We celebrated the achievements and dedication of the Assistant profession this week at our annual Christmas Party & Star Awards, co-hosted with Maroto at their fantastic Brazilian-themed Club in central London. We are thrilled to be able to share the finalists and winners of PA Life Star Awards 2024 with you here. Huge congratulations to all! Very well done…
Our annual PA awards were once again much contested within the UK PA community and the standard was very high again this year making the judging more challenging too. The PA awards were open to all amazing PA, EA, VA and Office Manager to enter, or to nominate a fellow Assistant, for free.
Look out for the PA Life Star Awards 2025 nominations opening in Q1.
The winners of the PA Life Star Awards 2024 are
PA STAR OF THE YEAR – Charlotte Colley, EA at Direct Line Group
PA Star of the Year 2024 winner Charlotte Colley, EA at Direct Line Group (right), with Yvonne Wissart, nHow London, Gold Sponsor
This award celebrates the work of one Assistant over the past year. The winner has made a real impact on their workplace, going above and beyond duty to make processes smoother and their Execโs life easier.
Congratulations also to the other finalists:
- Jodie Mears, EA at Cohesive Group
- Lucy OโConnor, PA at Associated British Foods
VIRTUAL ASSISTANT STAR – Lisa Jackson, Founder of Virtually Assistive
Virtual Assistant Star 2024 winner Lisa Jackson, Founder of Virtually Assistive (left), with Suzy-Sanders, Alchemy VA, judge
As the name suggests, this accolade will be awarded to an individual who has shown exceptional applications of services to clients.
The other finalists are:
- Danielle Armstrong, Founder of Edge EA
- Vicki Wilson, Founder of Vicki Admin Fairy
RISING STAR – Bianca Nicolae, PA at Imperial Hotels
Rising Star winner Bianca Nicolae (right) with Abigail Jones EA at Spotify, judge and PA Life’s Ask Abi columnist
This category celebrates outstanding Assistants who have been working in the sector for fewer than five years, but have demonstrated excellence in their approach to their role in supporting their executives and wider teams.
Other finalists:
- Sheha Blair, EA at Rickmansworth School
- Stephanie Blackwell, PA at NHBC
EVENT ORGANISER STAR – Emma Taylor, EA at SLB UK
Event Organiser Star winner Emma Taylor with Matthew Bassant, Gold Sponsor Blacklane
Is awarded for the Assistant who has shown to be an accomplished event professional behind successful events.
Well done to the other finalists too:
- Eliza Banach, PA at Selfridges & Co
- Zoe Lawrence, EA at WTW
COMMITMENT TO WELLBEING STAR – Alex Van Colle, Team EA, Unbound Advisors
Commitment to Wellbeing Star winner Alex Van Colle (right) with Mesi Balog, Treat Your Staff, Gold Sponsor
An Assistant who has actively helped their execs, teams and organisations with wellbeing and wellness initiatives, either by introducing projects and programmes, or by managing them.
Our other finalists are:
- Azar Shariati, Head of HR and Administration, Persia International Bank
- Shirley Ruiz, EA at Citi
PROJECT NINJA STAR – Jo Sedgwick, PA at De Courcy Alexander
Project Ninja Star winner, Jo Sedgwick was absent, her award was accepted by Marianne Whitlock, Strategic PA Network, judge, and presented by Joe Reid, Roccabella Yachts, Gold Sponsor
The winner has demonstrated strong project management skills within their organisation by undertaking a project and seen it to a successful completion.
Other project star finalists are:
- Greg Bird, Event Organiser and Project Manager at WTW
- PJ Ashiru, PA at Faith Dimensions
PA LIFE CLUB MENTOR STAR – Hannah Houston-Banks, EA at British Associated Foods
PA Life Club Mentor Star winner, Hannah Houston-Banks with Matt Gregson, Lily Shippen Recruitment
We asked our PA Life Club mentees to nominate their mentors whose support and guidance has made a positive impact on the mentee.
Well done to the other finalists too:
- Hazel Bates, EA at Whirledge & Nott
- Lou Cowell, EA at Spotify
PA LIFE CLUB MEMBER STAR – Shirley Ruiz, EA at Citi
PA Life Club Member Star winner, Shirley Ruiz (right) with Marianne Whitlock, Strategic PA Network and Recruitment, judge
Awarded to the member of the PA Life Club who has shown strong commitment to supporting the Club by attending events, and engaging with other Club initiatives. We have shortlisted five members for this category, simply because we have so many fantastic members to choose from.
Our other PA Life Club Member Star finalists are:
- Hannah Houston-Banks, EA at Associated British Foods
- Joanie Suffield, EA at Credit Agricole
- Lesley Gabriel, Career EA to C-Suite
- Tracey Hoekema, EA at True Scale Carbon
Thank you to PA Life Star Awards 2024 judges
The judging panel was made up of experienced professionals, who have all worked either as a Senior Assistant themselves, or currently work either in training or recruitment within the industry.
The judges were:
- Abigail Jones, Career EA to C-Suite
- Emily Mills, Director at eavolve & Lily Shippen Recruitment
- Kathy Soulsby, Founder of Personally Virtual
- Marianne Whitlock, Director at Strategic PA Recruitment & Network
- Rosemary Parr, Director at Global PA Association
- Suzy Sanders, Founder of Alchemy VA
