Leasing World Going Further Gold Awards 2026
Nominations FAQs
In the interests of an open race we deliberately keep the criteria as much qualitative as quantitative. In pretty much all of the categories, the judges look for “the difference” over the year, some might think of it as the improvement, the winning combination of business growth, dynamism, clever ideas, and good management that has earned the respect of the winner’s peers.
Of course, there is a need for figures, increases in volumes, profitability, headcount, system capabilities, investment in training, and public profile. We recommend a written submission of at least three sections. For example, the minimum three-section entry should be clearly organised into:
Section One:
• The Executive Summary: Why the contender is entering this specific category, who and what they are, what they have achieved especially in the past twelve months, and what are their most persuasive arguments for why they should be declared the winner of the category.
• The Contender’s background story: their journey, and the business as it currently operates.
Section Two:
• The Numbers
• The Systems and Operations “engine”
• The Organisation chart (outline) and the People aspects (training etc)
Section Three:
• Example case study/studies, other awards or notable achievements, and the Management’s vision of the future
Further information may be added, with more case studies, web developments, and similar. Please do send a separate file/ document for each category you apply for. PDFs are safer than Word docs etc, because they can’t be accidentally damaged or altered.
Many of our guests will have their eyes on more than one award, and this year the multiple nominations limit has been extended FOUR categories maximum per nominee, so choose your categories with care. Please note that nominations for the Next Generation Award do not count towards these limits.
Each category is judged by two or three judges, depending on the number of entries for the category, with judges nominating their first and second choices in categories they are reviewing . To avoid any undue bias, the judges do not meet to discuss the entries, but submit their verdicts without knowing how the other judges have awarded their votes.
In many categories, this process produces a clear winner, although it may require the second choice votes to be taken into account. If there is no clear winner, then the Chairman of Judges has a casting vote, which must be in favour of an entry that has already been nominated as a first choice by at least one of the other judges.
What are the judges looking for when they assess the entries for a particular category? It’s no different to the judging process on “Strictly” or “X-Factor” where it’s the overall impression that really counts, and other than a neck-and-neck situation, there is very rarely one single factor that makes the difference.
The common theme for the Leasing World judges, irrespective of the category being judged, is “ What makes this entry stand out from the others?”
Here is one judge's personal advice on what helps to achieve a winning nomination:
1. Read the details of each category in Leasing World’s invitation to enter, as some categories have very specific criteria that should be addressed in your entry.
2. Don’t submit the same entry for multiple categories without tailoring it to meet the specific requirements set for each category.
3. It is essential to include headline numbers in your entry to give the judges a good feel of what your business has achieved.
4. Relevant “mini case studies” are a common feature of many winning entries.
5. Good presentation does make a difference, but cannot hide a weak entry that lacks detail.