The Summit Oscars 2019

British summertime means one thing here: The Summit Oscars!

However, in typical British fashion, summer brought us murky, grey skies, gusts of wind and frequent showers. So, we were a little concerned about the weather for our annual Oscars event on June 14^th.  To our surprise, we were delighted by sunshine and blue skies – perfect for an evening of glitz and glamour!

The Event

To those who may not be familiar with our Oscars, it is an annual awards, which is held at our Yorkshire head office and attended by staff from Summit’s offices in Prague, Warwick and London to celebrate our successes, achievements and talents as individuals, teams and Summit as a whole.

We believe in recognition and reward. We believe in shouting about our achievements and celebrating our successes together. As is tradition, the guests arrived suited, booted and frocked to be greeted with a delicious glass of bubbly, ready to take to the red carpet and have their photos snapped. The long-awaited sunshine made for some ‘insta-worthy’ photos of our Summiteers in their dazzling finery.

The ceremony kicked off in The Great Hall, our Hogwarts-inspired event space. Instead of the daily breakfast room set up or lunching employees, the area had been transformed with spotlights and rows of chairs in sapphire and gold. Drinks-in-hand, we were seated facing the stage to welcome our hosts for the evening; Immy Hussain (our Affiliate guru) and Adrienne Burns (our Canadian Queen of Commerce).

Prior to the event, employees nominated their colleagues for a variety of awards, from our traditional ‘Summiteer of the Year’, ‘Best Newcomer’ and ‘Trailblazer of the Year’, to comical awards including ‘Loudest Typer’ and ‘Room Stealer of the Year’. 

Dave Trolle, Managing Director – Marketing Technology, entertained the crowd with a Bargain Hunt-style sketch (David Dickinson costume and all!), auctioning a myriad of hidden gems discovered at the local car-boot. In true Summiteer-style, everyone bid-battled and dug deep into their pockets, raising an amazing £1,290.00 for Save the Children, a charity supported by the tcc Foundation and very close to our hearts.

 

That’s not all…

A new and very special award was introduced this year in honour and remembrance of our colleague and friend, Ben Latham. It was a fantastic opportunity to celebrate a fellow Summiteer who mirrored Ben’s enthusiasm, work ethic, and encouragement of others. As a tribute to Ben, the assembled Summiteers enjoyed a shot of sambuca in true Ben-style as he never missed a chance to be the first at the bar to start the party at any Summit event!

Summit celebrations are the stuff of legend; even the newest employees have heard the stories and join in the excitement and anticipation of our annual Oscars.

Thank you to everyone who helped make the night a soaring success – we can’t wait for our next and very special one as Summit will celebrate its 20^th birthday.

 

In their own words…

“Fantastic! It was a great way of celebrating the year’s successes and recognising everyone’s hard work.”

“It’s great to bring everyone from four different sites together for a fun-filled evening.”

“Really enjoyed my first Summit Oscars! And the Moroccan-style food was delicious!”

 

And the Oscar goes to…

Best Newcomer – Lily Polak

Best Project – CSS

Loudest Typer – Martin Corcoran

Best Client Development – PSA

Team of the Year – EV Prague

Ben Latham Award – Hanna Scaife

Trailblazer of the Year – Emily Redfearn

Outstanding Contribution to the Business – Zdeněk Burda

Summiteer of the Year – Martin Corcoran