2017 Excellence Awards

2017 EXCELLENCE AWARDS

MARKETING, ADVANCEMENT AND COMMUNICATION IN EDUCATION

CALL FOR ENTRIES

JUNE 2017

WE CHALLENGE YOU TO ENTER YOUR WORK

Marketing, advancement, and communication professionals sometimes wonder why they should enter an awards programme. ”What is in it for me?” they ask. “Why should I care about an award? My manager thinks highly of my work and I know it’s good, so why should I bother?” Other reasons not to enter,is that the evaluation process is subjective, the same people win every year, and “I don’t like the evaluators and they don’t like me.”

The entry form is available on the MACE website: mace.org.za/excellence-awards/

ALIGN YOUR WORK TO GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE

We believe the Excellence Awards Programme serves a greater purpose than just recognising jobs well done. The programme is structured to play a significant role in the career development of marketing, advancement, and communication professionals who are working for tertiary institutions across the country. It starts with the entry guidelines, which are based onglobal best practice in professional communication, and applies to the planning and execution of all communication projects and initiatives. In preparing your entry, you will be able to determine to what extent your work meets global best practices.

FASTER. HIGHER. STRONGER.

This brings me to the motto of the Olympics Games:Citius. Altius. Fortius., which means Faster. Higher. Stronger. The purpose of the Excellence Awards Programme is to enable us to determine if we are continuously improving every year. In addition, the award-winning work you submitted last year, may not earn you an award this year. We constantly need to improve, be creative, striving to find new ways of achieving understanding for our messages, improve our knowledge, and encourage the appropriate attitudes and required behaviours from our target audiences.

THE EVALUATION PROCESS

We refer to the team of people who review the entries as evaluators. We do not judge, we evaluate, give guidance to grow because we believe that marketing, advancement, and communication are the central nervous system of the community and of our institutions.

The evaluators comprise senior marketing, advancement, and communication professionals, hand-picked from tertiary institutions as well as from commerce and industry. The MACE Board reviews and approves the panel members in order to ensure that it is only leaders in the profession that are allowed the privilege of determining the standard of excellence for interventions in our respective fields of expertise.

Each entry is evaluated by a pair – one person from a tertiary institution and the other from the business world. They provide each entrant with detailed, constructive comments aimed at assisting entrants to improve their work.

OUR CHALLENGE TO YOU

We would like to see each and every South African tertiary-education institution entering examples of their projects for the MACE Excellence Awards Programme. It provides you with an opportunity to growindividually as a professional, andit helpsto grow the profession.

We are looking forward to the privilege of evaluating your excellence.

JANDRE BAKKER

COORDINATOR: MACE EXCELLENCE AWARDS PROGRAMME

WHY ENTER?

Taking part in the MACE Excellence Awards Programme will:

Build your professional reputation.

Win the respect of your leaders and colleagues.

Get you recognition for your strategic thinking and clever delivery.

Above all, make you proud!

ENTRY TIMEFRAME

The project must be implemented, published or broadcasted between January 2016 and the day of submission in 2017 in order to qualify for submission. Long-term campaigns may be entered, but the focus must be on the elements that were rolled out from January 2016 to the day the entry was submitted in 2017. If you entered in 2016 but did not win an award, you may enter the revised entry, as long as it still falls within the set timeframe. Entries that have won in previous years may not be resubmitted, except if they were part of a multi-year campaign and new elements were added within the time frame.

ENTRY FEES AND DEADLINES

SUPER SAVER / EARLY BIRD / FINAL DEADLINE
1 August 2017 / 1 September 2017 / 29 September 2017
R500 / R600 / R800

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Your entry and full entry fee must be received by 16:30 on 29 September 2017. To be eligible for the other entry fee options, your entry must be received by close of business on the indicated date. No entry will be accepted after the closing date or time.

Evaluation is based on a seven-point scale of excellence.

Entries must have a score of 5.25 to receive an award of merit.

Entries scoring 5.75 or higher, receive an award of excellence.

