With the entry deadline for the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards 2024 fast approaching, it’s time to reflect on some of our past entrants and winners, and their experience entering the awards and attending the ceremony.
Gravitate are a firm of award-winning digital chartered accountants who specialise in automating the finance function in order to save businesses time and money. Sam Newton, co-founder of Gravitate, shared his experience with the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards following his incredible achievement of winning Yorkshire Accountant of the Year in the 2023 ceremony.
Can you share your experience with the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards, from the application process to the awards ceremony? What motivated you to enter?
The Gravitate team are very selective with the awards that they choose to enter and the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards is a prestigious awards ceremony in the Yorkshire area. It’s also nice to have awards which are focused on finance and accountancy.
What specific category or categories did you enter, and what was the focus or achievements that you highlighted in your submission?
In 2023 Gravitate entered Small Team of the Year and Yorkshire Accountant of the Year. Gravitate is one of the fastest scaling accountancy companies in the UK, making us an excellent contender for the Small Team of the Year. I have done significant work towards growing Gravitate Accounting, and also worked as a treasurer for Hillsborough Golf Club in Sheffield to help their business through the pandemic. These professional accolades bolstered my application for Yorkshire Accountant of the Year, ultimately leading to a win.
What advice would you give to someone considering entering the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards for the first time? Are there any strategies or tips you found particularly helpful?
If a firm is doing well in their work and feels brave enough to put themselves out there, they should do so to garner the recognition that they deserve. You’ve got to be willing to do that with all awards.
How has winning or being nominated for a Yorkshire Accountancy Award impacted your professional reputation and credibility within the legal community?
The business has always done well and is scaling successfully. Gravitate has 77 five-star reviews, all giving the company amazing praise, evidencing the hard work that has led us to our success in being shortlisted for two awards. My Yorkshire Accountancy Award is the icing on the cake.
Looking back, is there anything you wish you had known or done differently when preparing your submission for the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards?
The only thing that we would have done differently in our submission is making our Small Team of the Year submission better to secure a win!
Entries for the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards are open now and the shortlist will be out just in time for Christmas. If you think you have what it takes to take home a win next year, get your submissions in to be in with a chance of having your company’s achievements deservedly recognised in 2024.
