Top ICT award for Gadget founder

Gadget founder Arthur Goldstuck has been named recipient of the Distinguished Service in ICT Award 2013 by the ICT industry’s professional body.

Gadget founder and editor-in-chief Arthur Goldstuck has been named recipient of the Distinguished Service in ICT Award 2013 by the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) and the award sponsor, EngineerIT.

The IITPSA, the professional body of the information and communications technology (ICT) industry, in conjunction with EngineerIT, determine a worthy candidate for this award for ‘distinguished service’ to the IITPSA and/or the IT Industry based on the following criteria:

The Award criteria are:

* The recipient ideally should have been a member of the professional body of the IITPSA for 10 years;

* Has demonstrated a long-term commitment to the objectives of the IITPSA and the ICT sector.

* Has been a role model and mentor showing dedication to the advancement of
the ICT industry in SA.

* Is recognised as having made an exceptional, career-length contribution to
the ICT industry.

The person who receives the award is also bestowed with the grade and title of Fellow (or Honorary Fellow) of the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa, if he/she is not a Fellow already. The ‘worthiness and acceptability’ of the nominee for this award is assessed by the Committee of Past Presidents of the IITPSA where a majority must support the nomination and recommend it to the IITPSA Executive Council. Here, in turn, the nomination must also receive the support and approval of the majority of the Executive Council.

The Citation for Goldstuck’s award, presented at the IITPSA President’s Awards Breakfast last week, reads:

“It is our custom not to mention the name of the Award Recipient until the end of the citation, but we will be very surprised if everyone in this room, including the recipient (who doesn’t yet know that he is getting the award), doesn’t work out who is being referred to after the first few sentences that follow.

“This person is a well-known South African journalist, media analyst and commentator on information and communications technology, internet and mobile communications and technologies.

“He is a former investigative journalist and news editor at the Mail & Guardian, one-time South African correspondent for Billboard, contributor to numerous magazines and newspapers on tech and popular culture. He has written 18 books, including 7 on Internet- and mobile-related topics, 6 on urban legends and 3 humour books. Most have been best-sellers in South Africa, with “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Internet: A South African Handbook” the biggest selling IT book ever in this country.

“He is the Editor-in-Chief of Gadget Magazine which is South Africa’s oldest online technology magazine, launched in 1998. In June 2011 it became a content partner of the MSN portal, replicating its content on the Tech & Gadgets section of the MSN.co.za portal.

“This person is the founder (in 2000) and Managing Director of World Wide Worx, a leading independent technology market research organisation. World Wide Worx researches Internet access, mobile consumers, mobile Internet, mobile payments, online banking, online media, social media, cloud computing and trends shaping business and consumer use of technology in Africa. It has established itself as one of the leading independent technology research organisations on the continent.

“He was a pioneer in the South African market in the use of the internet as a tool for productivity. He developed the first South African benchmarks for website strategy, and has represented South Africa as a judge for events ranging from the International Advertising Festival in Cannes to the Global Mobile Awards at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. World Wide Worx research is used by international, regional and local organisations, corporations and universities. He also provides regular newspaper columns on IT-related topics, and has been interviewed on SA radio stations many times, making technology interesting and accessible to the general public.

“He is both a true stalwart and a justifiably well-known personality of the South African ICT Industry and is fully deserving of the 2013 award for Distinguished Service in ICT, having made a genuine career-length contribution to the community and the world of ICT.

“The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa and EngineerIT are thus delighted to present both an Honorary Fellowship of the Institute and the 2013 Distinguished Service in ICT Award to Arthur Goldstuck.”

The IITPSA President’s Awards Breakfast, hosted by ITWeb, also saw the following awards presented:

Sal Laher, CIO of Eskom, was named the 2013 Visionary CIO of the Year winner.

Mteto Nyati, Microsoft SA MD, and Barry Dwolatzky, director of the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering, were the co-winners of 2013 IT Personality of the Year Award.