Cultivating a culture of excellence

By now, most residents of St Vincent and the Grenadines should be aware of the Best of SVG initiative of Interactive Media Ltd, publishers of SEARCHLIGHT.

The campaign, which was introduced in 2017, solicits the opinions of residents of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) as to who they consider to be the best providers of services and products in a range of categories. Operating on the premise that consumers do not all hold important the same qualities when evaluating goods and services, the Best of SVG campaign does not stipulate criteria by which our business people should be judged. The thinking is, however, that even if criteria are not specified, in the balance, should residents vote in sufficient numbers, the results would reflect those products and services that truly stand out and represent the best that we have to offer in our country.

The objective of the Best of SVG campaign is to assist with creating a culture of excellence in St Vincent and the Grenadines. It is shocking how many Vincentians are unapologetic about describing themselves as being part of a culture where depraved, criminal behaviour is the norm; but very rarely do you hear people proudly proclaiming that in St Vincent and the Grenadines, we have a culture of doing things well.

Our failure to recognize and celebrate the best producers among us contributes to the acceptance of mediocre standards and provides little incentive for business people to strive to do better. Through the Best of SVG campaign, we send a message to producers that the public is paying attention and those who do things well will be recognized.

The voting period for the 2018 campaign comes to an end in less than two weeks, at which time, the locked ballot boxes will be handed over to auditing firm Grant Thornton, who will then tally the nominations to determine who are the winners in the 102 categories. Interactive Media Ltd is indebted to Grant Thornton and the other sponsors for embracing the vision of the campaign and throwing their support behind our efforts to reward excellence.

Those residents who have not yet made their nominations are urged to do so in the 10 days that remain, because ultimately, we, the consumers, are the ones who benefit. It is YOUR campaign, a people’s choice campaign. Without you, there would be no Best of SVG.