EY ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR™

The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ (EOY) runs across 60+ countries, with the Irish programme being recognised as one of the strongest executions worldwide. Dotted with virtual and in-person events, the programme culminates in the annual Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Awards ceremony.

During my time in EY, I had the pleasure of being design lead for the 2021 ‘Launch’ concept; the cornerstone of the year-long programme’s events, collateral and created assets.

EOY 2021

Evolving from the previous concept, I created a framework concept for the 2021 programme. With events and experiences moving virtually, the concept need to be successful not only in static and/or print but for animated assets too, so I collaborated with a motion graphics designer to storyboard and create animated social media outputs.

Rather than being centred on a word, this year’s theme was founded on a question - 'Does your unwavering ambition take you places others only dream of?'. The imagery depicts people who are daring, ambitious and adventurous, with strong visual lines or angles to mirror the wordmark and transitions created for motion assets.

PREVIOUS YEARS

EOY 2018

In 2018, I was responsible for creating the prestigious ‘Awards Brochure’ in addition to providing design support for the programme’s finale event. Over time, the brochure has become a keepsake status amongst attendees and so, the Awards Brochure needs to be a high-quality, premium product, worthy of sitting on an finalists desk or shelf for many years to come.

With a design in-keeping with the overarching 2018 EY/EOY visual identity ’Ambition’, the brochure was printed with 300gsm Munken Kristall Rough, finished with a debossed gold foil with rainbow effect. The foil caught the overhead lighting and created a sense of glitter and glamour on the Award tables. The paper choice made the brochure feel luxurious and special; in keeping with the night’s experience for all attendees.

EOY 2019

The 2019 programme theme - ‘Be Brave, Be Bold’ - applauds entrepreneurs who have championed bravery, backed boldness and made significant sacrifices to succeed in their fields. For this year, I created all pre-Awards Finalist announcement materials, across large format print and social media, within the bespoke concept. To promote the programme internally, we installed a temporary foam board wall covering in EY’s Dublin office to create a space where people could sign their name and give well wishes to the finalists.

EOY 2020

2020 was EOY’s first year using a globally-consistent design concept, closer aligned to the EY brand, to provide a consistent voice for the programme around the world. When the Irish programme was launching, this concept wasn’t fully developed for use; we were one of the first countries to be using it. I was provided with a hero image, high-level copy suggestions, and the opportunity to localise the assets for the Irish audience. From this, I created the launch brochure, static social media assets and supporting campaign materials.