The National Business Awards for Scotland 2008
In July this year I was asked to be
a judge in the National Business Awards for Scotland, the category was
The VisitScotland Tourism Business of the Year award. All the finalists
gave a presentation and we had a copy of their financial figures and statistics.
My fellow Judges were Dr Donald
Macleod, Crichton Tourism Research Centre,
Glasgow University, Ben Carter from VisitScotland, Brian Jukes Chairman Edinburgh C.I.M.,
august company indeed.
The finalists were The
National Trust for Scotland: the Culloden Centre. Heritage Portfolio a premiere Hospitality company
based in Edinburgh, Nae Limits a specialist
adventure sports company based in Pitlochry .The Real Mary King's Close,located
in Edinburgh. The Scottish Sea Bird Centre in North Berwick ,East
Lothian.
So Edinburgh and the east of Scotland did particularly well in the finalists shortlist.
The Judges were unanimous in
their choice of the winner:The Scottish Sea Bird Centre which was a very
worthy
winner. Had we had to choose a second or a third position it would have
been a very different and
difficult task as they were all very close in marks and position, and
they were
all of an equally high standard, which bodes well for the future of the tourist
business in Scotland. We are all very worried about business in
Scotland at this moment in time, but these Awards and their recipients
showed that there is a strong light at the end of the tunnel, and this
was a
comfort and a pleasure to behold.
John
Ritchie Editor
N.B.Below are the Press release
and the Final results of the Awards which were held last Thurday the 11th of September in the Hilton Hotel in Glasgow
PRESS RELEASE DATE:
11TH SEPTEMBER 08
- WINNERS ANNOUNCED -
THE NATIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS
FOR SCOTLAND 2008
James Watt and Martin Dickie - BrewDog, Lloyds TSB Scotland, beCogent and Kwik-Fit Insurance
Services are among the companies
whose successful feats of business and commerce were celebrated at the 2008 National
Business Awards for Scotland, sponsored by Orange. More than 500
business leaders, press and other VIPs attended the glittering gala ceremony and
dinner tonight (Thursday 11th September) at the Hilton Glasgow Hotel
hosted by BBC's David Robertson.
The 2008
campaign has been the strongest fought to date and its total entry in
Scotland has a combined turnover in excess of £65bn, employing over
200,000 people, generating over 36k profit per employee.
The National Business Awards for Scotland recognises and rewards excellence, innovation and success.
Uniquely open to organisations of all sizes and from any industry sector -
public or private - the best of Scottish businesses are able to showcase their achievements and benchmark their successes
against firms and bodies of all types.
Philip Forrest, Chairman of Judges The National Business Awards for Scotland said:
"The 2008 entry defied the reported atmosphere of doom and
gloom about the economy and produced another outstandingly high quality
entry. Every category, without exception, contained organisations of such
quality that the competition for finalists places could have been fulfilled
twice over.
"The outlook of
almost all of the finalists also remained healthy although an element of
caution has been built into their forward planning, however as far as 2008
is concerned it is another very competitive year with another difficult period
ahead for the judges in deciding which of the outstanding organisations to
select as the final winner. Whether winner, finalist or entrant there is, from
this year's entry, still a great deal of evidence that there is plenty of
vigour and appetite for success in UK plc."
The
Orange Best Use of Technology in Business Award went to Bright Grey, the
specialist protection arm of Royal London,
the UK's
largest mutual insurer. Bright Grey was launched in March 2003 with the aim to
tailor and deliver best practice and product services for protection insurance
in addition to offer a flexible menu of life and critical illness insurance
through intermediaries. Bright Grey fared particularly well this year by also
winning the The Atos Origin Business Innovation of the Year Award, duly awarded
for its proven ability to create and develop innovations that has substantially
improved the firm's commercial performance.
The
prestigious Logica Leadership Award went to Martin Oliver, Managing Director, Kwik-Fit
Insurance Services. Since taking up the role of Managing Director, Martin
Oliver has trebled turnover and profits and driven customer numbers to over
half a million at Kwik-Fit Insurance Services. Oliver has pushed for a focus on
online sales and as a result Kwik-Fit Insurance now features on the top of all
major price comparison sites and has been recognised as the cheapest online
insurer for motor in the UK for two
years running. Kwik-Fit Insurance has also mastered the art of keeping its staff happy
and was duly rewarded with the title of ‘Employer of the Year' at the National Business Awards for Scotland in
2007.
James Watt and Martin Dickie, founders of Scottish microbrewery, Brewdog
Ltd, won The Tenon Entrepreneur of the Year Award, by best
demonstrating exceptional vision and
leadership. The duo first set
up Brewdog Ltd in Fraserburgh in February 2007 combining Martin's enthusiasm
for beer and a first class honours degree in brewing, with James' expertise in
sales and marketing. Brewdog Ltd quickly established a reputation for producing
a range of alternative ales including The Physics, Hop Rocker, Rip Tide,
Paradox and Punk IPA brands.
