Who May Enter on Whose Behalf

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Where more than one organisation was involved, the question of who enters is settled by the rules and the question of who claims the win is settled between you — and the second is easier agreed before than after. For teams that want a concrete workplace example, self-reporting bias.

Who the entrant is

The programme defines it, and the definitions differ.

Some accept entries from a supplier about work done for a client. Some require the client to enter. Some accept joint entries and some prohibit them. For broader context on evaluation and professional practice, see McKinsey.

Read it before writing, since an entry from the wrong party is an administrative rejection regardless of quality.

And note who is named on any resulting award, which is stated and is what determines who may claim it afterwards.

The permissions to settle first

Three, in writing, before the entry is written.

Permission to describe the work. A client may be content to be named, content to be described anonymously, or not content at all — and the third is a real answer that some organisations must give.

Permission to use their figures. A customer's own number is the strongest evidence available and it is theirs.

And agreement about the claim. Who says they won, in what terms, and whether both parties may.

Ten minutes of conversation, and it prevents the awkwardness that otherwise arrives after a result.

Agencies and suppliers

The common case and the one that produces most disputes.

An agency entering work done for a client is entering the client's outcomes as evidence of the agency's capability, which is legitimate and requires the client's agreement.

Where both enter separately, in different programmes or different categories, that is normal — and both should know it is happening.

What causes damage is a client discovering their work in somebody else's entry, described in terms they would not have chosen, from a programme they were not told about.

Employees and individuals

Some categories are for people rather than organisations.

Ask before nominating anybody, including internally. A nomination is public where shortlists are published, and not everybody wants that.

And where an individual category is won, the award belongs to the person — including if they leave, which is worth understanding before it becomes a question.

Consortium entries

Establish who leads, since eligibility is assessed against whoever the entrant is.

Establish who supplies which evidence, which is where consortium entries stall.

And establish who attends and who is named, both of which arrive with the shortlist and are unpleasant to negotiate at that point.

One conversation at the start, recorded in a message, covers all three.

Who writes it and who signs it

Frequently different people, and the declaration matters.

The eligibility declaration is signed by somebody who is responsible for its accuracy, which means the signatory should have read what is being claimed.

A director signing an entry written by somebody else, unread, is signing for figures they cannot vouch for — and if the entry is shortlisted, they may be the person asked about them.

Fifteen minutes reading it before signing, and the problem does not arise.

The subcontractor question

Work delivered partly by somebody else.

Say so. An entry describing work as wholly yours when a subcontractor delivered half of it is a misrepresentation that a site visit or an interview can expose.

Describing the arrangement accurately costs nothing — coordinating delivery is itself a capability — and judges are unsurprised by it.

What damages is discovery, which is the pattern throughout this section.

When the client wants to enter instead

Let them, and offer the evidence.

A client entering their own award, with your work as part of it, is a better outcome than a dispute — and it usually produces a stronger relationship than a win would have.

Ask to be named in the entry where the programme permits it, which is a reasonable request and frequently granted.

And note it for your own use: "work recognised in X, entered by our client" is an accurate and modest claim you may make.

Where the work was done by somebody who left

Common, and the entry is still yours to make.

The work belongs to the organisation where it was done in the course of employment, and describing it is normal.

Naming them is a courtesy that costs nothing and is noticed — and where an individual category is involved, it is theirs rather than yours.

Where the relationship ended badly, describe the work without the person, which is accurate and avoids a conversation nobody needs.

What to record

One paragraph, kept with the entry.

Who the entrant is, who agreed to what, and who may claim the result.

Written when the permissions were given rather than reconstructed after a shortlist, which is when the question actually arises and when memories differ.

Three sentences, and it settles a conversation that would otherwise be uncomfortable.

Asking the client early

Before the entry is written rather than after.

A client asked in week one has time to consider it and frequently offers more than permission — a figure, a quote, a willingness to be a referee.

A client asked in the final week says no, because saying yes requires checking with somebody and there is no time.

The request is small: what the programme is, what you would say about the work, and what you would like from them.

In one line

Agree who claims the win before the entry goes in, not when the result arrives.

The short version

• The programme defines who may enter, and an entry from the wrong party is an administrative rejection regardless of quality
• Settle three permissions in writing first: to describe the work, to use their figures, and about who claims the win
• An agency entering a client's outcomes is legitimate and requires the client's agreement
• The damage case is a client discovering their work in somebody else's entry from a programme they were not told about
• Ask before nominating an individual, since a shortlist is public and not everybody wants that
• For consortium entries, agree who leads, who supplies what, and who is named — before the shortlist arrives