West Midlands Leadership Awards 2024 winners unveiled
Tony Hague, CEO of PP Control & Automation, was crowned Leader of the Year at the West Midlands Business of the Year tonight.
Hague was recognised for his work over the last 20 years, where he took the business from £2.5m in sales and 27 staff, to a company that now employs over 230 highly skilled staff and is on course to hit £30m+.
With major disruption from Brexit and then the pandemic, Hague pivoted production to safeguard the business, switching to produce essential wiring looms for two ventilator development programmes, ultimately delivering thousands of critical components to the healthcare sector.
More than 250 guests at the Macdonald Burlington in Birmingham also heard from Melissa Snover, our 2023 Leader of the Year and CEO and founder of Nourished, as well as Dionne Mallens from LoveBrum, our charity partner.
TheBusinessDesk.com created the West Midlands Leadership Awards to celebrate the people who are role models within their organisations and raise the bar for their competitors.
Anna Cooper, assistant editor of the West Midlands said: “In these challenging economic times, strong leadership stands as a beacon of inspiration. The ability to navigate hardship, make informed decisions, and inspire those around you reflects not only your expertise but also your dedication to the success of your team and the wider community.
“Despite this difficult period, the strength of the West Midlands is evident through those gathered together in this room.
“Each finalist demonstrated their commitment to excellence and I’m looking forward to seeing how each business is guided in the years to come.”
Young Leader (aged 35 and under): Chloe Blackwell – Hayward Wright Accountancy Group
Greg Baldwin – Highway Traffic Management
Nick Brown – Pearl Comms
Katie Mills – Kinver Business Solutions
Harriet Rowlands – NRG Marine
Josh Ward-Jones – Naismiths
Public and Third Sector Leader: Andy Begley – Shropshire Council
Simon Fletcher – Lichfield District Council
Yiannis Maos MBE – Tech West Mids
Mentor: Mike Powers – Clancy Consulting
Hayley Andrews – Your Freedom Empire
Zoe Bennett – Training Personified
Liz Whitfield – Growth Plans
Emerging Entrepreneur Leader: Jared Owen – Redbrain
Hayley Pugh – Oakley Recruitment
Liz Whitfield – Growth Plans
Chris Woods – CyberQ Group
Diversity & Inclusion Leader: Carmen Watson – Pertemps Network Group
Zoe Bennett – Training Personified
Lucinda Sturman – Highway Traffic Management
Professional Services Leader: Gareth Jones – Virgin Money
Lucy Cashmore – Daniel-Scott Recruitment
Hayley Pugh – Oakley Recruitment
Ian Stephens – Warner Surveys
Josh Ward-Jones – Naismiths
Transformational Leader: Tony Hague – PP Control & Automation
Hayley Andrews – Your Freedom Empire
Simon Fletcher – Lichfield District Council
Jason Howlett – GivEnergy
Jon Stott – Ardent
Green Leader: Simon Cox – Prologis UK
James Farmer – The Appliance Recycling Group (ARG)
Jason Howlett – GivEnergy
Paul Hunt – Phoebus
Sales & Marketing Leader: Andy Wilkinson – OWB Creative
Jon Harrison and Richard Elwell – One Black Bear
Harriet Troth – BRI Wealth Management plc
Marc Wright – Investec Private Office
Technology Leader: Darren Rowlands – NRG Marine
Manny Athwal – School of Coding
Stuart Hadley – CyberQ Group
Yiannis Maos MBE – Tech West Mids
Mark Wilson – Vertali
Property Leader: Maggie Grogan – Muse
Adam Daniels – Countryside Partnerships
Ben Harwood – Naismiths
Carole Taylor – Vail Williams LLP
Paul Weston – Prologis UK
Company Leader (up to 100 employees): Mark Wilson – Vertali
Manny Athwal – School of Coding
Arun Chauhan – Tenet
Jared Owen – Redbrain
Daniel Walton – OLPRO
Company Leader (100+ employees): Shaun Gray – Ginho
Helen Cooper – Diamond Facilities Support Group
Tony Hague – PP Control & Automation
Jonathan Till – GTAccess
Steve West – Pertemps Network Group
Leader of the Year: Tony Hague – PP Control & Automation
