Meet the team: Alanna Taylor | M&M Global

Meet the team: Alanna Taylor

We caught up with Alanna Taylor, Awards Executive at Festival of Media, for a chat on how she’s been finding her first few weeks as newest member of the team.

When you start a new role there’s lots of new information to take in can you try and sum up what it’s been like in three words?
I previously worked in Academia, so the world of Awards is brand new to me, so the three words that would best describe my experience so far are: stimulating, educative and intriguing.

So, you’re part of the Awards team – can you tell me a bit more about what the Awards team and what your role has consisted of so far?

The Awards team looks after 6 separate awards programmes and are constantly reaching out to potential entrants and explaining why they should apply.  We’re on hand to help them through every stage of the entry process. Liaising with them from pre-entry, to shortlist right through to the awards ceremony. We also get to work with industry figure heads, selecting the very best to be part of the jury, to help preside over the submissions.

There are so many awards programmes out there, what in your opinion sets Festival of Media apart from its competitors?

Festival of Media Awards’ programmes have been celebrating media and marketing excellence for more than 16 years. Entrants, shortlisted entrants and trophy winners have driven more business, showcased their companies to global brands, improved company culture and become more attractive to top talent by being associated with the portfolio of programmes across Latin and North America, APAC, EMEA, MENA and Global.

Are we right in thinking that the APAC Awards Ceremony next week will be your first event?

It certainly will be, I can’t wait.  I’m really excited for the whole team coming together to orchestrate the ceremony. I’m told that everyone has a role to play, so it’ll be a great chance for me to get stuck in.

You’ll be leading on LatAm Awards – can you tell us a bit more about preparation for that is going, what entrants can expect from this year’s awards and when it opens for entries?

I’ve been scouting for judges – looking for the very best industry leaders in Media and Marketing in LatAm, if you have any suggestions of anyone that you think would a great fit to join this year’s jury please feel free to email me.  In terms of what to expect, we will continue to strive to find the best categories and keep ourselves current and responsive to the ever evolving media trends. Finally, we open for entries on 12 May.

We imagine it’s all been a bit of whirlwind, but do you have any highlights or standout moments from your first month working at Festival of Media?

This week I’ve really enjoying shadowing the APAC judging, great to be privy to those insightful discussions in the judging room and hear how passionate they are getting to uphold standards and ensure only the very best campaigns take home those prestigious trophies. I’ve also really enjoyed learning the ropes, getting to know the small but welcoming team and how quickly I’ve been inducted to learn about this brand new industry.

Finally, to finish up can you tell us a fun or little-known fact about yourself?

When I worked in Vietnam as a teacher I used to whizz round the streets on the moped that I owned.

 

No Comments Yet

Leave a Reply