The “Stars of the Year Award Ceremony,” where the innovative projects that add value to society and business by Yıldız Holding employees are shared, was held for the 16th time this year. The winning projects were determined as a result of a voting process by the 75 thousand Holding employees worldwide and a jury of experts.   

Held annually to reinforce the corporate culture, which places importance on celebrating achievements together, and rewarding the innovative projects of Yıldız Holding employees, the “Stars of the Year Award Ceremony” was held at Ülker Sports and Event Hall on March 7 this year. Bringing together thousands of Yıldız Holding employees from across the world and Türkiye, the 16^th Stars of the Year Award Ceremony received 180 applications in 10 categories. As part of the award program, projects from all over the world, including Türkiye, China, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Australia, the Netherlands, and Nigeria, were evaluated and the winners were determined by the votes of the 75 thousand Holding employees and a jury of experts. Granted every year, the Chair’s Award went to two different projects in the categories of Diversity and Inclusion and Environmental Sustainability this year. The award in the category of Diversity and Inclusion, which is a primary global value of Yıldız Holding, was given to pladis for its Neurodiversity Network project while the Environmental Sustainability award went to Ülker for its Integrated Sustainability Vision project.

Ali Ülker: “We value the richness brought by inclusion and cultural differences.”

Yıldız Holding Chair Ali Ülker: “As an organization highlighting diversity and inclusion since its foundation, we believe cultural diversity is our greatest wealth at Yıldız Holding. We declared the past year as the year of “Inclusion and Diversity,” which is one of our global values, and accelerated the projects implemented in this field in all our companies. The  Neurodiversity Network Project by pladis stood out as the most inclusive and innovative project among the tens of good practices that were submitted. On the other hand, we continue driving positive transformation through our sustainability projects across the broad ecosystem we impact. Last year, I announced that I would give the Chair’s Award in the category of Environmental Sustainability next year to encourage our companies to come up with holistic projects that touch our stakeholders as well. Congratulations to the Ülker team who won the award with their pioneering efforts in the field of Environmental Sustainability for the leadership they assumed with their integrated sustainability vision on a global scale!”

In his conversation with journalist Candaş Tolga Işık on Diversity, Yıldız Holding Board Member, pladis and Godiva Chair Murat Ülker said: “We have a goal that we call Goal21 at Yıldız Holding. The letter “A” here represents “Alignment.” However, we tend to think of it as  Unity of Purpose. Because we do not want to be aligned or become the same people. We want to be unique and believe that the more differences we have, the richer we are. With over 75 thousand employees holding passports from 98 countries and all our differences, we work toward the same purpose. And that purpose is to “Make Happy, Be Happy.” We aim to be happy by making all our customers and stakeholders happy.”  

Mehmet Tütüncü: “We will continue creating value with our 75 thousand employees.”

In his opening speech, Yıldız Holding Deputy Chair and CEO Mehmet Tütüncü said: “In our time, when change is constant and absolute, ‘managing uncertainty’ stands out as one of the most critical abilities for companies. Uncertainty contains risks and opportunities alike. What matters here is to change our perspective and thought system to seize opportunities rather than just focusing on the risks. As the 75 thousand employees working under the roof of Yıldız Holding, each of us has unique features that make us who we are. We can make a collective impact and create value only if we act together with all these differences. As we have done until today, I believe we will keep making our achievements sustainable by working as a team before uncertainties in the future. My heartfelt congratulations to all colleagues who won awards with their exemplary projects at the Stars of the Year Award Ceremony, where we learn from each other and celebrate our achievements together!”

In the speech he gave at the ceremony, pladis CEO Salman Amin said: “The Stars of the Year Awards is among the highlights of the year for us as we celebrate achievements our colleagues made in the past year.  Seeing that teams of pladis, as one of the fastest-growing snacking companies in the world, won many awards in different categories with their innovative projects made me very happy and proud.”

Winning Projects of the 16th Stars of the Year Awards:

• Contribution to Growth: Teremyağ proudly presents: The fastest-growing brand in 2023 (Kerevitaş)
• Operational Excellence: Capacity Gain and Loss Reduction with Operational Excellence (pladis Türkiye)
• Best Performing Marketing Campaign: McVitie's True Originals Campaign (pladis UK)
• Best Market Share Gain: Not only the Best for the Throat but Also for Market Share (pladis Türkiye)
• Innovation:  An Innovative Approach to Extending the Shelf Life of Fruits and Vegetables (ŞOK Marketler)
• Digital Transformation: The Rise of the Machines (pladis Türkiye)
• Investing in People: OPeRa on Stage (Yıldız Holding)
• Happiness: Corporate Social Responsibility: The Nutritious Biscuit (pladis Türkiye)
• Social Media Heroes: Building a Yummy YouTube Channel from Scratch: Hamur Bizim İşimiz (Kerevitaş)
• Chair’s Award

“Environmental Sustainability”:  Leading ESG Performance on a Global Scale: Ülker's Integrated Sustainability Vision

“Diversity and Inclusion”: Neurodiversity Network (pladis United Kingdom and Ireland)