The Awards for Excellence is an important date in the Isle of Man’s calendar that enables like-minded individuals and companies to come together and celebrate the achievements of the island’s movers and shakers.

It’s imperative that Isle of Man-based companies are recognised for the great work they do and have the opportunity to learn from and inspire each other to do things differently and more creatively.

One of last year’s big winners were Douglas-based Microgaming, who won the Dunwell Jewellers-sponsored Company of the Year.

’We were very proud to be named Company of the Year at the Isle of Man Newspapers Awards for Excellence last year, which recognised the diverse talent behind our success, our Microgaming PlayItForward initiative and employee engagement,’ said Natasha Whittaker, head of human resources at Microgaming.

’The award highlighted the positive, meaningful changes being made within our organisation.

’For me, it was important to see the company and our diverse workforce get the recognition they deserve for their achievements and contributions. The award win drew attention to our inclusive and progressive nature at Microgaming, where important issues such as mental health are actively addressed as part of our culture.

’We strive to work towards a more open working culture, sharing unique experiences and fresh ideas to enable us to create an environment where innovation can flourish, which is essential in the continuously evolving global gaming sector.

’Sharing our achievements and results not only allows us to celebrate the diversity we have, but it also inspires us to continue working towards a more equal and fairer industry for the future.’

While it’s difficult to quantify the additional exposure that winning the award has had on Microgaming, it has certainly helped to further validate what they do, increasing their visibility in the marketplace by building credibility, boosting employee morale, and potentially attracting talent to their Isle of Man headquarters, with staff numbers increasing by almost 45% in 2018.

Off the back of their win at the Awards for Excellence, Microgaming have been honoured with a handful of other industry and non-industry award wins, including Best Leadership Event at the ICEAwards 2019 - an incredible honour in recognition of their leading role in reducing plastic waste at a major gaming industry exhibition in London this year, which ensured an eco-led and sustainable stand from build to breakdown, and helped to drive a positive change across the industry.

As founding members of the industry-driven All-In Diversity Project, Microgaming aims to spearhead progress towards a more inclusive gaming sector.

Its Diversity and Inclusion Award win at this year’s Women in Gaming Diversity Awards recognised their dynamic workforce for embracing diversity in everything they do and for being a driving force behind creating a more inclusive environment within the gaming industry. Their inclusive culture is crucial to their continued success, and they are proud to have a near 50:50 female-to-male ratio, with their workforce currently representing 16 nationalities.

They were also awarded Best Slots Provider at the WhichBingo Awards and the Innovation in Slot Provision Award at the EGR B2B Awards this year, two fantastic endorsements of their comprehensive range of gaming content, and the many diverse and talented teams who contribute to their success.

What sets the Awards for Excellence apart, however, is its recognition of individuals as well as larger, international companies.

Alexandra Koyfman, a digital product specialist at PDMS Ltd, took home the Utmost Wealth-sponsored Young Achiever of the Year. The judging panel noted that Alexandra demonstrated maturity beyond her young age and experience, project managing the successful introduction of a pilot project (First Point Community Portal) to help the emergency services to care for vulnerable people in the community.

The award nomination and Alexandra’s win helped generate a substantial amount of local public relations and additional goodwill for PDMS. They promoted their entry and subsequent win on their website and social media channels and received a great deal of positive feedback.

The external recognition of Alexandra’s achievements in relation to PDMS’ First Point Community Portal project helped to further boost interest into First Point and how it is helping the local community.

Speaking about her achievements in the year following her win, Alexandra said: ’In the past year, I completed my master’s degree with distinction in applied business strategy and digital transformation (WBIS) from University College Isle of Man as accredited by the University of Chester.

’I think that my win contributed to PDMS offering me what is now my first full-time, permanent role after graduating from university. I am now an Analyst with PDMS’s support team, which supports 70 different websites and business systems, and I greatly enjoy the variety, growth, and learning opportunities that come with this role.’

This year’s Awards for Excellence will take place at the Villa Marina on Thursday, November 14.

Closing date for consideration for this year’s Awards is Friday 13th September. Companies, individuals, and both those in the public and charitable sectors who wish to submit a nomination can do so by visiting www.excellence-awards.im and downloading the relevant entry form. Any questions can be emailed to [email protected].