It’s that time of year again when exceptional businesses across the Silver City have the opportunity to be recognised at the Regional Development Australia Far West (RDAFW) Excellence in Business Awards. The event is the most celebrated and prestigious annual business gathering in the region. The 14 category finalists have been named, and the award winners will be announced on November 25 at a Gala Dinner at the Whitehouse. The evening will culminate in the naming of the ‘best of the best,’ who will be awarded the Outback Spirit Award.
“We had 89 nominations. It was the most nominations we have had across the categories, not including the People’s Choice Awards, which are the ones that people vote for,” said RDAFW Senior Project Manager Lindsay Wright in an interview with the Barrier Truth.
Nathan Axelsson of RDA Northern Inland NSW and his team judge the awards blindly, a process Mr Axelsson can manage as he has never visited Broken Hill before.
“He [Nathan] has told us the submissions were of really high quality, and they found it quite difficult to separate some of the nominees because they were of such high quality,” Mr Wright informed the Truth.
On a personal note, Mr Wright expressed his pleasure at seeing a couple of entrants, who were “a bit reticent to throw their hat in the ring,” named as finalists.
“It’s brilliant. I like to see these businesses flourishing and succeeding. Professionally and personally, it’s really pleasing to see people shine,” he said.
Adding to the night’s prestige is Lucy Bloom, who will serve as the guest speaker at the awards ceremony. Ms Bloom is an award-winning leader and keynote speaker. She led a successful advertising agency for 20 years before becoming CEO of a women’s health organisation that funded a network of hospitals, including a midwifery school in Ethiopia. She also transformed a Cambodian children’s charity as its first CEO.
Mr Wright described landing Ms Bloom as a coup for the RDAFW, mentioning that he first heard of her through his wife.
“My wife is a huge fan; she follows her on Instagram because she is such a force of nature. She was front of mind when we started talking about who we could get as a guest speaker. I mean, she’s a professional speaker, has been successful in business, and has done incredible things for various communities. She ticked all the boxes,” he said.
The RDA Far West Excellence in Business Awards will take place on Saturday, November 25, at The Whitehouse, located at 168 Boughtman St. Tickets are available to the public and can be purchased at the RDA Far West offices at 353 Blende Street.