Entries must comprise a work plan and a work sample. The work plan provides the strategic overview of the programme or medium, while the work sample provides examples of the actual work completed.

The work plan for Divisions 1 and 2 is limited to 4 pages. For Division 3, it is limited to ±250 words. Exceeding this limitation may result in disqualification.

For entries in Division 1: Campaigns, 60% of the score is based on the work plan and 40% on the work sample.

In Division 2: Media, 50% is based on the work plan and 50% on the work sample.

In Division 3: Skills, 40% is based on the work plan and 60% on the work sample.

Work plans for Divisions 1 and 2 are limited to four pages, using a font size no smaller than 10 point and standard margins.

For Division 3: Skills, you only need to submit a short work plan of one page, using the same headings throughout, supported by the work sample.

Projects and other initiatives that mainly used syndicated or reprinted materialshould not be entered.

Entrants will receive the feedback from the evaluators on their scoresheets within four weeks after the Mace Excellence Awards Event. If you have not received feedback after five weeks, please send an email requesting your feedback to

Only entries that have submitted the Proof of Payment will be evaluated.

The permission and declaration section on the entry form must be completed and signed.

HOW ENTRIES ARE SCORED

The following scale will be used to evaluate your entry:

1 / Not provided, totally inappropriate approach.
2 / No indication of strategic alignment, approach not explained or wrong, no measurement.
3 / Inadequate explanation of alignment with the strategy, most key elements were missing, inadequate explanation of approach, only anecdotal results.
4 / Professionally competent execution of the project, but not exceptional.
5 / Professionally competent and better than average.
6 / Clearly aligned with the business strategy of the institution, approach well explained and valid and reliable results.
7 / Exceptional and innovative approach, setting a new standard, insightful alignment with the business strategy, exceptional motivation of approach, and impressive, valid, and reliable results.

WEIGHTING

The scoring in the different divisions would be the same, but the weighing of the work plan and the work sample will differ.

Division 1: Campaigns – Work plan 60% and the work sample 40%.

Division 2: Media – Work plan 50% and the work sample 50%.

Division 3: Skills – Work plan 40% and the work sample 60%.

AWARDS

AWARD OF MERIT: All the entries that achieve a score of 5.74.

AWARD OF EXCELLENCE: All entries that achieve a score of 5.75 or higher.

All entries earning an Excellence Award will be considered for:

GOLD AWARD OF EXCELLENCE: This prize may be awarded to the highest scoring entry in every category. The Moderator and the Coordinator of the MACE awards will evaluate the entries and identify the winners for the Gold Award of Excellence. There might not be a winner in each category. If an entry to be considered is from an institution associated with the Coordinator, a senior evaluator will evaluate the entry with the moderator.

PLATINUM AWARD OF EXCELLENCE: All the entries receiving a Gold Award of Excellence in a category will be considered for this award, and the best entry in a division will receive the award. The Moderator and the Chairperson of MACE will review the entries and identify the winners in each division. There will be a winner in each division. If the entry is from an institution associated with the Chairperson of MACE, a senior evaluator will assist the Moderator with the evaluation.

CHAIRPERSON’S AWARD OF EXCELLENCE: The three winners of the Platinum Award of Excellence will be considered for this award. This award will be made to the highest scoring entry across all divisions. The Moderator and the Chairperson of MACE will identify the winner of this award.

SPECIAL AWARDS

CARL AND EMILY FUCHS BUSINESS ISSUE AWARD:This applies to those qualifying because they addressed a critical business issue that threatened the well-being or viability of an organisation, and shows strategic involvement, while presenting an effective, innovative resolution with measurable results. The Moderator and Co-ordinator will recommend not more than five and not less than three projects.

SEVERUS CERFF AWARD: This prize is awarded for consistent excellence. It is based on the number of entries from an institution and how many of the entries win awards (minimum of 4 winning entries).

YOUR ENTRY

The entry form is available on the MACE website: mace.org.za/excellence-awards/

The following provides you with a brief guideline on what should be included in your entry. Consider using the “Preparing for Excellence Guide” when you prepare your submission.

