WeDO Scotland have launched their 10th annual search to find Scotland’s top entrepreneurial talent, to be announced on the 5th of November at their annual Awards Ceremony & Dinner in Edinburgh. The prestigious WeDO Scotland Awards are highly respected and recognised as a key Scottish event celebrating business scale up, success and entrepreneurship.
This year, 3 new Award categories have been announced, all of which are open to both WeDO members and non-members from every business sector throughout Scotland.
The new Awards include Eco Entrepreneur of the Year, Employee Owned Business of the Year, and Best Use of Technology. These add to the 7 existing categories awarded in previous years including Young Entrepreneur, High Growth Company, International Entrepreneur, Scottish Product of the Year and Entrepreneur of the Year.
Commenting on the 10th Anniversary WeDO Awards, Belinda Roberts, CEO & founder, said:
“At no time has it been more welcome and deserving to celebrate the success of Scottish entrepreneurs and businesses. Scottish SMEs have risen to the previously unimaginable challenges faced in light of the pandemic with inspiring determination, and their efforts will make a tangible difference to the recovery of the Scottish economy. For a small nation, we certainly pack a substantial punch in terms of talent.
It’s important to all of us at WeDO that the Awards remain topical and reflect changes in both the Scottish and global economies, as well as those who are blazing a trail.Our new Eco Award will recognise an entrepreneur who is making a substantial contribution to environmental sustainability. With the ongoing devastating effects of global climate change, sustainability is essential to protect the environmental, social and cultural aspects of our planet for both current and future generations. It’s no longer something that we should be doing, it’s something we must do; we want to applaud the Scot who is leading the way and making a substantial difference.”
She added:
“There are now more than 100 employee owned companies in Scotland with the Scottish Government targeting 500 by 2030. We want to recognise the substantial contribution these businesses make with this new Award. It’s imperative to recognise the growing trend for this increasingly popular business exit, which gives employees the opportunity to drive business success and secure their futures.”
With a strong emphasis on female entrepreneurship, the Judging Panels this year are an even split of women and men, predominantly drawn from WeDO’s Executive Team. Newly appointed judges include Carole Leslie of Ownership Associates, a leading expert in the employee ownership sector, and Andy Tait, MD of the leading cemetery and ceremonial service provider in the UK, Greenacres Group, who scooped the WeDO Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2019.
Commenting on the Employee Owned Business of the Year Award, Carole Leslie said:
“The inclusion of an employee ownership category is a tremendous addition to these high profile business awards. Scotland has been leading the way in increasing the number of successful, entrepreneurial businesses owned by their employees and this award will recognise the very best of them.”
Applications and nominations for the Awards are open until 14th September here.
