Young Project Professional of the Year Award

Young Project Professional of the Year Award

The winner of this category has now been announced. Congratulations to all our finalists in this category.

Recognising talent in all sectors in those aged 29 years or under who are progressing through the early stages of their project management career.

In our young project professional of the year category the judges are looking for project practitioners who are demonstrating excellence in the delivery of their project(s) and/or programme(s), showing thoughtful engagement with the companies and clients they work with, and contributing to the profession more widely. 

This award is open to project, programme or portfolio managers and practitioners aged 29 years or under at the entry closing date (12 June 2023). We require entrants to this category to produce a submission of up to 1,000 words (in English) based on the judging criteria through delivery of a project where their involvement has been greater than six months. Entrants may also submit up to four supporting images or graphics only (no text apart from captions). Video and audio is not accepted as part of the submission.

This category consists of two stages, the first stage being the written submission mentioned above and the second stage requires all finalists to present virtually to a panel of judges.

In this category we also encourage nominations (with the individual’s approval) from employers or colleagues. Project professionals from all sectors, and from across the globe, may apply.

Kathryn is the Programme Manager for Radar Production at LeonardoUK, responsible for delivering E-SCAN radars for Eurofighter Typhoon. Her programme consists of several projects to deliver E-SCAN radars to numerous countries. The key project deliverable in 2022 was the production and delivery of radars for Qatar.

The Qatar Radar Production deliveries Kathryn led had direct and important impact on the Qatar operations, delivering world leading radar technology and capability and utilised in the World Cup air policing. The political and reputational importance of Kathryn’s project was also significant for UK and European industry.

The Network Rail Research and Development team are happy to nominate Sophie Davies as the Young Project Professional of the year. An exceptional project manager, Sophie has had to utilise various techniques such as agile methodologies, knowledge of business change and software development to effectively deliver her projects within the Civils & Sustainability Programme.

She has managed effectively in challenging project environments and her diligent and conscientious approach to work has been demonstrated by her excellent control over the projects that she manages. Sophie always goes the extra mile to deliver excellence, informed by her commitment to diversity, inclusion and wellbeing.

I have been the lead Project Manager responsible for overseeing the design of a £10m 20-bed modular ward extension at Peterborough City Hospital (PCH) for North West Anglia Trust. The project forms part of NHS England’s rapid bed capacity programme and is intended to provide urgent extra bed capacity onsite to ease existing system pressures.

At the start of the project, I established communication channels and reporting methods with the interim Project Director, ensuring clear lines of communication for essential aspects such as time, cost, quality. Key deliverables were identified, including regular reporting to the Project Director and Project Board.

Charlotte has successfully led the first ever active deployment of a quadruped robot in a radiological area. SPOT (the Boston Dynamics quadruped robot) has been successfully deployed in a hazardous environment on the Sellafield site to aid with clean-up, improving safety and efficiency for both operators and the wider work force as well as accelerating high hazard reduction.

SPOT was deployed in December 2022, meaning the whole project (i.e., from scope definition to deployment) was completed within 7 months (demonstrating Progress at Pace).

Images are for illustration purposes only.

I served as the Project Manager, delivering a construction contract worth £2.45m. Responsibilities included managing the contract, maintaining relationships with stakeholders, and ensuring outstanding project outcomes. The programme addressed 20 failing flood risk management assets, safeguarding over 155 households in Kent & South London. The implemented flood defences, designed to account for future sea level rise, are projected to prevent approximately £35m worth of flood damage over 50 years.

By employing innovative approaches, stakeholder engagement, and team leadership, I contributed to delivering the benefits ahead of schedule and under budget, establishing a foundation for long-term success in flood defence development.

Images are for illustration purposes only.