A career built around strengthening reputations, developing credible brands and advancing the practice of public relations has earned African Authority and Reputation Management Expert Olanrewaju Alaka the Global Relevance Award at the Limitless Without Borders Awards Lagos 2026.

Olanrewaju, Founder and CEO of Laerryblue Media and Pressdia, received the recognition on August 15, 2026, during Limitless Without Borders 4.0 at Queens Park Event Centre in Victoria Island, Lagos. Held under the theme Building for Global Relevance, the event brought together professionals, entrepreneurs, creatives and business leaders from different industries.

The recognition comes after more than a decade in public relations and reputation management and reflects a wider dimension of Olanrewaju’s work: contributing to an African communications industry capable of building trusted organisations, developing skilled professionals and positioning African expertise for wider relevance.

“I am genuinely grateful to Limitless Without Borders for this honour. Recognition like this gives me an opportunity to reflect on the journey and appreciate everyone who has contributed to it. I am thankful to my team, our clients and the people who have trusted the vision, and I see this award as encouragement to keep contributing meaningfully to the industry.”

Through Laerryblue Media, Olanrewaju has built a pan African public relations and reputation management agency serving founders, high growth companies and senior executives. Its work spans strategic storytelling, executive positioning, crisis communications and reputation governance, with an emphasis on building authority and strengthening long term trust.

His experience growing the agency has also shaped his perspective on the professionals responsible for managing the reputations of African businesses and leaders. As organisations become more exposed to public scrutiny and seek opportunities across different markets, Olanrewaju believes public relations practitioners need a deeper understanding of the businesses they represent.

For him, this requires moving beyond a narrow focus on media coverage. Practitioners need to understand organisational goals, stakeholder expectations, leadership positioning and the reputational consequences of business decisions if they are to contribute strategically.

“The strongest public relations professionals of the future will understand much more than media relations. They will understand business, people, perception and how communication affects trust. When practitioners can connect those areas, they become strategic partners who can contribute to important conversations within an organisation.”

This belief has informed Olanrewaju’s commitment to creating professional opportunities and contributing to the development of emerging public relations talent. His broader vision is for African practitioners to possess the strategic depth required to advise organisations confidently while representing African businesses and leaders to local and international audiences.

That interest in strengthening the wider communications ecosystem is also reflected in Pressdia. Olanrewaju founded the platform to simplify media access for startups, small and medium sized businesses, agencies, NGOs and creatives. Pressdia connects users to over 20,000 media outlets across African and international markets, giving organisations greater access to opportunities to communicate their work.

Beyond his businesses, Olanrewaju supports NGOs and social impact initiatives through public relations and media services aimed at amplifying their missions and improving their ability to reach relevant audiences and potential partners.

He holds an MA in Public Relations from Sheffield Hallam University in the United Kingdom and is a member of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations.

As African businesses and executives pursue greater relevance across international markets, Olanrewaju believes the strength of the professionals and institutions responsible for communicating their stories will play an important role in how they are perceived.

“I want African public relations to be recognised for the quality of its thinking and the value it brings to organisations. We have the talent, experience and stories. The next step is to keep developing professionals and institutions capable of building reputations that earn trust wherever African businesses choose to compete.”

The Global Relevance Award marks another point in Olanrewaju’s professional journey while reinforcing the wider mission behind his work: strengthening authority and reputation for African businesses and leaders while contributing to a public relations industry equipped to support their relevance on the global stage.