More details on the 2025 judging lineup coming soon!
Aliza Ayaz is a pioneering sustainability strategist and social entrepreneur, known for bridging environmental policy with business transformation, design innovation, and global youth advocacy. At just 22, she was appointed the youngest Health and Climate Advisor to the UK Parliament, shaping inclusive sustainability strategies for national recovery and youth mobilisation during the COVID-19 era. As founder of the Climate Action Society (CAS), Aliza built one of the world’s largest student-led environmental movements—spanning 100+ institutions, with partnerships across public health, education, and innovation sectors. CAS campaigns have reached over a quarter of a million students and earned features in BBC World News, Forbes, and The Telegraph. She is also one of the managing directors of ARAAD Atelier, a global fashion and jewellery brand spotlighting artisans from climate-impacted communities across South Asia and the Middle East, including designing pieces herself. Aliza teaches sustainability and environmental leadership at leading UK institutions, including Eton College and Dulwich College, and she regularly contributes to panels and workshops at international cultural forums such as the Cannes Film Festival and Berlin Film Festival, where she has spoken on sustainability in the creative industries. In the private sector, Aliza has led sustainability-focused transformation programmes for multinational firms across finance, insurance, and technology—delivering strategic advice on ESG integration, cost transparency, digital risk, and ethical innovation. Her work is often trusted at C-suite level to shape frameworks that embed climate resilience into core operations. Named a Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree, Aliza has served as a speaker and judge at the UN Youth Climate Summit, World Health Organization, London Design Biennale, and PMI’s Pinnacle Awards. Her impact is defined by a rare ability to weave storytelling, strategy, and systems change—amplifying underrepresented voices while designing scalable climate solutions for a rapidly evolving world.
As CEO and an Executive Director of Pensions for Purpose, Charlotte oversees the running of the business, develops the growth and innovation strategy and looks for opportunities to build partnerships to achieve our vision. She has been involved with every part of Pensions for Purpose’s service offering and business operations, as well as completing the first B Corp impact assessment in 2023. Charlotte now co-leads the training and Business Briefing service for asset owners and their advisers. Charlotte is a member of the Sounding Board for the Social Value Portal, the Advisory Board for the Sororum, the pensions expert group for the Global Steering Group for Impact Investing and a member of the Pensions Equity Group. These roles demonstrate Charlotte’s commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion, as well as systems change. She has over 15 years of experience in asset management, starting in fund analysis and progressing through to institutional business development, having worked for some well-known institutions, including Jupiter, Pictet and Cambridge Associates. Through these positions, Charlotte has built a knowledge and passion for sustainable investing. She has demonstrated this in co-authoring a paper with the Society for Pension Professionals on social impact investing in 2017 and speaking on topics such as fee and service transparency at PLSA and Transparency Taskforce events. She played a leading part in developing the Impact Investing Institute's Impact Investing Principles for Pensions. Outside of work, Charlotte is a mother to two children, a fitness and running enthusiast, a volunteer with Redstart (a charity educating children on savings and investments) and is always looking for ways to improve her own social and environmental impact.
Luke is part of the Pension Executive and Management Services (PEMS) senior leadership team and is an experienced governance specialist with a strong consulting and administration background. He has 13+ years industry experience and is excellent at building long-term relationships with his clients. Luke is part of Barnett Waddingham’s General Code Steering Group. Within this group he is looking at best practice, the Effective System of Governance (ESOG), Own Risk Assessment (ORA), and how the new Code provides an excellent opportunity to not just ensure compliance but to ensure that value is being added for the long-term benefit to schemes. Luke works closely with clients to ensure services are tailored to suit their specific needs. He has a keen interest in business development activity. He was appointed to the Pensions Management Institute (PMI) Risk and Assurance Committee in September 2023.
Pat has a passion for workplace culture and the environment. She brings over 38 years’ experience in financial services, with her last few years in the role of Country Managing Director for two custodian banks, specialising in servicing pensions schemes and developing data solutions to support sustainable governance e.g. ESG screening. Throughout her banking career she developed and mentored high performing teams, creating positive and collaborative workplace cultures with diversity of thought that drive innovative and successful businesses in challenging environments. She has also held trustee positions for both DB and DC schemes. She co-founded Everyone Matters in 2023, an independent, free membership organisation dedicated to transforming workplace culture in financial services. Our ambition is to drive positive change by fostering diverse thinking, human sustainability, connected to a healthy planet. Everyone Matters will do this through education and inspiring people to better understand the benefits and power of diversity of thought and human sustainability so we can better address environmental sustainability.
Duncan formerly a partner of Hogan Lovells is a non-executive director at Guiide (the online holistic retirement tool) and a trustee director of Sarcoma UK (the bone and soft tissue cancer charity). A Fellow of the PMI, Duncan also chairs the pensions sub committee at Yateley Industries for the Disabled.
