After a near year-long competition, here is the winner of the #ZitkoH2O bottle competition. The recruitment consultancy gave out over 1000 bottles last year to candidates, clients, and visitors, including to Professional Security Magazine’s own Security TWENTY 22 series of events. The bottles found themselves into some interesting places – delivery rooms, beaches, backstage at the theatre, even outside a Heineken factory.
A Zitko consultant Chris Kendall’s bottle may have earned the most flight miles, making its way to and from the office in Cambridgeshire down to the south coast, and then off to Gibraltar, Belfast, Crete, and Egypt. The bottles also joined the company’s US team on their trip to Las Vegas, and even on a few annual leave trips to the likes of the Maldives, Greece, and Budapest.
The 2022 winner was Justin Thompson from Reliance High-Tech. His entry, pictured, was from the top of the Andes in Peru. He gets a £1000 prize.
It all started with the onset of an ‘amazing competition’, in Justin’s words. Once the team at Reliance High-Tech received their bottles, a degree of competition ensued. Justin had to beat his colleagues (namely, Pierre). Justin got thinking on and passed a bottle to his friend Craig who was part of a group soon to be heading up the Andes. Craig obliged.
After nearly 12 hours on a plane and a ten-hour bus ride in the heat along rocky cliff edges, the team were well on their way to the top of the mountain. It didn’t stop there though. The journey to the top spot takes travelling up and over another mountain before you even reach the correct base camp – a four-day climb!
Upon receipt of his winnings, Justin decided to split the money – part went to the climbers who made it all happen, and the other to a local wildlife project through a committee that he chairs in Skelton. The project aims to restore a swampy pond, beautifying the area and supporting local flora and fauna
Zitko Founder George Zitko said: “I’m so pleased for Justin. Not only because we’ve worked together across a range of our products and solutions for both him and the wider Reliance business for a long time, but also because his picture was just seriously cool. When everyone at Zitko saw it, we knew instantly it would be tough for anyone to beat! It’s great the money has been used for such a worthwhile cause, and something that means so much to Justin and his community personally.”
When Justin was presented with his cheque, he said: “Zitko is a very professional organisation, full of hardworking, collaborative people. I think it’s ran by a very, very good guy in George, and from an outsider looking in it looks like it has really, really special team spirit. I love all the employee of the month kind of thing. I think that’s great. Emily has always been excellent with me. We’ve worked together now it must be five, six years, maybe longer, but a really professional outfit and great to work with.”
