Following a final judging round where the five shortlisted candidates voted for by the influencer marketing industry were interviewed by the judging panel, only one winner could be chosen. This year, Alex Burgess, managing director of APAC at The Goat Agency, was crowned Rising Star.
Burgess has played a pivotal role in Goat’s expansion and is an integral part of the senior management team. He is a dedicated, pioneering manager working hard to drive the industry forward, and his passion, coupled with an impressive understanding and approach to the key aspects of influencer marketing, makes him a deserved winner of this coveted award. Here is what one judge had to say: “Goat has clearly placed trust in Alex to explore a new market with a small team, which has provided me with confidence that Alex is moving in a steep upwards trajectory within this space in 2019 above the other candidates and I look forward to seeing him thrive.”
We caught up with Burgess to see how he is getting on since his big win.
The IMA Rising Star 2019
With five people having made the shortlist, how did it feel to see your name up there?“It felt brilliant to be recognised amongst such talented individuals who are all making serious waves in this industry.”The shortlisted entrants all had to face the judging panel in a Dragons’ Den-style interview on judging day, after which the judges made the final call.
“I really enjoyed the judging day. I spend the majority of my day pitching to prospective clients and the Dragons’ Den-style judging panel felt similar to that. I always say the best pitches are the ones where the client grills you and makes you think and this certainly did that. The only difference was not knowing what each industry expert was going to ask so it was impossible to prepare.”To have been voted for by industry peers and then chosen by industry experts as the Rising Star must feel pretty cool?
“I am chuffed; I really wasn’t expecting it. I have a bad track record when it comes to awards so it’s lucky that I was in Singapore for the ceremony! It’s a good feeling to have all our hard work over the past three years recognised at an awards ceremony like the Influencer Marketing Awards. I’d love to get my hands on the actual award, but I think I will have to wait until the end of May when I am next back.”
Have there been any positive outcomes that have happened since winning?“Definitely. I have a wicked new gold signature, much to the joy of Esme who creates the email signatures at Goat. I have been asked to speak at a few events, had a couple of interview requests with publications, asked to be on a leadership podcast and we have had some incoming briefs from the awards, although I am not sure I can take full credit for that!” For those who may be thinking about entering the Rising Star category next year, Burgess highly recommends that you think about doing so and encourage your peers to cast their vote. “It’s great exposure within the industry and the Influencer Marketing Awards team are a lovely bunch.”Following the win, what are your career plans for the rest of the year?“The main plan is out here in Singapore. I want to cement Goat in the APAC market as the go-to influencer agency and make sure we are delivering incredible campaigns in the region. A year is a long time, especially at Goat, so opening up another office this year is certainly at the back of my mind.”We wish Burgess all the very best in his career and congratulations again for taking home the Rising Star award.
