Help and FAQ’s

Standard entries in the team categories received between 20 May, 2026 and 23.59 on 28 August, 2026 will be charged at the rate of US$249 + VAT (US$209 + VAT for CIPD members in active membership).

Standard entries in the team categories submitted from 29 August to 23:59 on 11 September 2026 will be charged at the rate of US$399 + VAT (US$349 + VAT for CIPD members in active membership).

Student of the Year entries will be charged at US$49+VAT (payable by the centre nominating the student).

Most Impactful Independent Consultant entries are charged at US$149 +VAT.

The final deadline for entries is 23.59 on 11 September 2026.

No – you can submit an unlimited number of entries across multiple categories. We recommend that you tailor each of your entries for each category. For any support on category entry, please contact awards@cipd.ae

To submit an entry, please download the entry form, complete and upload (as a word or PDF document) when prompted via the online entry portal.

All entries must not exceed the stated word count. Each section in the entry form details the word count.

Projects and programmes must have been implemented from January 2024

In the interests of fairness, no supporting documentation can be submitted at the time of entry. If shortlisted, there is an opportunity to share more information at the presentation stage. The initial entry form should include all the information needed to share the most impactful entry.

All files must not exceed 2MB each.

If you need further advice, please contact awards@cipd.ae and one of the team will be able to help with your inquiry.

The awards are judged by a panel of industry leaders and experts. You can see the confirmed judging panel on the judges page.

The CIPD Middle East People Awards will take place on Thursday 10 December, 2026.

Email: awards@cipd.ae
Sponsorship Enquiries: awards@cipd.ae

Due to the volume of entries we are not able to give individual feedback. We will be in contact with those who are shortlisted as finalists.

We welcome all shortlisted organisations and candidates to join the gala dinner on 10 December. Tickets are chargeable at the rate of US$250 +VAT.

The Profession Map is the international standard for the people profession. It helps us to make better decisions, act with confidence, drive change in our organisations and progress in our careers. It does this by setting out the purpose, values, core knowledge, behaviours and specialist knowledge that make a positive impact, whatever our career level or specialism. It can be used by individuals and by teams, members and non-members alike. It works for HR, L&D, OD and all other specialist roles in the people profession. You can find more details on the CIPD Profession Map here - https://www.cipd.org/en/the-people-profession/the-profession-map/