Consistency helps the NAFD contest top awards
The National Association of Funeral Directors has maintained its impressive track record in the Trade Association Forum’s Best Practice Awards – the ‘Oscars’ of the UK trade association movement – after being nominated as a finalist for the fifth successive year.
With 170 entries – a new record – the 2008 competition was tougher than ever, so the NAFD was delighted that the National Funeral Exhibition was in the running for Exhibition of the Year, while the Bereavement Advice Centre was short-listed for the Social Initiative Award. In each category the Association was one of just four finalists.
Once again there was a stringent two-stage judging process: entries were sifted by panels of senior executives from Forum member associations and those short-listed were then reviewed by six judges with a wealth of business experience, including Peter Day, business journalist and presenter of BBC Radio 4’s In Business; Professor Justin Greenwood from Aberdeen Business School; Rob Hayward OBE, current chairman of the Trade Association Forum and chief executive officer of the British Beer and Pub Association; Anthony Murphy OBE from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform; former ABTA chief executive Ian Reynolds and Christopher Macgowan OBE, former chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
The Exhibition of the Year accolade not only recognises commercial success, but also takes into consideration whether an event ‘acted as a focal point for the sector, providing commercial opportunities for members of the association’. Lining up against the NAFD were the British Insurance Brokers' Association, Dental Laboratories Association Ltd and the eventual winner, the Manufacturing Technologies Association, which scooped the honour for MACH – the UK’s premier manufacturing technologies show.
The Social Initiative Award goes to the trade association that has made a positive contribution to society so the Bereavement Advice Centre – established as a independent and impartial source of information and advice on the practical issues relating to death – was a worthy contender, especially since it has also contributed to improved communication and co-operation among the numerous organisations operating in the bereavement sector.
In this category the NAFD faced competition from the British Aerosol Manufacturers Association, the Scotch Whisky Association the National Federation of Builders, and it was the British Aerosol Manufacturers' high profile campaign against so-called solvent abuse which eventually won the day.
President Graham Lymn and chief executive officer Alan Slater were among those representing the NAFD at the awards ceremony in London on July 24, which was hosted by Sandi Toksvig, who has appeared on numerous current affairs and comedy TV programmes, but is probably best-known for her BBC Radio 4 show and Sunday Telegraph articles.
"The Best Practice Awards celebrate some of the excellent and highly innovative work going on across a diverse range of trade associations and with so many members of the Trade Association Forum – many much bigger and with far greater resources at their disposal than us – now getting actively involved, we are very pleased indeed that the consistent, high standard of our entries has led to the NAFD being considered one of the top ranked associations." said Alan Slater.
