The advances made over the past two weeks include substantial progress in the creation of a Section 21 company that will assume ownership of the Loerie Awards trademark and goodwill; as well as the appointment of a highly experienced manager to oversee all aspects of staging the awards.
Headed by WingWing Mdlulwa, the committee was formed in January after several years of dissatisfaction with the Loerie Awards. After last year's event, it was agreed by all industry participants, that it should be restructured, taking cognisance of the broader issues facing the industry locally and abroad, instead of perpetuating the failures of the past.
The committee comprises representatives from all spheres of the marketing communications industry - from service suppliers, such as advertising agencies and specialist communication companies; to the brand owners and marketers. The six stakeholders are the Creative Circle (CC), the Association for Communication and Advertising (ACA), the Marketing Federation of South Africa (MFSA), the Commercial Producers Association (CPA), the Communication & Advertising Forum for Empowerment (Café), and THINK (SA Graphic Design Council).
Recounting the progress to date, Mdlulwa said the prime aim of the Loerie Awards going forward remained rewarding creativity in advertising and marketing. However, additional objectives include using any profits generated from the event to position the South African industry on the global marketing communication stage; and, importantly, to fund programmes and initiatives that will bring young black South Africans into the industry.
"Our vision for the Loeries is that it transforms into an entity having major influence on the local advertising industry," said Mdlulwa.
'We want the Loeries to continue to encourage creativity, but to broaden its audience so that it is no longer industry-centric, but reaches out to the urban and rural youth to highlight career opportunities in marketing communication, and assist those with potential and aspiration to develop into active participants making a meaningful and exciting contribution to tomorrow's industry."
To achieve this, Mdlulwa said, the Loerie Awards needed to be managed by independent, self-funding concern. He said the committee was a long way down the track to forming a Section 21 company that will own the Loerie Awards trademark and goodwill.
He added that Andrew Human had been appointed as managing director of the new company. Announcing the appointment, Mdlulwa said Human had impeccable and highly apt credentials. "It is a long time since I have been so excited about working side-by-side with someone like I am now," Mdlulwa said. "Andrew is, without a doubt, the most qualified person for the daunting task of ensuring Loeries 2005 is a success."
Human's industry-related experience includes working in New York with The One Show and the Art Directors Club, as well as on Adweek's Icon Awards. His job will entail overseeing the entire ambit of show management - from calling for and managing the entries; selecting and briefing judging panels; preparing budgets and tracking finances; conceptualising and organising the awards function; and overseeing the publicity that is so necessary to make it a success. On the management front, Human is an entrepreneur who started several companies and grew them into successful entities.
The committee's selection process was rigorous: CVs from 100 applicants were scrutinised, not once but twice, to highlight those with the closest skills match to the job specifications. This was followed by in-depth interviews with those on the short-list.
According to Mdlulwa, Human's experience and skills set are ideal for the task at hand, which is an exceptionally challenging and daunting one. "There's no escaping the fact that this year's Loerie Awards represents a watershed for the industry. It has to satisfy the industry on many levels - professionalism, transformation, judging processes, to name but a few."
"The committee believes Andrew has much to contribute to the South African industry. It sees him as a man of vision with considerable empathy for the transformation cause. His plans include embracing rural communities and the township youth, student exchange programmes in conjunction with The One Award, and using the Loerie Awards and the new company as vehicles for training and skills transfer.
"The committee is confident that Andrew will prove make a success of a key position in the new Section 21 company and add considerable goodwill to the Loerie Awards," Mdlulwa concluded.
