In pursuit of perfection

If you knew Derick van der Walt well, the words: “We’re so perfect, it scares us!” should put a smile on your face. However, as someone once said, “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence”.

Derick was one of the co-founders of the SAPF and the Corporate Publication Competition in 2002, he was a colourful and passionate person with a great sense of humour, enthusiastic about words, and had a love for language. Was? Yes, he sadly passed away in March this year after suffering a brain haemorrhage. He also was the owner of Greenpepper Communication, a communication consultancy that has been producing corporate publications, printed and electronic for many years.

In an industry such as ours we strive to strike the perfect balance between writing, design, and above all communication. In the pursuit of improving our messaging we have to be innovative in the packaging and presentation thereof, whether in print or digital format. The Corporate Publication Competition became the yardstick for effective communication and as such we encourage you to enter your corporate publications.

To acknowledge Derick’s involvement of more than 30 years in the publication industry, the SAPF has renamed the coveted award for winning THE prize in the competition – it will be known as the Derick van der Walt Award for Best Corporate Publication.

Let’s face it: if you are not pursuing perfection in our industry – you should be scared. At least aim for excellence.