Leader of the Year 2020

This award is designed to recognise and reward outstanding performance in middle or senior management in the UK bus industry.

Who can be nominated?

This Award is open to middle and senior managers who:

• Lead an organisation, department or major business unit in a professional capacity
• Operate their own business employing more than five people
• Work in a transport authority, government department or quasi non-governmental organisation with functional responsibility for more than five staff
• Have worked in their current capacity for a continuous period of not less than twelve months at the closing date of the competition.

… and by whom?

We welcome nominations from all eligible organisations, both of their own employees and of outstanding managers with whom they work in partnership or as stakeholders. Self-nomination is NOT appropriate for this category. In all cases, the consent of the person nominated must be obtained to their name being put forward, and confirmation of this will be required on the nomination form.

Criteria and Entry Requirements

The judges will reach their decision on a short-list of finalists on the quality of the submissions made by the nominating organisation. Short-listed entrants may be required to meet the judges (see below).

Nominating organisations must show that the nominees have shown excellence in management and leadership and that this has been recognised by them. It is important to show that the nominee performs well under pressure and in adverse conditions – remaining focused and able to produce good results.

We have made the entry submission for the Leader of the Year a ‘blank canvas’. With no set criteria but a few points of guidance, entrants have total flexibility within a 2,000 word limit in how they present their case for this award.

The nomination should set out:

• the context in which the individual is currently operating
• the challenges they have met and obstacles overcome in their job.

The nomination must demonstrate that the nominee has:

• a commitment to ethical behaviour, respecting diversity and delivery of organisational objectives
• an appetite for continuous learning
• a commitment to support staff and colleagues with help, advice and mentoring
• an ability to use their own initiative in order to get the job done
• a willingness to question and to use a critical eye
• a track record of innovation or adoption of new ideas
• an ability to identify and focus on the key issues in a problem or situation
• a forward-looking approach which enables the nominee to foresee future opportunities and problems even if these have not yet have become obvious
• a capacity to exercising judgment in decision-making – making the right decision and sticking to it.

Entries should address each of the above criteria to assist with the judging process, because non-transferable marks will be allocated for each of these criteria. Evidence, especially including statistical evidence of achievement, should be provided to support the nomination.

Short-listed entrants may, at the discretion of the judges, be required to make a ten minute presentation to the judges either:

• on the role of their organisation in the community and the wider transport market, or
• on a subject of their own choosing relevant to the transport industry

and to answer questions from the judging panel (also ten minutes) on the presentation and/or any part of the entry.

SENDING IMAGES

Please ensure that you send JPEG files. PDFs, pictures in Word files and in PowerPoint presentations are NOT acceptable.

For people categories, it is nice to see the person in a work environment – in a driving cab, by a vehicle or with colleagues, for example – but please ensure that the nominee is clearly recognisable. A head and shoulders shot is also useful. For other categories, please send pictures of your project or your company’s activities, and send one of the team involved.

These photographs may be used by us in a variety of ways, on the Bus Awards web site, in video presentations and in souvenir brochures and other printed material including the trade press.So that we can make the most effective use of the pictures you send us, please try to ensure that they are high-resolution JPG images (300 dpi) and at least 1200 x 1600 pixels in size. This implies a file size of at least several hundred KB – more is better. If you are using a mobile phone, please select the highest quality/most mega pixel/highest file size setting.