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How to enter and rules of entry

Rules of entry

All entrants must abide by these rules of entry. Any breaches of these rules of entry will result in appropriate action being taken which will be considered and recommended by the Awards Steering Group and decided by APM.

  • The same project or programme (and its material) may be submitted as the basis for one entry in each tier of categories AND into the hosted category.
  • The Outstanding Achievement Award is a nomination only category.
  • APM reserves the right to accept or reject entries, and/or not make an award, as circumstances dictate.
  • The judging panel will consist of volunteers who are experienced experts in their field. They will remain anonymous throughout the judging process. The judges’ decision is final. Correspondence concerning their decision will not be entered into.
  • Entrants must refrain from contacting the judges or Award Steering Group members in any way during the judging process. Doing so may result in disqualification from the Awards.
  • All submissions are made at the expense of the entrants. The Awards are free to enter, however, costs to attend the Awards ceremony will apply.
  • All finalists must submit visual material by the deadline provided for use at the Awards ceremony and other promotional activities. Failing to do so may result in exclusion from the related activity.
  • Your entry must be your own work and an accurate representation of the work that you/organisation have undertaken. If an entry is found to be misrepresented, untruthful, or unethical, APM may take action against you.
  • AI may not be used to write or represent your entry. APM reserves the right to use tools to check entries to ensure they aren’t AI generated. If an entry is found to be AI generated APM may take action against you.
  • By submitting an entry, entrants grant APM permission to utilise the entry name, entrant/nominee name, organisation, entry summary, supporting evidence (such as images and video), in promotions and other activities relating to the APM Project Management Awards within the public domain. If an entrant does not wish to give automatic permission for material to be reproduced, without prior discussion, the entrant must advise APM at the time of entry. The content of all submissions remains, at all times, the copyright of the entrant.
  • APM reserves the right to cancel stage two judging for any categories where there are a lower-than-expected number of entrants (excluding Tier 5 categories). If stage two is cancelled this will be communicated to entrants at the time finalists are announced.
  • APM reserves the right to change the dates of stage two judging where necessary.
  • APM members, board members, committee members, members of other APM groups, staff and judges are subject to APM’s Conflict of Interest Policy, Board Member Code of Conduct and the APM Code of Professional Conduct. Any breaches will be addressed through the existing mechanisms, including the APM Professional Conduct Procedural Rules.

Eligibility to enter

  • The entrant/nominee/organisation (as applicable) must have demonstrable involvement in the project to enter.
  • All work submitted must have been done by the entrant/nominee/organisation (as applicable) and with permission from the project sponsor or manager.
  • Applicants must decide on the category or categories they wish to enter and APM may not advise on this decision.
  • If an entry doesn’t meet the criteria of the chosen category this may result in a reduced score, or rejection of the entry submitted.
  • Any project/programme described in an entry must either be completed or have reached the end of a major phase, no more than 12 months before the entry deadline (17 June 2024). (This does not apply to the Outstanding Achievement Award – projects from the span of the nominee’s career may be included)
  • All work submitted must be the work of the entrant/nominee as an individual or organisation, as applicable, and must not be misrepresented.
  • Entries submitted after the entry closing deadline (17 June 2024 midnight BST) may be rejected or subject to mark deduction and may not be taken forward for judging.
  • Entries are open to organisations and project professionals of all sectors from across the globe.
  • Although entries are welcome from all countries, they will only be accepted when submitted in the English language.
  • Entries are welcome from members and non-members of APM.
  • Entries must not exceed the stated word count for that category. Please refer to the category descriptions for the stipulations around each individual category.
  • Entrants to the Emerging Project Professional of the Year award must be aged 29 years or under at the entry closing date, or who have less than three years’ experience in their project management career.
  • Entrants to the Project Professional of the Year award can be of any age, but must have more than three years’ experience in their project management career.
  • Entrants for the Chartered Professional of the Year award must be an active Chartered Project Professional at the time of entries opening.
  • No entry will be accepted without these declarations being agreed. 

Awards categories

The same project or programme (and its material) may be submitted as the basis for one entry in each tier of categories AND into the hosted category. The tiers and categories available to enter this year are as follows:

Tier 1: Project Organisations (1,500-2,500 words)

Tier 2: Projects and Programmes (1,500-2,500 words - two-stage judging)  

Tier 3: Sustainability (1,500-2,500 words - one-stage judging)

Tier 4: PMOs (1,500-2,500 words - one-stage judging)  

Tier 5: Individuals (1,000 words - two-stage judging) 

Hosted category (1,500-2,500 words - one-stage judging) Hosted by Shell 

Outstanding Achievement Award – Nominations only (1,000 words – one-stage judging)

Non-entry categories

All entries will automatically be in the running to win this year’s Innovation in Project Management Award. Entries entered into the Engineering, Construction and Infrastructure/ Social/Transformation/ and Technology Project of the Year categories will also automatically be in the running to win the Overall Project of the Year Award. Judges will nominate all entries that meet the criteria for these awards and our independent Awards Steering Group will then determine the winner.

One-stage judging category

Only written entry is judged and winner determined.

Two-stage judging category

Written stage entry is judged and finalists are agreed. Finalists will then be invited to present virtually at the second stage judging round (scoring will start from zero again).

Entries will only be accepted if they meet the requirements detailed in the category descriptions.

How to enter

Entries for the APM Project Management Awards 2024 are now open.

When submitting an entry please note the following:

  1. You may save and edit your entry before submitting, but no edits can be made once the entry has been submitted. After the entry deadline, unsubmitted entries will not be accepted.
  2. Please make sure all your entry details are entered accurately, including the correct name of the project/individual/company name. This information will be used in the public domain, on our website, trophies (should you be a winner) and at the Awards ceremony (if you are selected as a finalist).
  3. Please check your contact details are correct and kept up to date so we may contact you about your entry if required.
  4. Entries will close at midnight (BST) on Monday 17 June 2024. This date is final and there will be no extensions provided. The Awards system will automatically prevent entry submission after the deadline.
  5. If you become a finalist for a two-stage judging category, you will be required to present to the judges during the second stage of the judging process. Presentations will take place from Monday 2 to Friday 6 September 2024, (specific dates for each category can be found on the category criteria) please be sure that the relevant person(s) to represent your entry will be available to present virtually on the date selected for the relevant category. Further information about individual category presentations will be given to finalists following the announcement of finalists. 
  6. Hint/tip: Entries are marked by judges using the category criteria. It is in entrants’ interests to write their entry addressing the category criteria.