Bluewave’s experts attended Northumbrian Water’s GEM Awards 2023 and picked up an award – a fantastic achievement for our organisation and a testament to the quality of our project work. Find out more about our experience at the GEM Awards below.
Bluewave was invited to attend Northumbrian Water Group’s Going the Extra Mile Awards 2023 – an event designed to celebrate NWG’s suppliers and partners. As a finalist in two key categories, our team members got suited and booted, and travelled to Newcastle for the glamorous event. We are proud to announce that we achieved a runner up award for our contribution to Northumbrian Water’s successful past year.
“These awards are a fantastic celebration of the things we achieve by working together. They showcase the alignment of values and behaviours between Northumbrian Water Group and our supply chain, and are most of all a big thank you for everything that you do. We received some impressive entries this year, and the judging panel had their work cut out deciding on the shortlist.” – Heidi Mottram, CEO at Northumbrian Water Group
About the GEM Awards
The GEM Awards are NWG’s supplier recognition initiative, designed to help the organisation create an environment where suppliers feel valued and are driven to deliver outstanding service. Out of over 80 submissions, 55 entries were shortlisted. This was then whittled down to a small number of finalists, with Bluewave counted twice among these for Achieving a Great Result and Unrivalled Customer Experience. You can find out more about the GEM Awards by reading this past blog.
Representing Bluewave
Representing Bluewave were Paul Mooney: Sales Director at Bluewave, Lorraine Nolan: Delivery Director, and Matthew Bracewell: Lead Salesforce Consultant. These Bluewavers rocked up at The Fed – a prestigious conference and banqueting hall in Newcastle, to join their NWG contacts and other stakeholders for a fantastic evening of celebration, good food, and drink.
Rather than being sat together on the night, each person was on a separate table. This gave Paul the opportunity to speak closely with Angela Jenkins – IS Business Consultant at NWG as well as NWG’s procurement team, while Lorraine was sat with Heidi Mottram: CEO at Northumbrian Water, and Matt was sat with NWG’s CIO. This provided a fantastic opportunity to speak with key NWG influencers face to face. The mixed seating also allowed our experts to speak with NWG’s other suppliers and partners, allowing us to find out what other work is happening and understand the wider initiatives and activities taking place within the Northumbrian Water supplier ecosystem. This information will help us to tailor our solution roadmap going forward, to ensure we’re working well with NWG and all its other moving parts, to ensure a successful result.
The evening itself featured an introduction and welcome from Heidi Mottram, who greeted attendees with enthusiasm for the future at NWG. The CEO shared her vision for Northumbrian Water to be the national leader for sustainable water and waste water management services, a goal made possible with the help of NWG’s passionate team, and the organisation’s host of suppliers. When the UK Government committed to a legally binding target of net zero emissions by 2050 – becoming the first major economy in the world to pass laws to end its contribution to global warming – Mottram pledged that her own company will beat that deadline by a remarkable 23 years. NWG has also been approved to join the UN’s Race To Zero campaign, joining 120 countries, 454 cities, and 23 regions in a valiant bid to end carbon emissions. If your organisation is interested in reaching Net Zero, faster – take a look at Bluewave’s sustainability solutions here.
Overview of the Night
Following the introductions, the award ceremony commenced, with “Unrivalled Customer Experience,” “Creativity and Innovation,” “Achieving a Great Result,” and “One Team” award winners and runners up all announced. After this was a delicious dinner with garlic and thyme roast chicken or halloumi baked couscous on the menu – our compliments to the chef!
This was followed by the second round of awards – “Health Safety and Wellbeing,” “Responsible Procurement,” “Carbon Conscious,” and “Diversity and Inclusivity.” Dessert and coffee came next, with a strawberry and mint salsa for the non-drinkers at the event, and a pink gin and orange cheesecake for everyone else. With (both alcoholic and soft) drinks flowing, the final group of awards were called out – “Legacy,” “Rising Star,” “Small Supplier of the Year,” and “Project/Programme of the Year” all announced. This was followed by some brief closing comments, then networking late into the night, with a photographer expertly snapping pictures of winners and runners up. It was a fabulous evening, one that won’t soon be forgotten by the Bluewavers in attendance.
