Local architects CCD received the top accolade at last night’s Guernsey Awards for Achievement when they were crowned the Commerce & Employment Guernsey Business of the Year. The other main business winners of the night were Two Degrees North who took home the NatWest Best Small Business award and BDO who lifted the Healthspan Best Large Business trophy. RBS International won the NP Silver Salver for Excellence in Training.
CCD Architects were in the running for the main award when they first took to the stage to collect the BWCI Best Medium Business Award in front of a 780 strong audience made up of local dignitaries and business men and women. They saw off weighty competition from Aztec Group and Clydesdale Bank International.
At the end of the Awards gala evening they were named as overall winners of the night when they were presented with the Commerce & Employment Guernsey Business of the Year Award by the Lieutenant Governor, Air Marshal Peter Walker, who was attending his first Guernsey Awards for Achievement evening.
Chairman of the judging panel, Deputy Robert Sillars, said CCD Architects were outstanding and extremely worthy of the title, Guernsey Business of the Year.
‘It was very apparent from their original submission and presentation that CCD demonstrated a huge range of extended values, with passion at the forefront of their business. Through specific and well-known projects such as the medical specialists’ centres and the new Les Bourgs Hospice, their creativity and flair will leave a long lasting legacy to our community,’ he said.
Local design studio Two Degrees North, were the recipients of the NatWest Best Small Business Award. Described by the judges at their presentation as ‘a hugely passionate team brilliantly describing their heart and soul,’ they came top over local surveying practice Jones Watts and retailers Ray & Scott.
The Healthspan Best Large Business trophy was awarded to well-known and respected local business BDO. They faced strong competition from Cable & Wireless Communications and Islands Insurance. The judges were impressed with the way BDO had ‘moved with the times to provide excellence in all areas of business and really felt that everyone was on board within the company.’
The Excellence in Training Award, sponsored jointly by the NP Group, IOD and GTA University Centre, was awarded to RBS International. GTA University Centre’s Chief Executive Fiona Naftel said that they fully deserved the honour as they more than met the rigorous criteria of the award.
‘Their approach to staff learning, training and development is far reaching and all encompassing. The commitment of senior management to the development of staff was particularly impressive being founded on an ethos of innovation, maximising the potential of individual staff members and increasing overall staff retention. No mean feat,’ she said.
The Commerce & Employment Minister, Deputy Carla McNulty Bauer, said the Awards evening had provided a strong reminder that despite the on-going economic difficulties facing Guernsey and the rest of the world, business success was still attainable and very much apparent within the island.
‘I congratulate all the finalists who have demonstrated such high levels of talent within their respective fields. They should all feel extremely proud of themselves not only for their personal success but also for being a major part of strengthening our economy,’ she said.