And the winners are ...

Financial Director magazine has always been renowned for its high editorial standards, but this year the magazine has cemented its position as the foremost magazine for UK finance directors by picking up two high-profile industry awards.

Editor Andrew Sawers was named business writer of the year at the magazine industry Oscars, the PPA Awards for Editorial and Publishing Excellence, in a glitzy bash held at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel in May.

The judges were impressed by Sawers’ professionalism and editorial excellence and felt he made an outstanding contribution to the needs of UK finance directors.

Sawers, who has been editor of Financial Director since 1997, was previously a writer on Business Age and Accountancy Age. Earlier in his career he worked as a stockbroker with Phillips & Drew, now UBS Warburg.

The magazine’s second accolade is the Institute of Internal Auditors’ writer of the year 2002, picked up by Financial Director accountancy columnist Peter Williams.

Williams’ winning article “Governance takes courage, too,” published in the May 2001 issue, explored the efforts of accountancy institutes to encourage company directors to blow the whistle on fraud. The judges described Williams’ article as presenting “a fine, pithy argument about current issues affecting non-executive directors”.

The IIA awards also saw Michelle Perry of Financial Director sister title Accountancy Age commended for her article on the management issues raised by corporate fraud.

The awards take the total of media competition awards and shortlistings for Financial Director to 15 since Sawers joined in 1997. Winning articles are at www.financialdirector.co.uk

ARE YOU FD OF THE YEAR?
For your own chance of winning an award in front of your peers, enter the Accountancy Age Awards for Excellence 2002, to be held at the National History Museum, Kensington.

Awards include the coveted Financial Director of the Year award sponsored by FSS Financial. Previous shortlisted entrants and winners include Peter Anderson of Canary Wharf, Gaynor Coley of The Eden Project, Graham Howe of Orange, Phil Pacey of GNER, and, last year’s winner, John Smith of the BBC.

The award is open to private and public sector FDs, as well as subsidiary business unit FDs. Don’t forget that other Accountancy Age Awards include Finance Team of the Year and Annual Report and Accounts. There is a cash prize of £500 for each award, which, if you wish, can be donated to the charity of your choice. For full details of how to enter visit www.financialdirector.co.uk/awards

Closing date for entries is 26 July 2002.