Best Purchasing Initiative
by an SME
This category is open to all
SMEs, which are defined by
the European Commission
as a firm with 50 to 250
employees, annual turnover
of £7 million to £40 million,
total assets less than £27
million, and not more than
25 per cent owned by a large
corporation. Entries may cover
any aspect of procurement
or supply chain management
activity and should showcase
entrepreneurial spirit and
innovation. Judges will apply
the same criteria as for other
categories, while taking into
account the resources available
to smaller organisations.

Best Public Procurement
Project
This category is open to all
public-sector bodies covered
by the European Union
procurement directives (or
similar regulations). However
projects do not need to have
exceeded the thresholds
at which tenders must be
advertised to qualify for entry.

Most Improved Purchasing
Operation – Start Up
Judges will be looking for
evidence of success from a
procurement and supply
chain management function
that was established after
January 2009. This should be
an entirely new department,
where no professional
purchasing has previously
existed. The entry should
demonstrate how the new
function has benefitted the
organisation as a whole
through effective management
and innovation thereby raising
the profile of the profession.

CIPS Young Procurement
and Supply Chain
Management Professional
of the Year
Also chosen by the chair
of judges, this award is
presented each year to the
profession’s ‘one to watch’.
Open to all CIPS members
aged 30 or under, regardless
of membership grade, except
affiliates. The judges will look
for evidence of achievement
that is significant and beyond
what is normally expected
from managers of this age and
experience. The entry should
demonstrate how the entrant
has proved themselves to be
innovative and adaptable. The
impact upon the organisation
is more likely to be at an
operational or functional
rather than strategic level.