The winners
securing a place on the Meetings Industry
Association’s
(MIA) miaList 2024 were revealed at a celebratory event in Liverpool.
The trade association's roll of honour rewards
both individuals as well as organisations and teams who epitomise excellence in
the business meetings and events sector.
The awards night at Hilton Liverpool City
Centre followed the association’s annual miaSummit and shone a spotlight on the inspiring talent working across the sector while
publicly recognising their achievements, skills and contributions.
Opening the
honours, a Special
Recognition Award was presented to Figen Murray – the driving
force behind Martyn’s Law. Following the tragic death of her son Martyn Hett in the 2017
Manchester Arena terrorist attack, Murray has tirelessly campaigned for the introduction of the new legislation.
The 10 individuals to secure
a place this year were:
- Becky
Andrews – Pavilions of Harrogate
- Ash
Brown - Grand Hotel Brighton
- Jenner
Carter - Lime Venue Portfolio
- Christie
Gaskin - Hilton Birmingham Metropole
- Jo
Lake - Brighter
- Rekah
Lyons – Belfry Hotel & Resort
- Clair
O'Mara - Radisson Blu East Midlands Airport
- Francesca
Pacinella - Barbican
- Amy
Phillips - ICC Wales
- Aziza
Yessi - Mercure Manchester Piccadilly
Other winners on the night included:
Rising
Star Award: Rose
Griffiths – emc3
Event of the Year: Worldspan
–
Project Sunflower
Campaign of the Year: Valor
Hospitality – Valorfest 2024
Best New Initiative; The
Venues Collection - Made Without Dairy Desserts Menu
Destination Team of the Year: Liverpool
Convention Bureau
Sales & Marketing Team of the Year: Edgbaston
Park Hotel and Conference Centre
Event & Operations Team of the Year: Brighter
(part of Clarity Business Travel)
Venue of the Year (Under 300 delegates): Victory
Services Club
Venue of the Year (Over 300 delegates): Whittlebury
Park
Agency
of the Year: Eventurous
Supplier
of the Year: Eventurous
Diversity,
Equity & Inclusion Award: Fast Forward
15
Sustainability
Award: Eventurous
For the first
time in the miaList’s 14-year history, a fundraising raffle was also
incorporated into the proceedings that raised £3,860 for La Salle Hotel School,
which is on a mission to empower young people by constructing a
facility that nurtures individuals to excel in the hospitality industry.
MIA chief
executive, Kerrin MacPhie, said: “On behalf of the MIA I would like to congratulate
all those who have secured a place on the 2024 miaList. It is a truly
remarkable achievement as they have joined a very prestigious roll of honour
and a legacy of sector excellence that serves as an inspiration to us all.
“I would like to
extend my thanks to our event partners and sponsors as well as our panel of
judges who had the unenviable job of determining who should be the finalists
and the eventual winners of this year’s miaList. Thanks to the unprecedented
level of nominations, it really was no easy task to determine who was most
worthy of a place this year.”
Nominees
were assessed by a panel of industry professionals including iVvy’s
Caroline Dawson, QEII Centre’s Mark Green, Event Wales’s Heledd Williams, Meet
& Potato’s Jon Kelly, Venue Directory’s Jason Gutteridge, Leopold
Marketing’s Leo Lloyd, Jigsaw Talent Solutions’ Robert Kenward, XSEM’s Caroline
Medcalf, The Belfry Hotel & resort’s Katie Niland and the Event
Apprenticeships Advisory Board’s Richard Waddington.
