PRISMS Awards 2024 celebrate the art of storytelling
The 2024 PRISMS Awards, held alongside the inaugural PRISMS Summit, celebrated not only the best work in the industry but also the dawn of a new chapter for PRISA, as the institute unveiled its refreshed brand and renewed vision for the future.
“This year’s submissions reflected the profound influence of storytelling in shaping brand narratives and public perception. Through the “Ink” theme, campaigns showcased how strategic communications can turn moments into movements, connecting communities and driving meaningful action,” said Bradly Howland, CEO of Alkemi, president-elect of PRISA and member of the PRISMS organising committee.
According to Paul Reynell, chief judge of the PRISMS Awards, the ‘Ink’ theme this year truly captured the essence of the profession.
“The campaigns we saw were not just communications efforts but works of art, using the power of storytelling to drive change, engagement and connection in the market. These award-winning campaigns blend creativity with strategic intent, reflecting how our industry continues to evolve and influence the world,” he said.
The ultimate Campaign of the Year was the GoSolr The Light Paper, which was awarded to The Friday Street Club.
Paddington Station Inc. walked away with Grand Prix Agency of the Year and Best Small Agency. Tribeca PR was also recognised as the Best Medium-Sized Agency and Flow Communications as the Best Large Agency of the Year.
Find out all the winners here.
Flow Communications 2024 PRISM Awards Best Large PR Consultancy of the Year
Flow Communications is the 2024 PRISM Awards’ Best Large PR Consultancy of the Year! The agency won 18 awards overall at the 2024 PRISM Awards, held on Saturday 21 September 2024 in Cape Town, on behalf of its clients. Including best large PR consultancy, the agency won three gold, four silver and eight bronze awards, as well as three special mentions.
“We’re elated with what our team and clients have achieved,” said Flow CEO Tara Turkington. “Receiving these prestigious PRISM awards proves that we’re producing purposeful and innovative work for our clients that is being recognised at a national level.”
Said Flow managing director Tiffany Turkington-Palmer, “Congratulations to our phenomenal team and to all of the other PRISM award winners – and especially to our head of PR, Caroline Smith, who won gold in the Recognition in PR Leadership category. What a feat! We’re so privileged to be winners alongside some of the greatest creative minds in South Africa.”
Agency of the year:
Good Work Foundation: Bronze – Content Marketing/Brand Journalism: Rural Education Revolution
Hollard Insure: Special mention – Corporate Citizenship: Hollard Highway Heroes
Marine Protected Areas Alliance: Bronze – NGO/NPC Campaign: Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Day 2023; Silver – Digital Campaign: Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Day 2023
Nelson Mandela Foundation (NMF)
The Women Presidents Organization (WPO): Silver – Content Marketing/Brand Journalism: WPO Good to Great campaign
South African Aids Council (SANAC): Gold – Public Sector: SANAC – GBV Ambassadors
South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI)
ATC Africa (American Tower Corporation): Silver – Internal Stakeholder Engagement & Communication: IMPACT internal communications campaign
Carspa AutoWash: Special mention – CRM/Customer Loyalty Campaign: Carspa AI Loyalty Campaign
Magna Carta celebrates 30 years with major wins at the PRISMS Awards
Magna Carta capped off its 30th-anniversary celebrations over the weekend by securing a remarkable six PRISM Awards, the most prestigious accolades in Africa’s public relations and communications sector.
The PRISM Awards, presented by the Public Relations Institute of South Africa (PRISA), recognise excellence in public relations and communication management. The awards highlight innovative, impactful campaigns and measurable results across various business sectors.
Magna Carta was awarded the following PRISM Awards:
Awande Dlamini, account director at Magna Carta, also won Silver in the PR Professional of the Year category.
ByDesign Communications celebrates four Gold Awards and a Silver at the 2024 PRISMS Awards
The 2024 PRISM Awards were hosted by the Public Relations Institute of South Africa (PRISA) on Saturday 21 September, at a prestigious gala event in Cape Town. Entries showed strong representation from the industry, with both emerging and well-established agencies showcasing their work.
Commenting on the event, Kevin Welman, director of ByDesign Communications, applauded PRISA for its continued dedication to celebrating excellence in the PR and marketing industries: “These awards remain vital to the industry, not just as a measure of recognition for agencies, but also for the clients we serve. They represent the pinnacle for achievement in our industry, and PRISA plays a critical role in maintaining high standards, driving innovation and creative problem-solving, and supporting the goals of both agencies and clients alike.”
ByDesign secured four Gold Awards and one Silver, including:
Connie Ferguson
The National Film & TV Awards (NFTA) nominations are driven by public submission. Since 1998, our academy has pioneered the process of public nominations and voting, ensuring that those who nominate and vote are not panels but members of the viewing public—the consumers who watch the films and TV programmes being produced.
For the National Film & TV Awards South Africa, the call for nominations was open from January 2024 until September 9th. Nominations were compiled based on the highest number of public submissions. By the deadline, over 1.7 million submissions had been received. These nominations are then made available for public voting.
Voting for the NFTA is also public-led. Starting on September 23rd at 9:00 AM, the public can vote through our social media network Telephonos (www.telephonos.com). To participate, voters must register, set up a profile, and cast their votes via Telephonos. The voting period will close on 26 October. The winners will be announced live at the awards ceremony on the 9 November 2024.
Entries open for the 2024 African Investigative Journalist of the Year Award
All African journalists are invited to submit entries for the prestigious 2024 African Investigative Journalist of the Year Award, an initiative of the Wits Centre for Journalism and annual African Investigative Journalism Conference.
The award, supported by Absa, recognises outstanding examples of investigative reporting from Africa that reveal untold stories, hold the powerful to account, question those in public life and serve the public interest. The top prize in 2024 is US$5 000, and major travel costs like flights, accommodation and transport will be covered for the finalists.
