Men as Allies Award

Our annual recognition of a male working within the engineering, technical and applied science sectors, who has gone above the call of duty to address the gender imbalance within engineering

Nominations open 29 July 2026. Find out how you can nominate yourself or someone you know.

Home » Awards » The WES Awards » Men as allies award

Established in

2017

A decade of impact and recognition

Calendar icon with a green checkmark.

Open to

Male Allies

Working both inside and outside engineering

Line drawing of three people with a speech bubble above them, indicating communication or discussion.

Nominations

29 July

Submitted on WES Awards platform

Line drawing of three women with a checkmark inside a circle below them on a black background.

About the Award

With men holding the majority of roles within engineering and applied sciences, it is crucial that they are involved in making the cultural changes needed to attract and retain women in engineering and applied sciences. 

The  Men as Allies Award  seeks to celebrate a male engineer, or other professional male working within the engineering, technical and applied science sectors, who has gone above the call of duty to support his female colleagues, and address the gender imbalance within engineering and applied sciences in general. 

Nominations open 29 July, 2026
Deadline for nominations is 21 September, 2026

Eligibility & Application Criteria

  • Nominees must be based in the UK

  • Nominees must be over the age of 18

  • Nominees must be a male engineer, or professional male working within the engineering, technical and applied sciences sectors

  • Self-nominations are accepted

  • Supporting statements must be 350 words or fewer

  • Words exceeding the limit will not be considered by the judges

Judges’ criteria

Professional Achievement

Demonstrates sustained work to encourage more women into engineering beyond their expected professional responsibilities.

Purple check mark icon

Contributions

Delivers initiatives, outreach or advocacy that support diversity and increase women’s participation within engineering.

Purple checkmark inside a circle

Impact

Demonstrates measurable and lasting impact in improving diversity and representation within engineering.

A black checkmark inside a black circle with a purple checkmark overlay.

Nomination process

Complete the online application form on The WES Awards site.

1.

Gather and write your supporting statement.

2.

Provide any additional information requested (references may be required).

3.

Submit your application before the deadline

4.

Deadline for nominations is 21 September, 2026


Award winners

Phil has been a visible advocate for allyship, demonstrating that allyship is the domain of everyone, not just senior leadership.

-

A black background with large white quotation marks and a white quotation mark symbol in the center.

2025 Philip Powner
2024 Vince Pizzoni
2023 Tej Bahia
2022 Stephen Gill
2021 Andy Palmer

A black background with large white quotation marks and a white quotation mark symbol in the center.

Want to support a more inclusive engineering profession?

Green outline illustration of three people with a megaphone emitting sound waves.

Join WES and connect with a network of women engineers driving a more inclusive future.