Lloyds
TSB Scotland, subsidiary of Lloyds TSB Group plc, triumphed with double victory winning both The
Corporate Social Responsibility Award and The Denholm Customer Focus Award.
Operating as a separately registered Bank, LTSBS is one of four clearing Banks
in the highly competitive Scottish market, the only one whose market focus is
primarily Scotland. Over 5 years, the Bank has doubled in size,
increased market share across key business lines and delivered impressive CSR
strategies whilst keeping customer focus at the heart of its business.
Impressing the judges with its exceptional
financial returns, strong growth and innovation strategies, Airdrie-based
beCogent, the leading UK
provider of outsourced contact centre services, followed suit by winning both The
Hymans Robertson Business of the Year Award and the The Weber Shandwick
Employer of the Year Award.
Other successful companies based in Edinburgh were: Petroleum Experts winning The Danwood Growth
Strategy of the Year Award and Maximillion taking home The Hilton Environmental
Awareness Award.
Glasgow's First Scotrail took the The Marketing Strategy of the
Year Award, Denvir, based in Stirling, was honoured with the The Small to Medium Sized Business
of the Year Award and East Lothian Scottish Seabird Centre won The
VisitScotland Tourism Business of the Year Award.
Mark Smith, Head of
Business Sales, Orange Business Services said:
"Congratulations to all 2008 National
Business Award for Scotland winners. In the current economic climate it
is fantastic to see so many shining examples of business success. It is not an
easy task to win a National Business Award, and each of this year's winners
have proven that they are an outstanding organisation. We are proud and
delighted to be associated with the cream of Scottish enterprise"
To obtain further
information and see the full list of finalists please visit www.businessawardsforscotland.com.
THE NATIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS FOR SCOTLAND - 2008
THE WINNERS AND FINALISTS
The Orange Best Use of Technology in Business Award
Winner: Bright Grey - Edinburgh
Finalists:
Forestry Commission, Prospect, Standard Life and Sykes Global Services
The Atos Origin Business Innovation of the Year Award
Winner: Bright
Grey - Edinburgh
Finalists: Sykes Global Services,
Independent Women, Keela International and 442 Design
The Corporate Responsibility Award
Winner: Lloyds TSB Scotland - Edinburgh
Finalists: Radisson
SAS, Hotel Edinburgh, ScottishPower, Drivers Jonas, Aberdeen Airport
The Small to Medium Sized Business of
the Year Award
Winner: Denvir - Stirling
Finalists: Mackie's of Scotland,
Independent Women, Churchill Drilling Tools, SgurrEnergy
The Denholm Customer Focus Award
Winner: Lloyds TSB Scotland - Edinburgh
Finalists: Bright Grey, Capita
Business Services - BBC Information, Kwik-Fit Insurance, Dell Corporation
The Danwood Growth Strategy of the Year Award
Winner: Petroleum Experts - Edinburgh
Finalists: Kwik-Fit Insurance,
Recruitment Zone, Exakt Precision Tools
Fleet Alliance
The Tenon Entrepreneur of the Year Award
Winner: James Watt and Martin
Dickie; BrewDog - Fraserburgh
Finalists: Andrew Churchill,
Churchill Drilling Tools, Lesley Collins, Independent Women, Jamie Rae, Redeem,
Anthony Banks, Balhousie Care Group
The Hilton Environmental Awareness Award
Winner: Maximillion - Edinburgh
Finalists: Accountant in Bankruptcy,
Robert Wiseman Dairies, ScottishPower,
Macphie of Glenbervie
The Hymans Robertson Business of the Year Award
Winner: beCogent - Airdrie
Finalists: MediaCom Scotland,
Mactaggart & Mickel, Harper Macleod LLP,
Petroleum Experts
The Logica Leadership Award
Winner: Martin Oliver, Managing Director of Kwik-Fit Financial Services - Uddingston
Finalists:
Mel
Young; President, Homeless World Cup, Anne Moises; Director of IT, Scottish Executive, Alex
Linkston; CBE, Chief Executive, West Lothian Council,
Mary Dickson; Managing Director, First Group Rail, Timothy
O'Shea; Principal and Vice Chancellor, University of Edinburgh, Stephen
Brannan; Director for Abn Amro Integration and Seperation, Royal Bank of
Scotland, Martin Oliver;
Managing Director, Kwik-Fit Financial Services; George Yule, CEO, Dominion Gas
and
Raymond Jack, Operations Director,
ScottishPower Retail
The Marketing Strategy of the Year Award
Winner: First Scotrail - Glasgow
Finalists: National Galleries of Scotland,
Companies House, Hometech Integration, Horsecross - Perth Concert Hall and
Perth Theatre
The VisitScotland Tourism Business of the Year Award
Winner: Scottish Seabird Centre - East Lothian
Finalists: The National Trust for Scotland,
Heritage Portfolio, Nae Limits and
The Real Mary King's Close
The Weber Shandwick Employer of the
Year Award
Winner: beCogent - Airdrie
Finalists: Bigmouthmedia, ARAMARK
Offshore, Drivers Jonas and Harper Macleod LLP