The award is open to all African journalists or teams of journalists working in any media for stories from and about Africa, published or broadcast in African media between 1 June 2023 to 1 July 2024.
Entries close at 2pm on 27 September 2024. The award ceremony will be held at the African Investigative Journalism Conference scheduled to take place at Wits University in Johannesburg from 30 October to 1 November 2024.
Click here for details and see how submit your work. For enquiries, please contact aijc@journalism.co.za or visit aijc.africa.
FNB’s rewards programme, eBucks scoops five awards at the South African Loyalty Awards
Harry Kellan
FNB’s rewards programme, eBucks, has achieved remarkable recognition by winning six prestigious awards at the 2024 South African Loyalty Awards. This milestone reaffirms eBucks as the leading rewards programme in the country.
FNB CEO, Harry Kellan said, “FNB is proud of its complimentary rewards programme. The awards affirm that our rewards offer real value to our customers. Through FNB and eBucks, we provide customers with significant choices, allowing customers to select benefits that significantly impact their lives. eBucks has partnered with many companies to offer valuable reward options for all our customers.”
The accolades won by eBucks for the second consecutive year include:
Pieter Woodhatch, eBucks Rewards CEO, added, “These prestigious awards remind us that we are still making great progress as a financial service provider offering personalised advice and solutions. We believe our customer-focused offerings can make a positive difference in our customers’ lives, whether the changes are big or small, especially during tough economic times.
As a financial service provider that understands the role we play in society, we are committed to tailoring our rewards programme to meet the diverse needs of all our customers. This allows us to be more intentional in helping South Africans stretch their monthly budgets for necessities.”
Human8 and L’Oréal win ESOMAR Research Effectiveness Award 2024 for pioneering Consumer Empathy programme
Delphine Vantomme
Human8, in collaboration with L’Oréal, has been awarded the prestigious 2024 ESOMAR Silver Trophy for Research Effectiveness. The award was presented at the ESOMAR Congress in Athens, recognising the innovative approach to consumer empathy through the groundbreaking Beauty Talks program.
In 2020, amid the global pandemic, L’Oréal identified the need to enhance customer centricity, transitioning from consumer understanding to consumer empathy. As a leading player in the dynamic beauty industry, L’Oréal recognised the importance of staying connected with consumers to navigate the rapidly changing digital and cultural trends.
This led to the creation of Beauty Talks, a global initiative designed by Human8 to foster genuine connections with consumers and professionals across 29 countries. Crucially, L’Oréal chose to prioritize real human interactions over AI and synthetic data, emphasizing the importance of truly listening to and understanding real emotions from real people.
Delphine Vantomme, Head of Consumer Closeness at Human8, commented: “At Human8, we believe that the key to true consumer empathy lies in authentic human connections.
With Beauty Talks, we have created a platform that goes beyond average consumer profiles, connecting L’Oréal stakeholders with truly inspirational individuals, including niche profiles such as influencers and professionals like make-up artists and hairdressers. But achieving real consumer empathy requires more than just tools or capabilities. It involves building the right skills, fostering a culture of empathy, and integrating these practices into everyday work.”
SAICA Awards set to showcase the accountancy profession locally and abroad
As South Africa continues to face a critical balance sheet crisis, many students today shy away from careers in accountancy. They perceive it as challenging and are discouraged from pursuing it as a career. At the same time, those aspiring to become accountants are sometimes enticed by the opportunity to work abroad, leaving a gap in the local industry.
To elevate and advocate for the significant role of the accountancy profession, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) is launching its revamped SAICA Awards, an annual initiative that celebrates excellence across the entire accounting profession, from cradle to career.
Fully aware that skilled South Africans are being lured abroad, SAICA has introduced the South Africans in Australia Awards — a brand-new accolade specially designed to recognise the substantial contributions of skilled South Africans (across multiple sectors, not just accounting) who have relocated to Australia.
The Awards categories are:
The judging panel comprises reputable and well-respected South Africans, including Carol Bouwer, a speaker, children’s and women’s rights activist, television producer, and businesswoman, and Stephen Koseff, the former CEO of Investec. The awards winners will be announced at an exclusive event on 25 September in Sydney, Australia.
Even though the entries for South African in Australia Awards and the Student Leadership Awards have now closed, entries for the remaining SAICA Awards are still open and SAICA members and associates are encouraged to participate and showcase the exceptional achievements that propel the accounting profession forward. For more information on how to enter or nominate someone, see here.
Schneider Electric sponsors Wits automation award for the 7th year
Schneider Electric, the world’s most sustainable company and leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, has for the seventh consecutive year sponsored the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) School of Electrical and Information Engineering with the Schneider Electric Automation Student Award.
This year’s recipient of the Schneider Electric Automation Student Award is Ruth-Anne Wright, recognised for her outstanding achievement in the field of Measurement and Control in 2023. The award was presented by Suvern Moodley, EcoConsult Business Development at Schneider Electric.
The award handover formed part of the annual Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment Prizegiving Ceremony, which was held at Wits’ Great Hall in Johannesburg, Gauteng. This prestigious event serves as a platform to commend the outstanding academic accomplishments of Wits’ students.
“We are proud to continue our support for the Schneider Electric Automation Student Award, which reflects our commitment to fostering innovation and academic excellence in engineering. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to this year’s winner, Ruth-Anne Wright,” says Modlay Davids, Talent Acquisition Specialist at Schneider Electric.
Wright will amongst others receive complimentary training at the Schneider Electric Training Academy in Midrand, Johannesburg. The Schneider Electric Automation Student Award continues to confirm the company’s dedication to nurturing academic mastery and supporting the next generation of engineering talent.