Firstly congratulations.

I think for the most part you are absolutely right. It is human nature to seek validation for a job well done. From a business perspective, awards can act as testimonials and recommendations.

Entering and winning awards fosters good internal feeling, cements relationships with clients and can lead to new opportunities with other businesses.

I don't though entirely agree that the best work wins the award every time. Some of the larger agencies enter every category of every award ceremony going and perhaps fixate on winning awards as part of their PR strategy. Taking a numbers approach they bankroll the ceremony with the nomination fees which inevitably means they'll curry favour amongst the judges at some stage. I hope you are not up against 2-3 usual suspects but I imagine you are.

I could draw parallels with the Oscars. How many actors and directors nominated for their best work in years gone by didn't win, but more recently did for subjectively less quality work because for various reasons it was deemed their time? I think this happens in our sector too.

Good luck on the night!

Congratulations and I agree winning awards does matter, but especially the ones that are voted for by the people who really know, and really matter, the employees.

We are particularly proud of our placements in The Sunday Times 100 best companies to work for in 2009 and 2010 because it shows that we love what we do, and we care about what we do. Which is very important in our industry. It also shows our clients that we are going to do a really good job for them.

It’s good for morale, because it reinforces everyone’s belief that they do work for a great company, and it’s also good for attracting talent, as graduates and other talented people will often look to lists like this.

… and now for a few comments on the other side of the aisle.
I start by agreeing that awards are great for internal 'pats on the back', and bragging rights, however, they should NOT be confused with marketing effectiveness.
However, any award that is NOT based on measureable results means little.
In B2B marketing the results matter most. By results, I mean how many and how 'qualified' the leads that are produced. Too many marketing campaigns are judged on 'clicks' or 'design' and not enough on the value of the lead that is generated.
B2B marketers need to focus in identifying specific individuals a sales person can contact and nurture that have a good chance of culminating in a future sale.
If you can't tell your CEO how many B2B sales leads your marketing department provided the sales team, complete with contact info, title and the prospect's hot buttons, then you are not doing your job, no matter how many awards you win.
Just one very focused opinion. Take what you need and leave the rest ;-)