The 2020 Wales HR Awards finalists have been announced following a record number of entries.
Launched in 2017 by leading recruitment agency Acorn and commercial law firm Darwin Gray, the fourth annual Awards will see 350 top HR professionals and organisations gather on 27 March at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff for a glittering twenties themed ceremony.
New for 2020 is an additional category – ‘Inspiring Great Leadership’ – and an external judging panel of industry experts from Sony UK, University of South Wales, ACT Training and Calland Wright Consulting.
Hosted by the BBC’s Sian Lloyd, the Awards will recognise outstanding HR professionals and teams performing in HR, learning, and people management roles across a variety of industries in Wales in the last 12 months.
[accordions]
[accordion title=”HR Apprentice / Trainee / Assistant of the Year” load=”show”]Lauren Goody, Effective HRM
Laurie Greenaway, Principality
Lauren Brooks, Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd[/accordion]
[accordion title=”Best HR Initiative” load=”hide”]Gower College Swansea
Swansea Bay University Health Board
Shared Services Connected Ltd
Talis UK Ltd
Connect Assist[/accordion]
[accordion title=”Best HR Professional – Digital / IT” load=”hide”]Richard Carter, Shared Services Connected Limited
Vicki Richards, Kagool[/accordion]
[accordion title=”Inspiring Great Leadership” load=”hide”]Gower College Swansea
Talis UK Ltd[/accordion]
[accordion title=”HR Director of the year” load=”hide”]Gemma Davies, Effective HRM
Vicki Richards, Kagool
Rhiannon Williams, Target Group[/accordion]
[accordion title=”HR Consultancy of the Year” load=”hide”]Cobalt HR
Effective HRM
HR Dept[/accordion]
[accordion title=”Best HR Professional – Manufacturing / Engineering” load=”hide”]Eluned Evans, RPC-BPI
Peter Rees, Vale[/accordion]
[accordion title=”Best HR Professional – Public / Third Sector” load=”hide”]Nicola Leybourne, Wales Co-operative Centre
Kathryn Jaggard, Newport City Homes
Emma Turner, Shared Services Connected Ltd[/accordion]
[accordion title=”HR Team of the Year (Private sector)” load=”hide”]First Source Solutions
Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd
Welsh Rugby Union
SA Brain and Company Ltd
Principality
Burnspet[/accordion]
[accordion title=”HR Team of the Year (Public sector)” load=”hide”]Gower College Swansea
Hafod[/accordion]
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Acorn’s Director of Permanent Recruitment, Pavan Arora said: “We are absolutely delighted as founders to see these awards continuing to go from strength to strength, with yet another new category and input from external judges.
“We are truly grateful to all those who continue to support us in recognising the best HR talent in Wales and have, as ever, been delighted with the volume and quality of entries received.”
Darwin Gray’s Head of Employment Law and HR, Fflur Jones added: “The continued success of the Wales HR Awards is testament to the amount of talent and quality of work in HR across Wales. It is for this reason that we are delighted each year to recognise those who work hard to improve and inspire their workforce.
“I am looking forward to turning back the clocks to the 1920s to celebrate with all of the finalists in March”.
Winners at the Wales HR Awards 2020 will follow in the footsteps of previous recipients including Bluestone, Companies House, Monmouthshire Building Society, Bangor University and more at the ceremony on 27 March, where the judge’s ‘HR Star’ of choice will also be revealed.
The first ever recipient of the ‘Inspiring Great Leadership’ Award, sponsored by the Institute of Leadership and Management, will also be announced as an organisation dedicated to improving its workforce and environment, and as a business with leadership at its heart and an employee engagement strategy which inspires and engages.
