Annual Report 2019: Our awards

Delivering client value

It was another successful year at the Management Consultancies Association awards, where we won three awards with an additional two highly commended entries in recognition for our outstanding client work. We won the Change and Transformation in the Private Sector award for our work with Ofgem to enhance processes for validating meter reads, smart metering, and upgrading its capacity to process real-time data. The work achieved the best possible consumer outcome and provided a foundation for future industry changes. On the same night, the Times Consultant of the Year, as well as the Outstanding Achievement award, went to Anjum Hakim for her work on supporting a large local authority with a housing emergency, and a programme to enable a defence and security client to maintain pace with digital change. 

In conjunction with Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS), we received the Excellence in Employee Engagement Award at the ABP Workplace Experience Awards for our work to increase employee engagement and to create a new Employee Value Proposition (EVP).

Our Corporate Finance team was awarded the United Kingdom M&A Financial Adviser of the Year at the Mergermarket Europe M&A Awards.

Partner Liz Henson was named Private Client Accountant of the Year at the Spears Wealth Management Awards, and director Marco Boldini received the Regulatory and Competition Individual of the Year at the Legal 500 Awards.

Lesley Graham, our government and health industry tax leader, received the British Universities Finance Directors Group’s Nigel Clothier Award, for her work with universities to provide a solution and a pricing package to help universities deliver Making Tax Digital for VAT.

Empowering our people

For the ninth year running we have been included in The Times Top 50 Employers for Women for our approach to workplace gender equality. And we were the only Big 4 firm to be listed in this year’s Glassdoor 50 Best Places to Work in the UK survey.

We also had a number of successes at the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards where we won the Diversity and Inclusion Award, that recognises our commitment to promoting and celebrating diversity and inclusion, along with actively developing opportunities for professional advancement and identifying and removing the accountancy profession’s barriers to entry.

We were recognised as the Best Employer of the Year at the Women in Finance Awards, and Shazia Azim was awarded the Insurance leader of the year. These awards recognise the high-achievers, advocates, and role models for women in the finance sector.  

At the All School Leavers Awards in May, we were recognised as a firm committed to supporting the school leaver market, receiving the Best School Engagement Programme Award, as well as Top Employer in Accounting and Professional Services and Top Employer (Large School Leaver Intake).

It was another successful year for candidates from the firm who sat the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) Order of Merit examinations this year. There were four prize winners from the December 2018 sitting, along with three of our people making it to the top eleven in the Professional Level Annual International Order of Merit. And a further two first place and prize winners in the March 2019 Professional Level Order of Merit. 

Leading by example

This year, partner Charles Bowman was recognised on the Queen’s birthday honours list, receiving a knighthood in recognition of his services to Trust in Business, International Trade and the City of London.

In June, our Chairman Kevin Ellis was recognised as a Top 10 ethnic minority advocate by EMPower, recognising his dedication to creating a more diverse and inclusive work environment for ethnic minorities. Alongside Kevin, partner Alberta Charles and director Tunji Akintokun secured places in the 100 Ethnic Minority Executives, and senior associate Mary Agbesanwa and senior manager Dara Kirton were included in 50 Ethnic Minority Future Leaders list. 

Along with winning the Diversity and Inclusion Award at the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards, a number of our people were individually recognised for their contributions, expertise and commitment to the firm and the Yorkshire community:

• Karen Finlayson, Partner of the Year;

• Alison Cooper, Support Staff of the Year; and

• Will Richardson, Managing Partner of the Year.

Jim Bichard was also recognised at the FDM Everywoman in Technology Awards being awarded the Male Agent of Change Award. He introduced key diversity initiatives to empower colleagues, including the “Back to Business” programme for returning mothers and the Women in Technology initiative. He also leads mentoring programmes aimed at helping high-potential female talent progress into senior roles.

Our purpose

This year, we have received a number of awards that recognise our commitment to our purpose to build trust in society and solving important problems. We won Community Programme of the Year at the UK Social Mobility Awards in recognition of the initiatives that we have delivered in schools, as well as being highly commended in both the Leadership of the Year and Organisation of the Year categories.

Our Education Strategy team was awarded Best Consultant of the Year to the Private Sector at the Education Investor Awards for making an outstanding contribution to education.

At the annual Turnaround, Insolvency and Restructuring Awards, our multidisciplinary Carillion team were named Insolvency Team of the Year, while our Business Recovery team was recognised for their work with Conviviality. Both of these projects led to a significant number of jobs being saved, delivering a positive impact to society.

Our work supporting young people saw us as one of three winners of the Regional Large Employer of the Year at the Careers and Enterprise Company Annual Awards. 

Technology enabled

The TechWomen100 Awards, hosted by We Are The City, recognises and celebrates the achievements of women in tech. This year, five of our people achieved places in the winners list: 

• Elizabeth Ajayi, manager or Technical Lead in Intelligent Automation (AI & RPA);

• Farah Al-Sader, a manager in Financial Decisions & Analysis;

• Hong Lan-Doan, a senior manager in Data Assurance;

• Robyn Howard, a senior manager in Technology and Investments; and

• Tayyaba Arif, a director in Assurance.

At the HSJ Partnership Awards we received the award for the Best Clinical Service and Treatment Pathway Transformation Project for our work with North Bristol Trust to digitally enabling patient flow. We introduced a behavioural change methodology to reduce outliers, bed occupancy and rising demand. This work resulted in improved results across the whole trust, and had a real impact on the lives of patients.