Women in Logistics UK has announced the winners of four awards at its annual ball in aid of the transport charity Transaid on Friday 26th June.

The longstanding CEO of Hermes, Carole Woodhead was crowned Leader of the Year. Hermes has achieved over 15% sales growth each year for the past five years, delivering parcels for many of the UK's top retailers with a first-time delivery success rate of over 98%, against an industry average of 92%.

With an exceptionally strong field this year, there were six candidates on the shortlist for Rising Star of the Year, which was ultimately won by Lieutenant Charlotte Edwards of the Royal Logistic Corps for leading successful missions in Sierra Leone and Poland.

It was a double whammy for the military corps, which has led the British Army's campaign to recruit more women, with the RLC winning Company of the Year too.

The Diversity Champion award recognises women and men who advocate for women in the sector. It was won by Royal Mail's HR Director Helen Diksa. Under her leadership, the proportion of women recruited rose from 19% to 29% in one year and Royal Mail was listed by The Times as a Top 50 Employer for Women.

Commenting on the awards, Women in Logistics Vice-Chair Clare Bottle said 'Whether it's delivering millions of parcels during the Christmas Peak or leading a mission to tackle Ebola in Sierra Leone, logistics careers offer an amazing array of challenges and these awards highlight the opportunities for women to excel. Every individual on our shortlist is an inspiring role model and Women in Logistics UK is proud to be able to showcase their remarkable achievements.'

Full shortlists and winners are:

• Leader of the Year sponsored by Kuehne+Nagel
• WINNER - Carole Woodhead, CEO at Hermes
• Suzy Bailey-Hawke, Director of Marketing at TNT
• Laura Nelson, Managing Director at the RTITB
• Wilma Randall, Vice President IT at DHL Supply Chain

Rising Star of the Year sponsored by BiS Henderson

• WINNER - Lieutenant Charlotte Edwards, RLC
• Laura Hassan, Doddle
• Chloe Longstaff, TNT
• Captain Alexandra Petherbridge, RLC
• Emma Ross, Crimson & Co / CILT
• Kate Turner, DB Schenker

Diversity Champion of the Year sponsored by Hays

• WINNER - Helen Diksa, HR Director (Operations) at Royal Mail
• Sarah Bell, Head of Learning and Talent Development at TNT UK
• John Smith, HR Director at Eddie Stobart
   

Company of the Year sponsored by the Forton Group

• WINNER - Royal Logistic Corps
• Coca Cola Enterprises
• Freightex
• Oliver Sanderson