We all love a killer pitch. The industry thrives on big ideas, flashy decks, buzzwords, and glossy sizzle reels. But when the client leaves the room, who actually makes the magic happen?
We’re looking for the absolute force behind the work. We want the people closing the deals, building the complex tech stacks, capturing the eyeballs, and protecting the culture.
The 2026 Mediaweek Next of the Best Awards celebrates the operational masterminds who drive genuine commercial reality.
Finding your ultimate industry superpower
To recognise true impact, we’ve organized our 16 award categories into four distinct tribes based on your ultimate industry superpower.
It’s time to identify your category or categories. Which tribe are you?
The growth engines
You drive the bottom line. You are the commercial heavyweights and the absolute rainmakers. You don’t just talk about ideas; you close the deals, manage the margins, and control the massive flow of media investment. You keep the lights on.
Your categories: Sales & Commercial Leadership, Retail and Commerce Leadership, Partnerships Leadership, and Agency Media Leadership.
The architects
You build the future. You are the system builders and the tech-obsessed operators constructing the infrastructure of tomorrow. Whether you build a highly complex data model, a proprietary tech stack, or an entirely new business from scratch, you lay the foundations we all rely on.
Your categories: Product & Innovation Leadership, Data and Insights Leadership, Publisher & Platform Leadership, and Entrepreneur.
The magnets
You command attention. In a brutal attention economy, you are the rare leaders who actually stop the scroll. Through brilliant creative execution, unmissable entertainment, or a razor-sharp brand narrative, you own the eyeballs.
Your categories: Agency Creative Leadership, Audio & Entertainment Leadership, Influence & Audience Leadership, and Brand & Growth Leadership.
The guardians
You protect the industry. As the conscience of the business, you protect the most fragile and important assets in media: the truth, the talent, and our future. You actively push the industry forward into a better and more sustainable reality.
Your categories: News & Journalism Leadership, People & Culture Leadership, Sustainability & Purpose Leadership, and Change Maker.
Take your place
A hand-picked judging panel featuring top holding company chief executive officers, leading brand chief marketing officers, and broadcast network bosses in the country will evaluate submissions. They know exactly what battle-tested commercial impact looks like.
The search for the industry’s true titans is on.
Remember, there’s no application fee and the process is streamlined to be quick and efficient. Entries close on 23 April.
Illustrate your superpower, and take your place among the best.