Annual celebration of achievements in New Brunswick IT industry marks 10th anniversary

In the past decade the Knowledge Industry Recognition and Achievement Awards have grown into the premiere event of the year for New Brunswick's knowledge sector, say local industry leaders.

The success of the KIRAs, which celebrate innovation in the province's technology industry, has exceeded all expectations, says one of the awards founders.

In the mid-1990s, Al MacDonald, a long-time technology leader, helped form Fredericton's Knowledge Industry Taskforce - which came up with the idea to have an awards ceremony to raise awareness of the Fredericton's technology industry.

"The first year it was obviously very special, the whole concept was new to the area," says MacDonald.

"But, no one had any idea what the importance of it would become."

These days the tickets for the 10th annual KIRAs, now a high-profile provincial event, are being snapped up quickly and nominations for this years winners are pouring in, says Heather MacLean, co-chairwoman of the awards for the third consecutive year.

The annual event has become of the few times modest New Brunswickers pat themselves on the back for a job well done, says MacLean.

Snagging a nationally recognized fig-ure, Seamus O'Regan, co-host of CTV's national morning show Canada AM, to host the glitzy awards gala this year shows how far the KIRAs have come, says MacLean.

Over the years, as the awards have grown in size and stature so, too, have past KIRA winners.

Local startups, such as Whitehill Technologies Inc., now a part of Skywire Software, FatKat Animation Studios and MITI Information Technology Inc., now a part of xwave, are all examples of well-known firms that were recognized early on as small companies with big potential by the KIRAs.

For xwave - which won KIRAs in 1999 and 2002 in the employment growth category and in 2001 in the community involvement and industry commitment category - there have been many benefits to winning prestigious KIRAs, says Jeff McGuigan, N.B. sales manager, government markets for Bell Aliant and xwave.

First, winning has helped to motivate employees who are recognized for their hard work. Secondly, snagging a KIRA really drives home to xwave customers and clients that the company is a solid, award-winning brand. And, thirdly, winning highlights the capabilities of xwave, which ultimately helps to recruit new workers and clients, says McGuigan.

Also, the awards ceremony itself, which McGuigan calls the "gala event of the year for the New Brunswick technology industry" is used as a tool by xwave, which has been a major sponsor of the event over the past decade, to give invited employees and customers the chance to network, showcase their talents and celebrate the achievements of their peers.

"There is a marquee value with the KIRAs," notes McGuigan."You want to be associated with that success - every year they just keep raising the bar."

MacDonald agrees the importance of the awards just keeps on rising, saying that, while he is thankful for having won the Special Recognition award, now called the Industry Person of the Year award, in the first year of the KIRAs in 1999, winning now would mean more since the KIRAs have become so well-known and respected in Atlantic Canada.

"If I had've won last year the importance of that would have been greater," says MacDonald, the former senior vice-president of CGI Atlantic.

"Because now the KIRAs is a proven commodity "¦ The technology industry is a lot bigger now and it is now a more established honour."

The technology leader, who retired last year, has not been to the KIRA awards ceremony in a few years, but plans on attending this year to catch up with former colleagues and celebrate the 10-year anniversary.

"It's become such a trademark event," says MacDonald.

"It's all about visibility, shining a light on the very best New Brunswickers can do "¦ And getting citizens, politicians, and other sectors to realize how important the technology sector is to our province."

MacDonald also hopes young New Brunswickers, from kindergarten to high school, are inspired by seeing fellow NBers being successful in their chosen field in their home province.

The awards are hosted by Enterprise Fredericton, a regional economic development agency dedicated to improving economic performance in the Fredericton region. Close to 500 industry leaders and politicians are expected to attend the gala event, which is being held at the Delta Fredericton this May, says MacLean.

The call for this year's nominations is open until March 28 and tickets for the gala event are on sale now. Visit kirawards.ca for more details.