GCCA Announces Recipient of New Global NextGen Award

May 11, 2015
Frank Plant and Tom Poe present Joey Williams with award Frank Plant (left) and Tom Poe (right) present Joey Williams (center) with the 2015 GCCA Global NextGen Award.

The NextGen Award is a global award that recognizes outstanding young professionals in the global cold chain industry. The award presentation took place at the closing general session of the 124th International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses (IARW) and World Food Logistics Organization (WFLO) Convention & Expo held in Orlando, FL, April 26-30, 2015. 

The finalists for the NextGen Award are recipients of industry awards that recognize exceptional achievement by young professionals in the cold chain in a specific region or country. Nominees for the 2015 NextGen Award were put forward by national refrigerated warehousing organizations to compete for the global award at the IARW-WFLO Convention & Expo.

Ivan Sutic, Financial Director at Chilleweni Cold Storage, represented South Africa as the first ever recipient of the South African Refrigerated Distribution Association’s (SARDA) Peter Worthington-Smith Award, which recognizes exceptional achievement by a young person in the South African cold chain.

Jeffrey Tusa, Project Manager, Polar Fresh Cold Chain Services was the recipient of the Refrigerated Warehouse and Transportation Association of Australia’s (RWTA) 2014 Frank Vale Award acknowledging talented young people in the Australian cold chain industry.

Representing North America was the recipient of the 2015 IARW-WFLO Don Schlimme Future Leader Award recipient, Joey Williams.

“I am continuously impressed by the quality and dedication that our young professionals exhibit in this industry,” said Frank Plant, the Immediate Past Chairman of WFLO and President of San Diego Cold Storage. “This GCCA Global NextGen Award celebrates young professionals from around the world and the important role they and the entire cold storage industry play in providing safe and quality food to a growing global population.”

The NextGen Award was established in 2015 in order to annually acknowledge talented young professionals who have demonstrated to their employers their potential to become future leaders and make positive contributions to the development of the industry. Among other eligibility requirements for the award, nominees had to demonstrate excellence in their work, the potential to excel further in the many facets within the industry, and possess insight into their organization’s strategic values and direction, policies and ways of working.

As part of the selection process, each nominee was interviewed and judged by a panel of industry leaders from around the world. Candidates were judged on their knowledge level of the industry, track record of excellence, communication skills, and leadership skills. In addition, each candidate delivered a five-minute presentation to the panel of judges and the IARW-WFLO Convention attendees.

“This whole process has been a tremendously rewarding experience for me”, Williams commented. “To have the opportunity to compete for the NextGen Award with other young leaders from around the world like Ivan and Jeff is amazing and I look forward to see who follows in our footsteps”.

As the winner of the GCCA Global NextGen award, Williams will receive a travel stipend of up to $2,500 to attend a GCCA or GCCA partner event anywhere in the world in 2015- 2016 and was presented with an engraved 2015 GCCA Global NextGen award.

Contact: Megan Costello, Vice President, Member & Industry Affairs, GCCA at +1 703 373 4300 ext. 201 or mcostello@gcca.org.

Photos of the 2015 GCCA Global NextGen Award Finalists and Winner

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Comprised of its Core Partners, including the International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses, the World Food Logistics Organization, the International Refrigerated Transportation Association, and the International Association for Cold Storage Construction, the Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA) represents all major industries engaged in temperature-controlled logistics. GCCA unites partners to be innovative leaders in the temperature-controlled products industry. For more information about GCCA, visit www.gcca.org.