It’s been a busy week for our CEO, Mark Llewellyn-Slade, having spent several days visiting both Silicon Valley and San Francisco. Mark travelled to meet with multiple organisations and individuals as part of a national push across the US to meet entrepreneurs and business leaders who are forging strong ties with the UK, and to represent what the UK offers in globally recognised awards and honours.

Mark met with Jo Healey, the Executive Director of British American Business Council Northern California, which focuses on fostering commerce, friendship and economic growth between Northern California and the United Kingdom. Also attending the lunch was prominent Silicon Valley entrepreneur and philanthropist, Joe Calder.

He then attended a seminar hosted by Simmons & Simmons on ‘Navigating the New Frontier: Practical Approaches to EU AI Act Compliance’ alongside Jo Healey. The seminar explored how the EU AI Act is particularly crucial for US businesses operating in the EU, as business leaders are increasingly focused on not just the legal, but also operational and financial opportunities and risks as AI continues to evolve. 

Mark and Nikita Tzatcheva, Awards Intelligence Brand Ambassador, rounded up the visit with a trip to the Menlo Polo Club for a ‘Tusk in Silicon Valley’ polo event, which brought together sponsors and patrons from across the globe to support the preservation of biodiversity in Africa. The match was between Bentley Motors and Awards Intelligence…two great British brands in Silicon Valley. It went down to the wire with Bentley winning 6-5! Under the patronage of HRH The Prince of Wales, Tusk works closely with local communities to carry out their pioneering mission of providing environmental education through the Pan African Conservation Education (PACE) program.

Mark’s trip is a reminder that the US and the UK are rich with opportunity, two pioneering nations that are breaking frontiers across all fronts. There is much to celebrate and recognise, especially by way of high-end awards that the UK is so well placed to offer.

For example, the Royal Honours system is widely regarded to be the most prestigious personal award in the world. To put that into perspective, about 20% of our clients are based overseas and a significant proportion of them are not even British citizens. The honours system is open to any worthy person based anywhere, wherever on the earth they might be. 

When it comes to flagship business awards the Kings Award for Enterprise is among the most coveted, significantly escalating the winning company’s reputation. While only UK businesses can enter this award, there are many other top-level awards that will elevate your business’ visibility internationally, no matter where your company is headquartered. In addition, there are numerous awards that recognise individual business leaders who are at the top of their game. 

Mark launched Awards Intelligence in 2007, having identified a need for an organisation that helped people to nominate their friends, family, business and community contacts for Royal honours, or in applying for high-calibre public appointments. The company grew and went on to assist businesses in finding, entering and winning elite business awards. We are now considered to be the world-leading consultancy for professional drafting services. 

Not only that, but Awards Intelligence have also gone on to commission their own highly regarded international awards. The globally recognised Best Business Awards are unique owing to having quarterly deadlines, meaning businesses have four opportunities a year to enter (while the majority of Business Awards are run annually). 

If you would like to begin the process of assessing your eligibility for business or personal awards, simply email us at: enquiries@awardsintelligence.co.uk or call us on 01444 230130