Last year, we created our first Mighty List as a way to recognize some of the best and coolest people and work of the year.
Today, we’re announcing a special list that’s just for some of the best and coolest women in marketing, media, and advertising. The Mighty Women List is a new initiative to celebrate women in the industry who are—in the estimation of other women in the industry—doing really great things and are worthy of special recognition.
Why a list just for women? Because it’s a fact that we do not have equality in society, or in this industry. We all know that women do lots of extra things and clear lots of extra hurdles just to keep up with the men who still dominate the industry’s power positions.
The ad game may be the same for men and women, but the rules are different. Nevertheless, women are doing Mighty things in this industry, and this list will be celebrating them.
We’d been thinking about creating a special awards program just for women in the industry when we started talking to Alanna Nathanson and Natalie Armata at Giants & Gentlemen. They shared a similar vision, and we’re happy to announce them as our partners in this endeavour.
“Madeleine Albright famously said: ‘There’s a special place in hell for women who don’t support other women,’” Nathanson told us.
“As female entrepreneurs and leaders, Natalie and I wanted to find a way to help recognize women in our industry—women who might not always be in the spotlight, but who are inspiring in what they’ve accomplished.”
“This isn’t your typical advertising show. It’s not about shares, impressions and likes—It’s about the real human impact these women have on the industry and people around them,” added Armata.
So how will this work? We’ll be asking for nominations in next month. A small diverse jury, comprised of women leaders from across the industry, will choose our Mighty Women early next year, and our list will be announced around International Women’s Day in March.
The Mighty Women list will not have categories or overly defined criteria. We’ll be asking for a few hundred words about obstacles overcome, greatest achievements and riskiest moves.
We’re looking for women doing extraordinary things to build their brands and their businesses, to connect their clients to their consumers, and to create breakthrough communications.
But just as important, we’re looking for women doing amazing things that aren’t in the job description. They are bold and brave and determined—mentors and friends, mothers and daughters, colleagues and co-workers, doing all the heavy (unpaid) lifting that so many women do so often without any credit.
The Mighty Women list is about them.
