Snowdrop Systems Award for Excellence in HR through Technology
Judge: Margaret Smith, chief executive, CIO Connect
CIO Connect is a networking organisation for chief information officers. Prior to this, Smith held a variety of roles at Legal and General, including chief information officer and managing director of both the direct and electronic business. Smith has also worked as an IT executive with the Woolwich Building Society and with British Gas.
Department for Work and Pensions Age Positive at Work Award
Judge: Samantha Mercer, director, Employers Forum on Age (EFA)
Mercer has been director of the EFA since July 2000. The EFA campaigns on the benefits of an age diverse workforce and
has more than 180 employer members representing 14% of the UK workforce.
Capgemini Employer Branding Award
Judge: John Smythe, co-founder of Engage for Change
Engage for Change is a specialist consultancy that aims to raise the business performance of its clients through effective leadership and employee engagement. Prior to this, Smythe undertook research into employee engagement for McKinsey. He is former chief executive of internal communication consultancy SmytheDorwardLambert.
Hammonds HR Director of the Year Award
Judge: William Gibbon, executive director of HR, Barclays Africa and Middle East
Gibbon moved from the UK to South Africa at the beginning of 2003 to take up his post. Prior to this, he led HR for Barclays Corporate Banking in the UK, Europe and North America. Gibbon also spent 15 years working for Marks & Spencer. He is Personnel Today’s HR Director of the Year 2004.
Xchanging Award for Excellence in Training
Judge: Sarah Jones, chief executive, Ufi/learndirect
Jones became chief executive of Ufi in January 2005 after an extensive career at BAE Systems. After joining BAE in 1990, Jones had responsibility for the project management of major military programmes and for contract management and negotiation with governments in the UK and the US. In 2002, she was appointed business unit director of a division of RO Defence with a turnover of £34m.
Graduate Prospects Award for Excellence in Graduate Recruitment
Judge: Carl Gilleard, chief executive, Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR)
The AGR is an independent, not-for-profit organisation that supports employers in all aspects of graduate recruitment. It has more than 600 members covering blue-chip companies, public bodies and suppliers. Gilleard was appointed chief executive in 1998. Previously, he worked for nine years as the executive director for METRA Services, a national recruitment consultancy specialising in local government.
PMI Health Group Award for Managing Health at Work
Judge: Bashyr Aziz, senior lecturer, University of Wolverhampton School of Health
Aziz became interested in the interaction between work and health when serving as an Army officer. After leaving the Army, he supplemented his nursing qualifications with a certificate in occupational health, and subsequently undertook postgraduate studies in health studies and the management of occupational health and safety. He has published many articles and, in 1999, he created the online Occupational Health mail list.
Hays Human Resources Award for Innovation in Recruitment and Retention
Judge: Simon Howard, chairman, Work Communications
Howard has worked in the UK recruitment industry for the past 25 years, 15 of which were spent heading up recruitment companies. In 2001, he co-founded Work Communications – a recruitment communications company that is ranked seventh in its industry. He writes the Sunday Times’ weekly Jobfile column on employment issues, and is a regular contributor to Personnel Today and The Grocer.
Fujitsu and Baxter Neumann Award for Excellence in Outsourcing and Shared Services
Judge: Paul Pagliari, senior HR director, Immigration and Nationality Directorate
The Immigration and Nationality Directorate has a workforce of 16,000, which represents a sizeable part of the Home Office. It is responsible for immigration, border controls and asylum applications. Pagliari was previously HR director at Scottish Water. He is a member of the Employment Appeal Tribunal, sitting in Edinburgh, and a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
Intellect Award for Innovation in Career Development
Judge: Ruth Spellman, chief executive, Investors in People (IIP)
Spellman has been chief executive of IIP since October 1998. Prior to this, she was HR director at the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) for seven years, leading the organisation through a major modernisation programme. She was also a senior member of the consulting practice at Coopers and Lybrand, specialising in HR, corporate strategy and change management.
Computers In Personnel Award for HR Collaboration
Judge: Mark Childs, director of Total Reward Solutions and Outset UK
Childs is a companion and former vice-president reward at the CIPD. His specialist reward experience spans the public and private sectors, including senior roles in Fidelity Investments, Seagram, Chubb, Reckitt and Colman and Forte.
Northgate HR Award for Best HR Strategy in Line with Business
Judge: Kevin Green, people and organisational development director, Royal Mail Letters Operations
Green joined the Royal Mail Group in October 2003 as chief learning officer. He was responsible for all organisational change and learning and development across the group. He took up his current role in September 2004. Before joining Royal Mail, Green was managing director of
Qtab – an HR consultancy that specialising in assisting businesses define and implement their people strategies.
Judging panel for the overall winner
– Linda Holbeche, director of research and strategy, Roffey Park
– Alan Warner, director of people and property, Hertfordshire County Council
Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance
Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday
– Paul Turner, general manager, West Bromwich Building Society
– Beverley Shears, former HR director, South West Trains
