
Improve your chances of winning and come along to one of our Judgement Day evenings, which invite past and present Excellence Award judges to share their top tips – from the initial entry stage through to the panel interview. Come and ask any questions you or your colleagues have and make your entry shine.
Judgement Day will take place on two dates in February, Monday 4 February and Wednesday 13 February. Drinks reception and networking at 6pm, followed by the presentation 6.30 – 8.00pm.
Book your place online at www.cipr.co.uk/judgementday
Closing date for entries is Friday 29 February. Good luck!
