Industry Awards

 

Since I was a kid, I loved winning… And moreover, I loved winning trophies. I loved trophies so much that when my sister won a couple trophies at an awards ceremony and I didn’t, I went home and made my own trophy out of tin-foil. (It looked BAD, which only ended up making me feel worse.)

 

Flash forward 30 years and my team and I are picking up some serious hardware for our work in media production. We’ve won the Inc.com Best in Business Award, Telly Awards, Davey Awards, Film Fest Awards and Marcom Awards. Now let me be clear, entering these competitions takes time and money. Are our entries driven by my own obsession with winning metallic golden proof of our collective awesomeness? OR by a desire to show my team how terrific I think they are by investing in these competitions to show them that it’s not only me that thinks their work is great, but a jury of their peers really thinks so as well. (I mean it’s probably a little bit of both.)

 

Some might say that these awards are just self-congratulatory schlock, well I did my homework and according to a Bersin & Associates workplace study, “Companies with strong recognition cultures are 12 times more likely to achieve excellent business outcomes, than their peers.”

 

Obviously “excellent business outcomes” is pretty subjective but I believe that when people feel recognized and appreciated, they are more invested in the company’s success.

 

So, are industry awards the only way to do that? Of course not – but they ARE a tangible reminder of the great work we’ve accomplished together along our journey.

 

My love for trophies continues to this day. We’re still entering competitions to showcase our best work, but now, I also volunteer as a member of the Telly Awards Judging Council and as a judge for the Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts (AIVA) Davey Awards. My hope is that I can help find other great pieces of work and recognize not only my own people but others all over the world.

 

Every industry has awards, and my opinion is that if you think you’re doing great work, then put yourselves out there. Shoot your shot and see if you bring home that sweet sweet recognition. You just might find that you too have the lust for the luster. Testing out a new hashtag here: #trophytime