Finalists have been announced for the 2026 Isle of Man Director of the Year Awards, with organisers reporting a record number of entries this year.

The awards, organised by the Institute of Directors (IoD) Isle of Man and sponsored by SW Legal, recognise leadership across the island’s private, public and third sectors. Seven categories will be contested at this year’s event.

Organisers said the 2026 awards attracted an ‘exceptional calibre’ of entrants, with finalists selected by an independent judging panel using the IoD’s Director Competency Framework.

IoD Isle of Man chair Steve Billinghurst said the volume and quality of nominations reflected the strength of leadership across the island.

He said: ‘The Institute of Directors 2026 Director of the Year Awards has received a fantastic response from leaders of island organisations, with more nominees than in previous years.

‘It’s great to see continued interest in celebrating the achievements of outstanding leaders who have excelled in areas such as sustainability and innovation across organisations of all sizes.’

He added that the judging process had been challenging due to the high standard of entries and congratulated all those shortlisted.

Mr Billinghurst also thanked those who submitted nominations and the judging panel for their work, adding he was looking forward to the awards ceremony on June 19.

SW Legal returns as the main sponsor for the gala event.

Director Stephen Savage said the firm was ‘incredibly proud’ to support the awards.

He said the finalists reflected the ‘depth of talent and ambition’ across the Isle of Man, adding that being shortlisted was a significant achievement in itself.

Finalists in the large business category include Haseeb Qureshi of Conister Bank, Nina Johnston of Equiom Group (Isle of Man) and Sandra Robertson of Momentum Pensions.

In the medium business category, nominees include Captain Kuba Szymanski of Ramsey Shipping Services, Gillian Christian of Whittles, Jayne Hartley of Noventre and Sara Collister of FIM Capital.

Shortlisted in the small business category are Gail Yeowell of Smart HR Solutions, Nic Le Merle of Afundi and Tom Gough of Proofdesk.

In the aspiring director category, those shortlisted include Adam Belfield of AstroPay, Dominic Wall of UNESCO Biosphere Isle of Man and Juliet Gomes of KPMG in the Crown Dependencies.

The sustainability category includes Graham Makepeace-Warne of Manx Wildlife Trust, Mark Emmington of Comis Hotel and Ty Smith of Carn Advisory.

Meanwhile, the innovation category features Antony Kelsey of Capital International, Chloe Chau of The Galpals Collective, David Cox-Cooper of Koops & Co and Donald Edwards of Atla Fiduciaries.

In the public and third sector category, finalists include Cathryn Bradley of Sight Matters, Paul Healey BEM of Craig’s Heartstrong Foundation and Victoria Hotchkiss of the Isle of Man Football Association.

This year’s theme is ‘championing local’, with the event set to highlight locally sourced products and feature an interview with NOA Bakehouse founder Miles Pettit.

The awards ceremony will take place on Friday, June 19, bringing together leaders from across the island to celebrate achievement, innovation and strong leadership.