The Karen Renk Award is given to an IMA member who champions the business case for incentives in service to the association, either through their work within the organisation or through outreach to the community at large.
Upon receiving the award, Martocci said, “To receive an award tied to Karen Renk’s legacy of mentorship and professionalism is truly an honour. The IMA has given me the opportunity to not only grow professionally but also to support and mentor others in the industry. On a personal level, it’s gratifying to know that the way I have approached people and partnerships has made an impact.”
With more than 20 years of experience across the merchandise and incentive space, Bill has built his career on both sides of the business, serving as Director of Special Markets for Carson Optical on the supplier side and currently as President of Carlisle Sales & Marketing on the rep side, where he represents a portfolio of leading-name brands in the marketplace.
“The incentive and recognition industry sits at the intersection of business results and human behaviour,” said Martocci. “Ultimately, I hope my efforts have helped reinforce a simple idea: that thoughtful incentive and recognition strategies can truly drive performance.”
Since 2009, Bill has been deeply involved in industry leadership through Incentive Merchandise to Reward and Appreciate (IMRA), the merchandise arm of IMA, and served on the IMA Board from 2012–2023, ultimately rising to IMRA President in 2014 and IMA President in 2021. Bill served on several committees for both IMRA and IMA, including the conference, education, corporate outreach, membership, and certification committees. His career reflects a lasting commitment to the industry, strong relationships, and thoughtful leadership.
Bill’s nominator highlighted, “Bill's mentoring was one of the reasons I joined and grew within the IMA and IMRA. His focus has and continues to be on what is best for the association even when it may not suit his own needs. His deep understanding of every facet of the industry, including the gift card, solutions, travel and recognition areas, was important to him in order to provide a balanced approach to leading the organization to ensure everyone felt recognized.”
Bill also serves as an instructor in Organisational Behaviour and Marketing at St. Joseph’s University of New York, where he continues to emphasise the value of motivation, recognition, and behaviour change through incentives.
Bill is the 12th recipient of the Karen Renk Award. Previous recipients include:
- 2025 – Mike Landry, TUMI
- 2024 – Anne Jetter, SB Collectiv
- 2023 – Rich Killian, CPIM, RK Incentives
- 2022 – John Hanson, CPIM, RepLink/The DataDirect Group
- 2021 – Barb Hendrickson, CPIM, Visible Communication, LLC
- 2020 – Mike Donnelly, CPIM, Hinda Incentives
- 2019 – Cindy Mielke, CPIM, Tango
- 2018 – Michelle M. Smith, CPIM, CRP, speaker, author, strategist
- 2017 – Brian Dunne, CPIM, Giftcard.Consulting
- 2016 – Heidi Chatfield, CPIM, All Star Incentive Marketing
- 2015 – Sean Roark, CPIM, PromoPros/IncentPros
View all IMA Summit Award winners on the IMA website.