Shortlist revealed for IoD Director of the Year awards

The England-wide awards showcase the achievements and contributions of business leaders across ten areas of excellence, from Sustainability and Innovation to Equality Diversity and Inclusion, as well as a newly introduced International category.

Hundreds of applications were appraised by this year’s judging panel, chaired by Ian Dormer CBE, CDir, and comprising directors, senior managers, non-executives, academics and other specialists to produce this year’s shortlist of finalists. Fifty-two businesses made it through to the final stages.

The winners will be announced at a glittering lunchtime presentation ceremony held at The Grand Hotel, Birmingham, on Friday 4 October.

Jon Geldart, director general of the IoD, said: “Our prestigious Director of the Year Awards bring together some incredible success stories and highlight the inspirational achievements of England’s directors, for their businesses and their communities, in the face of challenging times.

“Once again this year, the standard of entries was high and I wish the very best of luck to our deserving finalists for these top honours. I look forward to celebrating with them at the awards ceremony in Birmingham in October.”

Tickets for the Director of the Year Awards (date/time) are now on sale. Click Event information and tickets

The 2024 national finalists are:

Equality Diversity and Inclusion

Danny Major, OpenDialog AI - London

Ketan Dattani, Buckingham Futures - Edgware, Middlesex

Sharon Peake,Shape Talent Ltd- London

Sustainability

Chris Fry. Accelar Limited – Fleet, Hampshire

Greta McDonald, Sweet Lounge Group Ltd - Northampton

Holly Kragiopoulos. North Star Coffee Roasters - Leeds

Ketan Dattani. Buckingham Futures – Edgware, Middlesex

Owen Thompson. Cambridge Future Tech Ltd – Cambridge

Richard Hagan, Crystal Doors – Manchester

Shameem Kazmi, Britvic PLC – Hemel Hempstead,

NED

Greg Lowson, Pertemps Network Group Limited - Birmingham

Mark Smith, Royal Life Saving Society UK - Worcester

Susan Robson, Women’s Engineering Society - Stevenage

Young & Start Up

Alfredo Saenger, Electrogenos - Oxford

Bethan Vincent, Open Velocity – York

Bryan Charter, Sustainable Systems Ltd / SuSy House – Bristol

Helen Shaw, VCTC Limited – Swadlincote, Derbyshire

Jason Ghous, PHRENeTECH LTD t/a FuneralExperts.com - Liverpool and London

Public and Third Sector

Anna Bokobza. Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) – Runwell, Wickford, Essex

Mark Heasman, Provide Community CIC - Colchester

Sonya Chowdhury, Action for M.E. - Bath

Susan Robson, Women’s Engineering Society – Stevenage

Tom Elliott, Medilink North of England Limited – Sheffield

Family Business

Damian Nunn, Pitkin & Ruddock Ltd - Bury St Edmunds

Gary Stewart, Lyfeguard Limited – London

Jonathan Guy, Aqueous Digital - Northwich

Lara Fox, Objective Computing Ltd – Chelmsford

Paul Miller, Cornish Accounting Solutions Ltd – Bodmin, Cornwall

Steve Miller, The Workplace Depot - Nottingham

Innovation

Alex Reip, Oxford nanoSystems Ltd - Oxford

Fatih Tekin, MISTIS Ltd – London/Essex

Greta McDonald, Sweet Lounge Group Ltd - Northampton

Michael Doolin, Clover HR – Worcester/Hereford

Mo Isap, IN4 Group – Manchester

Rachel Rowley, Encore Environment - Northampton

International

Chris Saul, Hitachi Europe - Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire

Matthew Jordan, NMS INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED - Market Harborough, Leicestershire

Steven Marcelino, Equatorise Advisory – London

Tom Elliott, Medilink North of England Limited - Sheffield

SME

Dean Bennett, China Fleet Country Club – Saltash, Cornwall

Emma Armstrong, Empro Business Group - Birmingham

Greta McDonald, Sweet Lounge Group Ltd - Northampton

James Groves , Indigo Swan - Norwich

Ketan Dattani, Buckingham Futures - Edgware, London

Luke Fay, Treework Environmental Practice - London

Mo Isap, IN4 Group- Salford

Owen Thompson, Cambridge Future Tech Ltd – Cambridge

Rachel Garrett , CMG Technologies – Woodbridge, Suffolk

Tom Elliott, Medilink North of England Limited – Sheffield

Chartered Director

Sarah Walker-Smith, AMPA Holdings LLP - Birmingham

Paul Dixon, Osler Diagnostics Ltd - Milton Keynes, Bucks

Sarah Clarke, The THINK Organisation Ltd – Manchester

Guy Shepherd, Software Alliance Ltd