Outstanding business leaders and entrepreneurs from Bristol are being urged to enter the region’s top awards recognising excellence in the boardroom.
Launched this week, the Institute of Directors South West Director of the Year Awards 2018 showcase the wealth of executive talent and leadership across the region.
New categories have been added this year to champion inclusivity and innovation while a new Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Director and Board Practice has also been included.
Award nominations are open to anyone working at director level in any type of business or organisation – they do not have to be an IoD member.
They join existing award categories Family Business, Public Sector, Not for Profit/Third Sector, Global, Emerging and Corporate Responsibility.
A panel of experts will judge the entries and the winners will be announced on June 14 at a ceremony at Sandy Park Conference Centre in Exeter.
Last year’s winners included Louise Mitchell, CEO of Bristol’s Colston Hall, who won the Third Sector Award, and Simon Brown, founder of fast-growing Clifton-based tax credit specialists ForrestBrown, who was named Young Director of the Year.
IoD South West chairman Nick Sturge, director of Bristol innovation hub Engine Shed and a winner himself in 2014, said: “These awards are designed to recognise and celebrate the role of enterprising leaders in both the private and public sectors and their contribution to the economy of the South West.
“This region is known for its rich diversity, from aerospace, technology and tourism through to our reputation in the creative industries and social enterprise, and we need to celebrate it.
“I am particularly pleased at the inclusion of a new category recognising good governance which is critical to a successful organisation and is at the heart of everything the IoD stands for.
“As a former winner, I can talk from experience about the privilege of winning one of these awards as you are always up against a competitive field. I urge directors across the region to consider applying and to receive recognition for the great work you are doing.”
Louise Mitchell told the launch event at the Hotel du Vin in Bristol that winning the award raised the profile of Colston Hall and the Bristol Music Trust, which runs it, among the city’s business community.
South West winners are eligible to go forward to the IoD UK Director Awards in London in the autumn.
The entry form and more details are available by calling 0117 370 7785, by emailing iod.southwest@iod.com or by online at http://www.iodawards.com/southwest.
The deadline for entries is February 28.
Bristol Business News is once again media partner for these coveted awards.
Last year’s winners were:
- Director of the Year: David Gilroy, director of Conscious Solutions, the Bristol-based leading provider of digital marketing services to law firms,
- Young Director: Simon Brown, managing director and owner of Bristol-based research and development tax credit consultancy ForrestBrown,
- International Director: Merle Hall, managing director of Bristol-based Kinneir Dufort, which specialises in product, packaging and service design for companies around the world, including Bosch, Coca-Cola and Thales,
- Third Sector: Louise Mitchell, CEO of the Bristol Music Trust, created in 2011 by Bristol City Council to manage the city’s iconic Colston Hall music venue and take a regional overview of music promotion and formal and non-formal music education,
- Corporate and Social Responsibility: Andrew Scott, managing director of Weston-super-Mare-based Ascot Group, which takes in Purplex Marketing, Insight Data, a specialist provider of B2B marketing data, and Business Leader magazine.
