The Media Online’s weekly column delivering news of award wins, entries, competitions, dates to note and winners in the media.
Record PRISMS judging panel sets the stage for highly competitive 2026 Awards
The countdown to the 2026 PRISMS Summit & Awards is on, with this year’s programme bringing together the celebration of outstanding work with some of the key conversations shaping the future of public relations and strategic communication.
Taking place from 22 to 24 October 2026 at the Indaba Hotel in Johannesburg, the three-day Summit comes as the PRISMS Awards celebrate 29 years of recognising excellence in the profession.
Entries for this year’s awards have officially closed, attracting more than 360 submissions. Those entries will now go before approximately 65 judges, the largest judging panel assembled for the PRISMS to date.
With judging about to get underway, chief judge Thabisile Phumo expects some tough decisions ahead. “If the calibre of entries we have received is anything to go by, our judges have their work cut out for them this year. There is some exceptional work in the mix, with strong thinking, creativity and impact coming through across the entries. It is going to make for a highly competitive judging process, and an exciting PRISMS Awards come October.”
While the PRISMS Gala evening will once again celebrate the campaigns, teams and practitioners raising the bar for the industry, the wider Summit will look ahead to the forces reshaping the profession. Central to the programme will be the African Declaration, which is helping to advance the conversation around the standards, principles and expectations that should underpin the communications profession across Africa.
PRISA President Dr Caroline Azionya says this combination of recognition and industry dialogue is what makes the Summit particularly important.
To book your place and join the 2026 PRISMS Summit & Awards, visit: https://ihrt.link/r/kt1RPm_2
Telkom Radio Awards launch The Listening Panel
The Telkom Radio Awards has launched The Listening Panel, a new initiative aimed at broadening participation in the Awards’ judging process and ensuring greater representation from across South Africa’s diverse radio and audio industry.
The initiative invites experienced professionals from across the broadcasting, audio and media sectors to register their interest in serving as judges for the 2026 Telkom Radio Awards. Designed to widen industry participation and bring fresh perspectives to the adjudication process, The Listening Panel forms part of the Awards’ ongoing commitment to maintaining credibility, fairness and relevance in an evolving media landscape.
Industry professionals interested in joining The Listening Panel can register their interest by completing a short online application form here.
World Sports Photography Awards 2027 – sponsored by Canon – now open for entries
The World Sports Photography Awards, sponsored by Canon and billed as the world’s foremost showcase of sports photography, has opened entries for its 2027 edition. Entry remains free, with the awards honouring sports photographers from around the globe and celebrating images that convey the drama, emotion and physicality at the heart of sport.
Judged by leading figures spanning sport, media, photography, branding and the broader creative sector, the World Sports Photography Awards continues to celebrate sports photography.
The 2026 edition marked a breakthrough year, attracting photographers in 123 countries and spanning more than 60 sports. Extensive international media coverage, coupled with support from leading sports organisations, underlined the awards’ continued global growth and influence.
- Entries open: 9 September 2026
- Submission deadline: 23 November 2026
- Eligibility: Up to 10 images taken between December 2025 and November 2026
- Categories: 24 sports categories
- Cost: Free of charge
For more information and to enter, visit: www.worldsportsphotographyawards.com
Sanlam ranked as South Africa’s top company in TIME World’s Best Companies 2026
Sanlam is the highest-ranked South African company in the TIME World’s Best Companies 2026, published on 9 September 2026, climbing 321 places since 2025. A total of 1,000 companies from around the world are recognised and ranked by TIME each year for their performance and contribution to shaping the future of business.
Compiled in partnership with Statista, companies are evaluated across three equally weighted dimensions: employee satisfaction, revenue growth and sustainability performance (ESG). Sanlam’s global ranking of 388th is up from 709th in 2025.
CEO Paul Hanratty says: “At Sanlam, our purpose is to empower generations to be financially confident, secure and prosperous, partnering with our customers to help them navigate their journey towards financial freedom. That means building a leading emerging markets business that creates long-term value through its people, supports inclusive growth, and operates responsibly across the markets in which we serve.”
“We are proud to see Sanlam acknowledged on this global stage. The recognition reflects the commitment of our people and the trust our clients place in us. What makes this ranking particularly meaningful is that it looks beyond financial performance alone, recognising companies that create long-term value through their people, sustainable growth and responsible business practices.”
