Communiqué Small Consultancy of the Year

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This category is open to any consultancy working in the healthcare sector that employs 20 or fewer full-time account personnel within its health team.

Entries must highlight the consultancy’s achievements within the period covered by the awards.

If your consultancy is part of a larger organisation or network, you must disclose the nature, frequency and extent of any support provided, such as HR, finance, IT, proprietary technologies, business development or other resources. This ensures transparency and fairness when assessing consultancies of different sizes and structures.

2026 process

There are two stages for this award:

Stage 1 – Written entry

Completed using the criteria below.
No marks are awarded for an oral presentation at this stage.

Judges will review all written submissions and shortlist consultancies to progress to Stage 2.

Stage 2 – Live presentation

Shortlisted teams will be invited to present to the judging panel on 22nd May 2026

  • Stage 1 scores will not carry forward.
  • The live presentation is judged independently.
  • Presentations should be no longer than 10 minutes, followed by Q&A.
  • Judges will look for evidence of adaptability, resilience, innovation and effective business performance.
  • It is advisable for up to four team members to hold this date.
  • Judges recommend including a member of your finance team to support discussion of financial statements.

Full details will be sent to shortlisted teams by Friday 8 May 2026.

JUDGING CRITERIA AND ENTRY FORMAT:

CONSULTANCY AWARD KEY INFORMATION FORM

It must be fully completed and submitted. All financial information must be signed off by an accountant or Finance Director.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY (max 200 words) – 0 (zero) Marks

If you are nominated for an award, PMGroup may publish extracts from this summary, so ensure that it contains no confidential or sensitive information. No other part of your entry will be reproduced, and the main content of your entry will remain confidential at all times.

PHOTO

Please upload a high-resolution, print-quality photograph or collage of the team.

MAIN ENTRY

1. Situation analysis and benchmarking – 10 marks (400 words)

Show the judges your consultancy’s starting point at the beginning of 2025.

Include:

  • The challenges and opportunities you were facing
  • Relevant market, client or competitive dynamics
  • Any new challenges or opportunities that emerged
  • Benchmark data that you will reference in the effectiveness section
  • A brief overview of your culture, vision and values

Judges’ checklist

  • Does the section clearly establish your 2025 starting point?
  • Is all data later referenced meaningfully?
  • Is the narrative focused and relevant?

2. Proposition and marketplace need – 10 marks (400 words)

Articulate what makes your consultancy distinctive.

Include:

  • Your core proposition and differentiators
  • The client needs or gaps your proposition addresses
  • How the proposition evolved in response to feedback or industry trends
  • Alignment with long-term vision and values

Judges’ checklist

  • Is your proposition well defined and specific?
  • Do you clearly show why it matters now?
  • Have you avoided generic claims?

3. Business strategy and evidence of delivery – 25 marks (500 words)

Outline your business strategy for 2025.

Include:

  • Strategic priorities and rationale
  • How the strategy maximised opportunities or mitigated risks
  • How it positioned the consultancy for growth, resilience or differentiation
  • Evidence that the strategy was successfully delivered

Judges’ checklist

  • Is the strategy clearly linked to the situation analysis?
  • Have you used bullet points to aid clarity where needed?
  • Are outcomes measurable and evidenced?
  • Have you shown innovation where appropriate?

4. Operational/internal expertise and success – 25 marks (500 words)

Demonstrate operational excellence in 2025.

Include:

  • Approach to talent development, training and wellbeing
  • Success in attracting, retaining and developing staff
  • Operational improvements or innovations introduced in 2025
  • Clear explanation of how technology and AI were used to strengthen capability, accuracy, efficiency or creativity
  • Disclosure of whether technology is proprietary, adapted or third-party (to ensure fairness across independents vs network groups)
  • Actions relating to:
    • diversity and inclusion
    • environmental sustainability
    • reducing environmental impact
    • strengthening internal culture
  • Operational changes that improved quality or client outcomes

Judges’ checklist

  • Are the operational improvements specific to 2025?
  • Is technology/AI usage explained transparently?
  • Is the level of innovation proportionate to the consultancy’s scale?
  • Is evidence provided for DEI and sustainability action?
  • Have you linked operational excellence to better client outcomes?

5. Challenge, response and learning – 10 marks (150–200 words)

Provide a concise account of:

  • one challenge or setback experienced between the start of Q4 2024 and December 2025
  • how the consultancy responded
  • what long-term learning or improvement resulted

Judges’ checklist

  • Is the challenge real and substantial?
  • Does the response demonstrate resilience, leadership and judgement?
  • Is the learning clearly embedded into future practice?

6. Client success and satisfaction in 2025 – 40 marks (750 words)

Showcase three key client projects that best demonstrate your consultancy’s impact.

Include:

  • Tangible business and industry outcomes
  • Clear links to client challenges and strategic objectives
  • Measured results (not just activity or outputs)
  • Strong outcome metrics
  • Client or third-party testimonials that directly support claims
  • Disclosure if work also appears in other Communiqué categories

Judges’ checklist

  • Are the three case studies outcome-focused?
  • Are measurements meaningful and benchmarked?
  • Do testimonials add genuine value?
  • Does the section reflect its weighting as the most important part of the entry?

Supporting materials

Include any relevant supporting materials or entries from other categories that strengthen your submission.