1. THE TOMBSTONE DATA

If you do not provide all the information, your entry may be disqualified. You mustuse different entry forms for different divisions.

Category number / The number on the left of the category title
Category name / As listed in this document
Institution / The name of the tertiary institution where this was used
Name of the entrant / Even if a team of people worked on the project, it needs to be entered under one name
The team, if it was a team effort / Only the key team members who invested more than 20% of their time on this project, should be listed
Function/department / The name of the function or department where the entrant works
Job title / The role of the entrant in the institution
Timeline of the project / The duration of the campaign or when the channel was published or the skills sample commissioned
Name of the entry / Be creative. Make it short. Try to limit it to five words. This is what will be on your award
URL and passwords / URL and necessary passwords, if applicable
Email address / This will be used to share information with the entrant
Mobile number / To be used to contact the entrant for clarification

1. THE WORK PLAN

More details regarding the preparation for the work plan appears in “Preparing for Excellence”.

The purpose of the work plan is to indicate to the evaluator that you approached the project strategically, aligned to the strategy of the institution, and that you based your decisions on well-motivated facts.

The following aspects need to be covered:

BACKGROUND

Contextualise the institution. Imagine the evaluator is from America and has never heard about the institution. Tell the evaluator, for example, how big it is, if it is a single campus with a limited number of staff and students or if it is a distance-learning institution with a totally different campus, staff, and student structure. This should form the backdrop of your project.

THE NEED FOR THE PROJECT

Motivate the project. Why was this project undertaken? The medium used or the message created. What was the strategic need and business opportunity for the project? Use research and measurement to substantiate the need for the project. You may use public domain information or institution-specific research. Be circumspect with generalisations; rather try to be as specific as possible.

THE TARGET AUDIENCE

Who was the target audience? Why and what were their communication characteristics and preferences? Substantiate your motivation with research and measurement. Don’t just list the target audience categories; indicate how their characteristics influenced the choices you made regarding messaging, roll-out, and communication media.

THE GOAL AND OBJECTIVES

What was the goal for the project and what were the output and outcome objectives? Output objectives are related to tactics used, for example, producing a monthly electronic newsletter. Outcome objectives relate to the impact made on knowledge, the attitude to be created, and the behaviour it should result in. The objectives must be formulated in SMART terms – Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-framed. The goal and the objectives must be aligned with the original need for the project. Do not include too many and vague objectives.

THE APPROACH

Explain and motivate the approach you used. Was it innovative or was it the way you have always done it? Motivate the primary and supporting messages and why you wanted to communicate this to the target audience. Do not just list the messages; contextualise them within the need for the project and the target audience.

THE PROJECT

Give an overview of the project and the process. Explain how you planned and executed the project, the challenges you faced, and how you addressed them. Include the budget and how you used it. Indicate who was involved in the project (including consultants and media houses), for what percentage of the project, and at what stage.

MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION

This is the critical part of your entry. Explain how you measured the impact of the project according to the stated objectives. Use valid results. Anecdotal statements, such as ‘management liked it’, are not sufficient.

For Division 1 and 2, you have 4 A4 pages to provide this information. You have 1 A4 page for Division 3. Do not use a typeface smaller than 10pt and use standard margins. An entry exceeding these limits will be disqualified.

1. THE WORK SAMPLE

This is the opportunity that you have been waiting for – to display the end result of your planning.

The evaluators will look for the following in your work sample:

ALIGNMENT WITH THE OBJECTIVES AND THE TARGET AUDIENCE’S CHARACTERISTICS AND NEEDS

Was this project aligned with the objectives stated and the characteristics of the target audience?

THE CREATIVE APPROACH

To what extent did the work sample reflect a creative way of communicating the stated messages? Given the number of messages the target group receives, will this stand out and grab their attention?

PROFESSIONAL EXECUTION

Given the budget and the resources, how well was this project executed? To what extent did it measure up to industry standards, including language and design? An entry will be marked down for poor grammar, and if it was difficult to evaluate due to the way it was presented.

