CMDC will honour young professionals at Future Impact Awards

by David Brown

The Canadian Media Directors’ Council‘s (CMDC) Youth Ambassadors will announce the winners of its annual Future Impact Awards next week in Toronto. The awards acknowledge the accomplishments of young professionals with five years or less of experience.

Created to celebrate the talent and ambition of the brightest young minds shaping the future of Canada’s media industry, this year’s Future Impact Awards attracted more than 200 nominations across 10 categories:

  • Notable newcomer of the year honours a “first-rate” first-year employee who demonstrated outstanding strategic thinking and media execution;
  • Mentor of the year celebrates a person who took it upon themselves to educate and train employees and demonstrated a commitment to nurturing others;
  • Innovator of the year honours a person who successfully challenge the norms by developing a new strategy, process or tactic that challenged the status quo;
  • Collaborator of the year acknowledges a person who created a “standout” media solution that delivered impactful business results;
  • Insight of the year acknowledges someone who found a “nugget” of insight through data or research and brought an opportunity to life;
  • Trendsetter of the year acknowledges someone who has stayed ahead of culture and industry trends and used that to fuel strategic thinking;
  • Marketer of the year acknowledges a “master marketer” who has demonstrated a passion for pushing the boundaries of media creativity and innovation;
  • Advocate of the year celebrates someone who delivers outstanding results for the betterment of society, whether inside or outside of the workplace;
  • Techie of the year is awarded to someone who demonstrated outstanding use of technology to arrive at a determined objective.
  • Media leader of the year honours a CEO or media leader who has shown commitment to a young professional’s career and created a positive impact that exceeded the norm.

Now in its fourth year, the Youth Ambassadors program was designed to inspire the industry’s young talent, while providing opportunities to network and advance thinking within a culture of connectivity and creativity. It is a collective of individuals spanning multiple disciplines from all CMDC member agencies.

“At a time where pressure is on the rise and retention rates continue to challenge every industry, we as a media industry need to continue to invest in mentorship and growth of the next generation of talent,” says CMDC president Shannon Lewis. “As we know, a positive, connected culture in turn creates higher client satisfaction, which then contributes to the financial health of a company.

“Investing in human capital is critical to business metrics. By encouraging the next generation to lean-in and get involved through our Youth Ambassador program, it creates a greater sense of collective ownership. This trumps all.”

The awards will take place Sept. 26 at The Rec Room (255 Bremner Blvd., Toronto). Tickets can be purchased here.

David Brown