The March 3rd deadline to submit a Virtuoso Award entry is quickly approaching. Now is the time to enter your best communication work to receive your very own IABC Virtuoso Award. There is no project too big or small to submit for consideration and you do not need to be an IABC member to participate. This regional awards program recognizes excellence in communications and the best in creative strategy and design. New this year, submissions are entered through the new online entry form.
To help with preparation for the submission, the Virtuoso Committee met with the 2016 Communications Management “Best of the Best” award winner, Renee Sweeney to learn more about the process and discover some tips and tricks.
Renee Sweeney, Communication Consultant at St. Joseph’s Health Care London, submitted the organization’s 2015-2018 Corporate Strategic Plan for Internal Communication in the Communication Management division. In the submission, Renee outlined how the team completed a fulsome communication strategy to raise awareness and understanding of the strategic future of the organization.
1) What did you find the most challenging when putting together your submission?
The maximum four-page limit requires you to be concise with content, which can be challenging when you have a lot of pertinent information and details to include.
2) What did you find the most time consuming?
When the time came around to complete the entry submission, it had been a number of months since I had worked on the communication plan for which I was submitting the award entry. I found it was most time consuming to go back and gather all of the pertinent information and data that supported the entry and to pull together both the work plan and the work sample. As I worked through the application however, I enjoyed reflecting back on the project as a whole, and seeing it summarized within the award entry. It was a very rewarding process!
3) What suggestions do you have for applicants who are entering submissions this year?
Start early, even before your project or communication plan wraps up. If you think the piece you are working on might be a great opportunity for an award submission, make note of the entry categories and requirements and start a draft, adding content under the application form headings as you go. This will make building your entry much easier when it comes time to pull it all together.
For more information on any and all things Virtuoso, visit virtuosoawards.com for details.
(Pictured above: Laura Dockstader, Dahlia Reich and Renee Sweeney, of St. Joseph’s Health Care London)