PROVIDE A LIST OF YOUR SAMPLES WITH A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF EACH ELEMENT

Be very selective with the work sample and the way you present it. Remember, the evaluator only has limited time to evaluate your entry. Make sure that the elements you include reflect the best of your project.

1. SELECTING A DIVISION AND A CATEGORY

There are three divisions and 35 categories. Start by selecting a division where you want to enter your project.

Keep in mind that a project may be entered in more than one division and more than one category. You will be required to complete an entry form, work plan, and work sample for each entry and pay an entry fee for each entry, but it is worth the effort.

Read the definitions of the divisions carefully and decide what aspect you would like to be evaluated on and where you feel you really excelled (wanting to win is good!). Read the definitions of the categories and decide where to enter your project. It is very important that you choose correctly. However, if the evaluators feel that you have entered in the wrong category, they will move your entry – and motivate why. This will always be done to your benefit.

DIVISION 1: CAMPAIGNS

Campaigns would typically include a range of communication platforms, run over a specific period of time, and be aimed at one or more target groups.

CATEGORIES
Brand-building campaigns
This category deals with the implementation of strategies for new brands and the repositioning of existing brands in relation to internal and external audiences.
Entries must demonstrate how research was used to inform the brand strategy, and discuss the strategic approach and results. It may include brand characteristics and attributes, changes to corporate identities, and design solutions that address the challenges of brand communication.
These campaigns are total packages, as represented,for example, by space ads, display posters, billboards, multimedia ad campaigns, and web advertising. It can be for the institution as a whole or for a department or faculty or function at the institution, such as a business school. It must be more than a logo redesign.
Fundraising campaigns
This category deals with donor relations focused on addressing and responding to donor issues,as well as long and short campaigns related to gifts and pledges, and may include stewardship and public relations activities. This category also includes appeals for endowments and annual giving programmes in order to obtain and/or renew donors through continuous appeals for ongoing financial support to the institution's operating budget, or to support facilities, equipment, and other special needs.
General campaigns
This can be a once-off or an ongoing programme that seeks to enhance stakeholder understanding for the institution within the community served. The aim of the campaign could be to build trust and credibility with stakeholder groups. The tactics and supporting strategies may include formal and informal meetings, events, social and electronic media, and printed material.
Issue-management campaigns
This category focus on campaigns that proactively or reactively dealt with institutional issues. It could address internal and external campus issues, such as reputation, environment, study and other fees, safety and security, research and intellectual property, parental and guardian involvement, and services to students.
Crisis-management campaigns
This category deals with the management of a crisis. Its aim would be to explain and defuse immediate crises, such as hate crimes, racism, strikes, student protests, student and staff deaths, sexual harassment, weather-related disasters, and health issues.
Student recruitment campaigns
The focus of this category is on campaigns designed to build brand awareness, influence opinion, and impact on the decisions of parents and learners in order to sell enrolment to the institution. These campaigns would be run on an annual basis and would use a variety of communication vehicles and channels, such as radio and television commercials, newspaper and magazine ads, flyers, brochures, the website, social media, mall advertising, posters, and even guerrilla marketing tactics.
Community and social responsibility campaigns
This category deals with campaigns related to social responsibility and encourages positive actions, while building awareness and reputation and positioning the institution as a good corporate citizen. Generally, it would focus on enhancing the well-being of communities and populations through causes, such as the environment, entrepreneurial development literacy, education and health, cultural preservation, and indigenous and heritage protection.
Alumni campaigns
This category would include creative strategies for encouraging alumni involvement, for example, alumni boards, strategic planning, and alumni financial support and stewardship. This also includes programmes by:

• Alumni associations and alumni offices.
• Activities and programmes by student alumni associations and similar student organisations linked to the alumni office.
• Alumni marketing and branding initiatives, including the ways you market and position your alumni association or office, and its mission for your various constituencies.

DIVISION 2: MEDIA