November 2002 – Jim Macnamara, CEO of CARMA International (Asia Pacific), has been voted 'Communicator of the Year' in the 2002 PRWeek Awards in Asia Pacific. At a glittering gala dinner in Hong Kong on November 22 attended by 500 industry leaders and guests, Mr. Macnamara was recognized with the prestigious award.

In making the award, PRWeek commented:

"Australian Jim Macnamara is a man whose name anyone with even a passing interest in PR in this region would not have missed. His passion for the industry and his tireless dedication to raising its profile as a respected profession is unmatched. "At the same time, he has become known as something of an evangelist for his pet passion – proving the value of PR to a business’s bottom line through clear measurement of outcomes.

"But it is his work beyond his office that earned Macnamara his stellar reputation in the PR industry. PRWeek noted that Mr. Macnamara stepped down in 2002 after two years as National President of the Public Relations Institute of Australia and was elected a Councilor of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA). Also, he was commended for the nine books he has written on media, PR and communication and numerous papers published in professional journals in Asia Pacific, the US and UK.

"His talents are frequently sought by conference organizers, who recognize him as a leading industry voice on the need for greater research and evaluation in PR. Macnamara was a keynote speaker at both the International Public Relations Association World Congress in Cairo this year and the Asia Pacific conference of the International Association of Business Communicators in Kuala Lumpur in September."

Adding to the prestige of the award, PRWeek reported that "the judges opted not to award any runner-up prizes in this category as they did not want to detract from the value of the main award."