how to enter

Entry Process

To enter, please complete the online entry form or download the relevant entry form below. Complete your submission and upload when prompted during the online entry process.  If you are using the online entry form we recommend you write your text in a word processing package before copying the information across.

You must read the supporting notes for your category, which can be found on each entry form. These category specific notes provide guidance as to the information required by the judges in order to meet the strict judging criteria.

Entry Forms

To download the entry form for the category you wish to enter, please click on the relevant link below: 

Download the entry form for Accountant of the Year

Download the entry form for Banker of the Year

Download the entry form for Business Development Professional of the Year

Download the entry form for Corporate Financier of the Year

Download the entry form for Digital, Media or Creative Professional of the Year

Download the entry form for Entrepreneur of the Year

Download the entry form for Lawyer of the Year

Download the entry form for Manchester Champion

Download the entry form for Mentor of the Year

Download the entry form for Property Professional of the Year

Download the entry form for Talent and Recruitment Professional of the Year

Administration Fees

Entries by members will be charged an administration fee of £36 + VAT and non-members will be charged an administration fee of £52 + VAT per entry.

The fee must be paid online during the entry process, and membership numbers must be supplied in order to recieve the discounted entry fee. 

The Manchester Champion category is free to enter. 

The Judging Process

Judges will read and pre-score all entry forms, considering any supporting materials submitted. Judges’ pre-scores will be combined and the highest scoring entries will determine the shortlists, which will be announced on 4 December 2014.

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to an interview with a select panel of judges, which will take place in Manchester City Centre on Wednesday 7 January 2015. After all interviews have been conducted, the judges will agree the winner for each category.

The winners and any highly commended entries will be announced at the awards ceremony on the evening of Thursday 5 February 2015.

Supporting Materials

No supporting materials are required, however if you wish to provide testimonials or client recommendations in your application or nomination please upload these along with your entry form. Please note that the maximum document file size is 2MB and must be in Word, Excel, PDF or JPEG format.

If you do wish to post supporting material please do so to Kirsty Batchelor, Don’t Panic Projects, 8 Market Chambers, Market Place, Ramsbottom, BL0 9AJ.

Supporting material will not be kept for collection unless specific arrangements are agreed, and will be securely destroyed following the awards ceremony.

All material will remain confidential to the judges. 

Testimonial

'When I first came across the Made in Manchester Awards, I was thrilled that pro.manchester were putting an event on that recognised the quality of the professional services talent in this great city. Manchester has made a lot of stuff, a lot of very important stuff = whether arts, music, football teams, industrial revolution, graphene even! Having an accolade with a hall mark of ‘Made in Manchester’ means quality and  to be part of the inaugural event was something I really wanted for urbanbubble and myself.

We weren’t members of pro.manchester nor did we network with most of the Property members but I knew our story was one that had a chance. I’d built a apartment block management business from scratch starting at the worst possible time in 2008, in a city that had built thousands of flats overnight and seen its city centre population boom yet the incumbents were less than impressive, as was the reputation of the whole service industry.

I’d designed service that set that bar way above anything else in the market and we were delivering this service in Manchester to a rapidly growing portfolio of properties, with about 3500 Manchester residents benefiting from our unique approach to property management. Our business performance and growth was exceptional, employing over 25 people within 4 years, financial numbers very healthy and continually innovating what we did for our customers and properties. To cap it all off, we’d just been awarded best Managing Agent of 2012 for a Residential Block at the National Property Management awards, beating off competition from all regions of the UK.

To be selected in the shortlist was as well as I could have expected, considering the quality of other candidates and their contribution to the property professional sector. The selection process involved an interview against a panel of judges with very limited time and this is what makes these awards that little bit special and different. You had to earn it and it was completely impartial, independent and down to you.

I won the inaugural Made in Manchester Property Professional Award and it was one of my proudest moments of running urbanbubble and certainly the best business moment of the year. I, along with everyone at urbanbubble have worked so hard to provide apartment blocks across Manchester the best possible management service and make the experience of residents in this city, all that more richer. Our aim is only to be the best at what we do, have as much fun and enjoyment with the job possible and make sure the business is healthy financially.

The pro.manchester Made in Manchester award gave us incredible external recognition that we’re meeting those simple aims…. We had a lot of fun at the Midland on the awards night too!

What business benefits has the award brought? Most people entering probably shouldn’t even worry about this question as you’ll already be doing well in your own right. Don’t be entering these awards for a pay rise, bring on a new client or move to a better role with a different firm. Enter them and win them for trying to do the best and be the best. Business will take care of itself and urbanbubble is testament to that.

Good luck to all applicants.'

Michael Howard, Urban Bubble, 2013 Winner