Jacaranda FM reveals the Top 10 entrepreneurs in this year’s ‘Her Perfect Pitch’ competition
Jacaranda FM has announced the Top 10 entrepreneurs selected for the latest edition of its flagship female empowerment initiative, Her Perfect Pitch.
The 10 entrepreneurs will now take their businesses to the next stage as they compete for the Her Perfect Pitch prize: R500,000 worth of advertising on Jacaranda FM, designed to give one winning business the platform and exposure to help take it to the next level.
Jacaranda FM Managing Director Vuyani Dombo says the quality and diversity of this year’s finalists demonstrate the strength of South Africa’s entrepreneurial spirit.
This year’s Top 10 finalists are:
- Goodness Thandeka Ngcongo: Orchid Medical
- Kelly Damons: KellyGirl Skills Academy
- Kelotilwe Legwabe: Sethakga Cleaning Company
- Kinesa Tuganadar: Kindgenix
- Marcia Mandisi Mabaso: MAH SAMBE
- Nicola Polmans: Sprung Outdoor Living
- Sharleen Botha: Stratus Cloud Security
- Stephanie Bence: GSB Rental
- Tshaamano Mabuba: Buddy Learning
- Zulfa Nkosi: Zulfa’s Glamour Girls Swimming Academy
Gerety Awards 2026 winners announced
The jury selected three campaigns for Grand Prix honours this year: No Project Without Drama, The Count and The KitKat Heist, which won twice.
More than 250 judges from over 50 countries took part in the Gerety Awards, bringing together creative leaders from advertising, marketing, production, design and media to select the year’s best creative work.
The Grand Prix winners include:
- No Project Without Drama for HORNBACH by HeimatTBWA\ Berlin (Germany) in the Craft CUT – Production Design
- The Count for SickKids by Soundtree Music for FCB Canada in the Craft CUT – Music
- The KitKat Heist for KitKat by VML UK, which won two Grand Prix awards in the Communication CUT – PR and the new Moments CUT – PR category.
The campaign Dress Yourself for Simons by Moonlighting won Silver in the Craft CUT – Direction.
Watch members of this year’s jury discuss trends and favourite campaigns from the 2026 Gerety Awards in the Gerety Grand Jury Insight panels taking place this week here.
See all the 2026 winners at www.geretyawards.com.
Eighty20 crowned winner in two categories at the 2026 SA Loyalty Awards
Eighty20, South Africa’s customer strategy, data and technology agency, has been recognised as the Best Loyalty Enablement Technology Vendor and the Best Loyalty Data Vendor at the 2026 South African Loyalty Awards – a repeat win in its flagship analytics and loyalty category.
The double win recognises a year in which Eighty20 evolved from an analytics consultancy into an AI- and ML-driven loyalty decisioning business.
For more than two decades, Eighty20 has built South Africa’s customer and loyalty analytics infrastructure, anchored by the Eighty20 National Segmentation (ENS), which covers 97% of South African adults (43 million people) across 1,500 microsegments and more than 1,000 profiling variables.
This year, the business built on that foundation with generative AI, agentic intelligence and machine learning, turning data that once informed decisions into infrastructure that automates them.
“We’ve spent two decades building the most detailed picture of the South African consumer,” said Steve Burnstone, CEO of Eighty20. “What’s changed this year is that we’ve put that intelligence to work in real-time inside our clients’ systems, decisioning engines and customer conversations – rather than leaving it in a report. Winning in two categories reflects a genuine shift for us: from an analytics consultancy that advises on loyalty, to a technology partner that runs it.”
For the full Winners’ Report of the 2026 South African Loyalty Awards, click here.
Achievement Awards Group shines at South African Loyalty Awards 2026
Achievement Awards Group received ‘Highly Commended’ recognition for its entry in the Best Loyalty Rules Engine Technology Vendor of the Year category at the South African Loyalty Awards 2026.
Richard Cramer, Loyalty Director at Achievement Awards Group, was also awarded Industry Talent of the Year, marking a career dedicated to designing, developing and managing loyalty programmes for some of South Africa’s largest brands.
Now in its eighth year, the South African Loyalty Awards recognise excellence across loyalty strategy, CRM, consumer behavioural change and data insights, showcasing industry talent and benchmarking local programmes against international standards.
This year’s competition spanned 24 categories and was judged by a panel of 19 loyalty and CRM experts from South Africa and abroad, supported by an independent advisory board of six professionals.