Lisa started her career in the creative industries working for design and advertising agencies on print and TV production. She then moved into recruitment as a specialist head-hunter for art directors and writers before joining a boutique recruitment consultancy recruiting for their marketing and corporate divisions working with financial services, professional services, advertising and design agencies, charities, professional associations, tech and publishing companies across all levels of seniority and roles. Within the Leadership & Governance Team at TPP Lisa works with a variety of charities, membership bodies and non-profit organisations to help source senior Board hires such as CEOs, Executives, Non-Executives and Trustees.
Robert has worked in the pensions industry for over 30 years, primarily in pensions management and pensions administration. He has strong feelings about always considering the members of pension schemes, as that is why schemes have been set up. He believes that everything we should be doing should be linked to member understanding and best outcomes for members. Robert has recently moved away from direct pensions administration and will be taking up a senior role with The Tracing Group. With so many people having been lost along the way and not aware of all their benefits both within the pensions market and the wider financial services markets, he is looking to help reconnect those people entitled to these benefits.
Sukhjit, works for First Bus as a Pensions Manager. He is very experienced in managing both DB and DC pension schemes. In 2020, he was a Finalist in the Professional Pensions Rising Star Awards, for the 'Pensions Manager of the year' Award category. He also won awards in 2021 and in 2023 in relation to the PMI Mentoring and Development programme. He was a Lead Judge for the 2024 PMI Pinnacle Awards.
Before joining the CIPP Jason was MD of Calendar Consulting Ltd, and prior to that COO of Capita’s HR Division. Jason has supported the international growth of payroll services businesses such as NorthgateArinso, and LogicaCMG where he worked in global delivery. Jason has always worked in payroll – beginning his working career in the construction sector. Jason is also a 'Be The Business Mentor', which is a central government initiative to support the SME sector, and designed to help improve productivity. He has recently supported an MD of a marketing business, an MD of a talent acquisition business and a CTO working for a sports data analysis business. Mentoring is incredibly rewarding and Jason finds it a positive challenge to support individuals from all different business backgrounds. Outside of work, Jason is a L2 England Union Rugby Coach, and trains under 16’s. He started that development as his son is a hooker for his school and club. Jason also has a UK powerboat licence and the International equivalent, as he owns a sports cruiser and has her berthed in the Mediterranean.
Joe moved from the content team to the relationship side of Quietroom. You’ll find him across the industry connecting people and ideas. Since Joe joined Quietroom in 2017, he’s worked on communications strategy for pension schemes, investment firms, insurers and other financial institutions, big and small. He’s often on stage at industry events discussing how to make complicated or difficult messages more meaningful to more people.
As Chief Executive Officer, Patrick is the driving force behind The People’s Pension and moving People’s Partnership from an organisation focused solely on the construction sector to a mainstream pension provider. Patrick is passionate about People’s Partnership and what the organisation is trying to achieve with The People’s Pension, and has been instrumental in shaping its ethos and beliefs. Patrick is happy to talk about a range of issues covering pensions, including the development and success of The People’s Pension and the challenges and opportunities that leading a not-for-profit financial services company can bring.
A leading industry influencer as Vice President of the PMI Advisory Council and NED on the PMI board, chair of the devopment committee, member of the policy and public affairs committee and former Chair of the PASA DC Governance Working Group. A senior pensions professional with extensive experience in the UK and Ireland pensions industry in both in-house and consultancy environments. An experienced communicator, with strong technical, commercial and project management skills. A strategic thinker who develops pragmatic solutions to deliver value for money services and the right solution for both company and members. Possesses skills and knowledge to be an effective manager, leader, motivator and team player, enabling others to achieve both as individuals and as a team.
Chris joined BESTrustees in April 2021, having had a lengthy career in pension scheme management, most recently as Head of Pensions & Benefits at Heathrow Airports, which included management of the legacy British Airport Authority legacy pension arrangements. He has held senior management roles for occupational pension schemes since the early 1980s whilst working at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and as managed several pension schemes through significant periods of change. He currently chairs the Trustee Board of three DB and one DC schemes and is a Sole Trustee for three other arrangements. Chris is both a fellow of the PMI and a fully accredited professional trustee by the Association of Professional Pension Trustees. Chris continues his involvement with the PMI since stepping down from the Advisory Council in 2023 having completed his second consecutive five-year term. This includes being Chief Judge for the Pinnacle Awards and a Trustee Director of the Institute’s pension scheme. He has also been a member of the Advisory Council of the Association of Investment Managers Sales Executives (AIMSE Europe) since 2007 and a judge for many other pension and investment industry awards.
