GLBA 2027 Recognition Standard

What GLBA Recognises

The Global Leaders and Business Awards recognises individuals, businesses and organisations whose work has produced credible and positive change.

A strong nomination should explain:

• The challenge or opportunity the nominee addressed
  • What the nominee actually did
  • What distinguished their approach
  • Who benefited from the work
  • What changed as a result
  • What evidence supports the claims being made
  • How the achievement will be sustained or developed

GLBA evaluates nominations according to the selected award category. Excellence and evidence of impact are expected in every nomination. Innovation, creativity, and transformational leadership are assessed where relevant to the category. Note: You only need to fulfil one of the three major criteria (e.g., Innovation OR Creativity OR Transformational Leadership) to qualify. You do not need to meet all three criteria to be considered in the award category you choose.

Innovation

At GLBA, innovation means introducing and implementing a new or significantly improved product, service, process, policy, technology, business model or way of working that creates demonstrable value.

Innovation may be new to the world, the sector, the organisation or the community in which it has been introduced. It does not have to involve advanced technology.

Innovation can be demonstrated through:

• Identifying a problem or opportunity that required a different response
  • Developing a new solution or significantly improving an existing one
  • Moving the solution beyond the idea stage and putting it into use
  • Testing, adapting and improving the solution through learning
  • Producing measurable improvements in quality, access, safety, efficiency, cost, experience or reach
  • Creating an approach that can be sustained, replicated or developed further

Useful evidence may include adoption figures, performance improvements, cost or time savings, user feedback, increased access, independent evaluation, accreditation, intellectual property, documented case studies or evidence that others have adopted the approach.

Simply describing an idea as “groundbreaking,” using new technology or making a routine improvement will not demonstrate innovation. The nomination must show what was introduced, how it differed from what existed and what happened when it was implemented.

Creativity

At GLBA, creativity means seeing a challenge differently and developing a thoughtful, resourceful or original response that is appropriate to the situation.

Creativity can be demonstrated through:

• Reframing a familiar problem to reveal a new possibility
  • Combining knowledge, methods or perspectives in an unusual but useful way
  • Designing a solution around the needs of people who were previously overlooked
  • Achieving a strong result despite limited resources or difficult constraints
  • Adapting an existing approach successfully to a different context
  • Involving employees, customers, communities or other affected groups in developing the solution
  • Producing work that influences how others think or operate

Useful evidence may include the reasoning behind the approach, prototypes or pilots, stakeholder participation, user responses, examples of adaptation, results achieved and evidence that the approach has influenced others.

Creativity is more than attractive presentation, clever language or novelty for its own sake. The nomination should demonstrate why the approach was appropriate, how it was developed and what value it created.

Transformational Leadership

At GLBA, transformational leadership means enabling people, organisations or systems to achieve a positive and lasting change in what they believe, how they operate or what they are capable of accomplishing.

Transformational leadership can be demonstrated through:

• Establishing a clear and compelling direction
  • Mobilising people around a shared purpose
  • Building trust, confidence, capability and ownership in others
  • Changing organisational culture, strategy, systems, professional practice or standards
  • Leading responsibly through uncertainty, resistance or significant challenge
  • Creating opportunities for others to contribute, develop and lead
  • Embedding improvements that continue beyond the leader’s direct involvement
  • Producing outcomes that could not have been achieved through authority alone

Useful evidence may include changes in employee engagement, retention, capability or performance; the adoption of new policies or systems; improvements in organisational or community outcomes; testimony from colleagues and stakeholders; succession development; and results sustained over time.

A senior title, length of service, personal charisma or responsibility for a large team does not by itself demonstrate transformational leadership. The nomination must show what changed, how the nominee enabled that change and why the improvement is likely to last.

Excellence

At GLBA, excellence means delivering work of consistently high quality, with integrity, reliability and a commitment to continued improvement.

Excellence is judged in relation to the nominee’s purpose, context, responsibilities and available resources. It is not determined by the size, wealth or public profile of the nominee.

Excellence can be demonstrated through:

• Consistently strong results over an appropriate period
  • High standards of quality, service, governance or professional practice
  • Responsible and effective use of people, time and resources
  • Reliability under pressure or during difficult circumstances
  • Responsiveness to customers, employees, beneficiaries or other stakeholders
  • Learning from evidence, feedback and previous performance
  • Improving standards within an organisation, profession, industry or community
  • Creating results that compare favourably with relevant expectations or benchmarks

Useful evidence may include performance trends, quality or safety data, audits, accreditation, stakeholder satisfaction, repeat demand, regulatory performance, independent recognition, peer comparison and documented improvements.

Turnover, organisational size, fame, qualifications or one isolated success will not be sufficient. The nomination must show the quality of the work, the standards maintained and the results produced.

Evidence of Social Impact

For GLBA, social impact means the meaningful difference that the nominee’s work has made to people, communities, institutions, industries, the environment or wider society.

Social impact is not limited to charitable activity. It may include:

• Creating employment or developing people’s skills
  • Improving health, wellbeing, education or quality of life
  • Increasing access, inclusion, equity or opportunity
  • Improving customer, employee or service-user outcomes
  • Strengthening governance, safety, accountability or public trust
  • Raising professional or industry standards
  • Supporting responsible business growth
  • Strengthening communities or institutions
  • Reducing environmental harm or improving sustainability
  • Influencing policy, practice or public understanding

A strong impact claim should explain:

• Who experienced the change
  • What their situation was before the nominee’s intervention
  • What the nominee contributed
  • What changed afterwards
  • How many people were affected, where this is relevant
  • How significant and lasting the change has been
  • What evidence confirms the outcome

Useful evidence may include outcome data, beneficiary or customer testimony, employee feedback, independent evaluation, audits, case studies, service records, policy changes, partnerships, environmental measures and before-and-after comparisons.

The number of people reached, events held, social-media impressions generated or money donated describes activity. It does not necessarily demonstrate impact. Applicants should show what changed because of that activity and avoid claiming results that cannot reasonably be attributed to their work.

The GLBA Evidence Chain

Before submitting a nomination, applicants should be able to answer six questions:

1. What challenge or opportunity was addressed?
2. What did the nominee do?
3. What was distinctive about the approach?
4. What changed, and who benefited?
5. What evidence confirms the result?
6. How will the achievement continue, grow or leave a lasting legacy?

Specific examples supported by credible evidence will always carry more weight than general descriptions or promotional claims.