On Thursday evening last week we launched Birmingham Young Professional of the Year 2010. I have to say a big thank you to 11 Brindley Place and Argent for hosting the event and providing the food and drinks that we enjoyed.
We were also lucky to have some 10th birthday cakes courtesy of Buttons Bakery. They were delicious, so if you have failed on your New Year’s resolutions, and want to try more of Buttons products please visit their stall at the Brindley Place farmers’ market.
After the event a few hardy souls carried on the party at City Inn who invited us to a welcome cocktail in their bar.
It was an exciting night for all involved in this year’s event. Importantly, I was able to recognise and thank our sponsors for this year’s awards. MACE Group have continued their support from last year, along with Wesleyan. I was also able to confirm new sponsors in law firm, Mills & Reeves and recruitment agency Katie Bard. However, most excitingly we were able to announce Birmingham Development Company, the guys behind the Mailbox and the exciting Cube development, as main sponsors of BYPY 10. I am hugely excited about the superb line up of sponsors and look forward to a successful partnership amongst us all over the next 12 months.
We are very close to confirming a number of further sponsors, so, whilst I won’t mention them by name, I would also like to thank them for their support in anticipation of finalising the deal.
It is a very exciting year for Birmingham Forward and Birmingham Future. 2010 is significant as it is the 20th anniversary of our parent organisation Birmingham Forward and the 10th anniversary of Birmingham Future’s flagship event, Birmingham Young Professional of the Year. BYPY began in 2001 as a vehicle for Birmingham Future to recognise Birmingham’s up and coming talent. It has grown into one of the premium nights in the Birmingham business calendar, and the event to be seen at for the young and not so young of the professional community.
We like to think that BYPY differentiates itself from other award ceremonies. Whilst there are a plethora of industry specific awards we are one of very few awards that recognise talent from across Birmingham’s professional industries. This means BYPY has a unique dynamic and provides the judges with a very interesting challenge when trying to reach a consensus on who is Birmingham’s Young Professional of each year.
Whilst excellence in your business life is essential, our judges do not only look for that. What we want to see in every nominee is that something extra that shows you really are contributing to Birmingham’s business community as well as Birmingham and its people as a whole. As such, we have been lucky enough to meet many talented, driven and inspirational people over the last 9 years.
I like to think that this search for those that make a real contribution to Birmingham has made BYPY the success it is.
At the event I spoke about how you can get involved with BYPY 10 and I thought it would be useful to repeat my thoughts here.
Firstly, you can consider nominating yourself, your colleague or your business associate for the award. Every year we recognise 3 nominees in each of 6 categories: communications, property & construction, financial services, recruitment & training, legal and entrepreneurial. Being involved with the awards is a great opportunity for you and your business to increase their profile in Birmingham. Your name and employer will be liberally publicised leading up to the event and at the event itself. This means coverage in the press, including our annual supplement with the Birmingham Post, and broadcast to 700 people on the night from across the professional community.
Being nominated in itself is also recognition for all the hard work. Nominees work very hard to deliver great professional service to their clients, and also, spend their precious free-time doing more for the benefit of the community as a whole. It is only right that they are celebrated for this effort and we hope that BYPY is a perfect opportunity to do this. We have also seen, over the life of BYPY, that this award has been a platform for opportunities that perhaps might otherwise not have been so readily available.
As well as recognising the young talent in Birmingham we also have a special award to recognise those leaders in our industries that have inspired their younger colleagues. At the event was last year’s inspiring leader, Alan Chatham, from the Birmingham Development Company, as well as Peter Rees-Steer, who won the award in 2008. Whilst it is important to recognise those that are on the way up, it is equally significant that the leaders that nurture the professional environment in which young professionals are given these opportunities are also celebrated.
A third way to be involved is to sponsor the event. Over the last few months the BYPY team have spoken to many businesses across the city about the evnt and, even in this challenging economy, the strength of the awards has shone through. Sponsors are not only a sponsor of one of the most successful and well known events in Birmingham business they are also a sponsor of all that Birmingham Future does. This message that the sponsor’s organisation is standing firmly behind the next generation of professional leaders of this city is a powerful one. And, under the umbrella of Birmingham Future and BYPY, it reaches a broad cross-section of professionals and, through them, their clients.
The final way to be a part of BYPY 10 is to be there. The diverse nature of those that come to BYPY means it is a excellent opportunity to network with a lot of people you know, but even more that you should know better. As well as the networking opportunity we are also committed to making the night itself the best night out of the year for everyone there. Obviously it is a great excuse to get glammed up. And we will work tirelessly to make sure you have great food, a compelling compere and an entertaining night. I can promise you, you will have a great time as we are going to kick the party up a gear this year with live music so we can celebrate, or commiserate long into the night.
Nominations are open for BYPY and inspiring leader, tickets for the event are now available and we still have a limited opportunity for sponsorship. Please check the website for more details.
Darren Walker, BYPY Committee Chairman
