The little boutique publishing house that could has done it yet again!
Media Wise Communications/Muse Books has just won a 2019 IABC Gold Quill Award of Merit for its latest coffee table book On the March: The Jesuits in the Philippines since the Restoration under the Publications category, which is included in the Communications Skills division.
Assessed against the IABC Gold Quill Award criteria and IABC’s Seven-point Scale of Excellence, On the March was the only Philippine entry to win in its category.
Cruz expressed great pride not only in its newest titles but also in Media Wise’s latest award, explaining that for a boutique-sized yet agile publication company, it has consistently won more awards, including Philippine Quills, with each title improving from the last.
Ocampo Cruz was first cited with a Merit Award by IABC in the 2017 Gold Quill Awards program for Jesuits In Mindanao: The Mission under the Communications Skills Division (Category 26: Publications).
Cruz will personally receive the award during the Excellence Gala on 11 June 2019, as part of the 2019 IABC World Conference in Vancouver, Canada. The Gala will also recognize the winners of the “Best of the Best” awards, “IABC Gold Quill Agency/Team of the Year” awards and other special awards that will be announced later this month.
In addition to the gala, all awardees would also be recognized in an IABC news release, on IABC’s website and social media.
The 2019 Gold Quill Award Winners were announced last April 2, 2019 by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) in San Francisco, CA.
For over 40 years, IABC’s Gold Quill Awards have recognized and awarded excellence in strategic communication worldwide.
The program is recognized as one of the most prestigious awards programs in the industry.
“Only exceptional work earns an IABC Gold Quill Award,” said Cindy Schmieg, ABC, IABC Fellow, chair of the awards committee.
“Each entry is rigorously reviewed by multiple experienced communicators from around the world who are trained in applying IABC’s Global Standard of the Communication Profession. The award winners represent our profession of ethical practitioners contributing to organizational outcomes.”
In total, the awards committee selected 202 entries as world-class, with 86 entries earning an Excellence Award and 116 a Merit Award.
Winners come from all over the world, with 10 countries represented in the award winners list. They represent a cross section of public and private sector organizations, both large and small.
The field was very competitive this year, with almost 700 entries reviewed by more than 250 evaluators.
“We congratulate all the Gold Quill Award winners for their work and dedication to excellence in strategic communication,” said Stephanie Doute, CAE, executive director of IABC. “Their success is a testament to the fact that professional communicators create solid business outcomes for their organizations.”
Already the recipient of numerous local and international publishing awards in previous years, Media Wise romped off with four awards at the 16th Philippine Quill Awards held July 9, 2018 at the Manila Marriott in Pasay City for three of its recent coffee-table books: PNB: One Hundred Years of Service Excellence and St. Andrew's School – One Hundred Years – Pro Deo et Patria (both in the Publications category) and The Maestro of Philippine Basketball (for Writing and Special Projects).
Winners of a Philippine Quill are considered to have achieved the pinnacle in business communication excellence.
Previously, Jesuits In Mindanao: The Mission won the Philippine Quill Award of Excellence for Publications under the Communications Skills Division at the 2013 Quill Awards, and another at the IABC Asian Pacific Silver Quill Awards held in Singapore last year.
On the March: The Jesuits in the Philippines Since the Restoration was also co-published with a fellow Xavier University alumnus Manuel Paras Engwa, with the proceeds going to the Philippine Jesuit Aid Association (PJAA) for the benefit of the elderly, retired and infirm Jesuits, and the promotion of Jesuit vocations.
Meantime, PNB: One Hundred Years of Service Excellence also won a Gold Anvil Award at the 52nd Anvil Awards last year.
Ocampo Cruz began his first eight years of education at Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan in 1959 (Grade School, 1967). He moved to St. Andrew’s School in Parañaque City (High School, 1971) and the University of Santo Tomas (Bachelor of Fine Arts, major in painting, 1976).
A visual artist, advertising and publishing professional, Monching (as he is known to friends), is a multi-awarded publisher and artist.
After a stint with Sining Makulay CATV (a cable television company) and national broadsheet Manila Chronicle, he established his own graphic design and publishing company, Media Wise Communications, Inc. in 1993.
He won his first Catholic Mass Media citation as well as a Philippine Quill award for publishing MUSE, a magazine dedicated to art, culture and travel. He has had three solo art exhibits.
A proud product of XU Grade School, Monching also gained acclaim for his publication of the Ateneo de Manila University’s sesquicentennial coffee table book, 150: The Ateneo Way by Fr. Jose S. Arcilla, SJ (2009); and Veritas Integras Justita: 75 Years of the Ateneo Law School published for the Ateneo Law School. (RMB)
