Who can be entered?
This Award is open to individual women only. Please note Winners of any category are excluded from nominations for any Women in Defence UK Awards for 2 years.
What will the judges be looking for?
The judges will be looking for examples of where an individual has shown true determination to overcome real adversity. This could include continued difficulty related to business, environment or culture, or experienced in their personal life.
Finalists from earlier years
Last year’s Finalists were from Civil Service, Civil Service and Leonardo. The Winner was recognised for her unwavering commitment and strength leading two of the largest outloads of ammunition the UK has delivered in over a decade whilst facing serious illness. The other Finalists were nominated for: her personal fortitude, professionalism and dedication to her colleagues, her delivery of the Osprey Surveillance Radar software, all whilst facing serious illness; exceptional resilience and professional achievements whilst living with Stage 4 Ovarian Cancer, she is joint champion of the Defence Cancer Support Network and a driving force behind its vision to ensure equitable support for those undergoing treatment.
Please note
The citation must reflect a true and accurate account of the attributes, achievements and impact of the actions of the individual. Women in Defence UK requires all nominators to verify that the citations are factually correct.
AI can be used to create all or part of the citation. If used, it is the nominator’s personal responsibility to ensure that all company or organisational security, privacy and information management protocols have been followed. We ask for transparency if any AI tool has been used – you will see a question as part of the nomination procedure.
You should only include information that is up to the classification of ‘Official’. Information that is ‘Official Sensitive’ or higher must not be included.
A nomination using essentially the same narrative or evidence should not be entered in more than one Award by a single nominator. A nominee may be entered more than once in one or more categories by different nominators, providing the narrative in the citation does not duplicate, or near word for word resemble, the citations of other nominators.
Entries will not be accepted from the partner, spouse or other close family member of a nominee.
There is a word limit of 200 words per section. Even if the form allows you to enter more, the citation sent for judging will be shortened if it exceeds this limit, which could mean that it ends mid-sentence.
If you experience any difficulties using the form, require the information in an alternative format, or need support completing your application, please contact us at awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk A member of the team will be happy to assist you.
Hints and tips
The judges refer to these category criteria when judging submissions. They look to see how the activity/behaviour/impact meets the criteria for each category. So put yourself in the judges’ shoes. They read lots of citations so capture their attention early, be concise and provide context. It may be obvious to you why an achievement is so worthy of recognition, but our judges may not have the same background or experience so please explain the significance.
Providing context to the citation (i.e. sphere of work, day to day tasks, key challenges, etc.), and tangible evidence of the outcome or effect that this had on others will strengthen the nomination hugely. Our judges may not be familiar with all parts of the defence enterprise so avoid, or at the very least explain, acronyms.