AWARD chairman denies scam is ‘widespread’ in Australia and defends role of creative awards

Chairman of the AWARD Awards Mark Harricks has said he does not believe the issue of scam ads created solely to win awards is “widespread” in Australia.

Harricks, who is creative partner at The Works, told Mumbrella that scam work “undermines the integrity of awards”, but insisted the AWARD Awards have a “number of checks and balances in place” to ensure the entry requirements are met. “We’ve also found that our judges are especially sensitive to scam work, it’s their integrity on the line as well,” he added.

He also stressed “the role of creative awards is to recognise great ideas, craft and innovation in order to inspire and raise the bar”.