From the Nominator

Keene’s Kudos is a student-driven campaign sending encouragement and positivity to faculty, staff, students, and alumni at the University of Iowa's Tippie College of Business. The name of the campaign comes from Tippie's Associate Dean of Undergraduate Students, Charles Wayne Keene. Every week on Tippie’s Instagram Stories, our audience gets the opportunity to send in the names of people they want to recognize. At the end of each week, Keene shares the shoutouts on an Insta Story video, followed by an Insta Story graphic containing all the names submitted that week. This campaign is a coordinated effort between our undergraduate programs office and the senior interns of the Tippie Social Media Team. Each week, they plan a location and concept for Keene to read the kudos. There’s always something new and fun in the background from a brand-building prospective to engage our audience. This campaign started as a temporary initiative, but with the overwhelmingly positive response from our following, Keene’s Kudos has turned into consistent programming throughout the school year. Our audience members, especially the students, are excited to see what Keene will do next. This campaign has helped our students, faculty, staff, and alumni celebrate each other and get to know one of our senior leaders in a more meaningful way. Keene is now a staple of the Tippie brand on Instagram. One student told us that Keene’s Kudos is her “favorite part of the week.”

From the Judges

One of the most original ideas we’ve seen—a really thoughtful and enjoyable way to foster a culture of support, recognition, and authenticity. The gentle humor is a winning ingredient, too. It’s no wonder these videos are so popular! Not only does this effort hit the mark in spreading positivity and goodwill, but it is also notable for being driven by student interns, who gain valuable experience in social media management and content creation.