KPMG Business Book Awards

KPMG Business Book Awards
Name	KPMG Business Book Awards
Awarded for	Excellence in business writing
Presenter	KPMG
Country	United Kingdom
Year	2011

KPMG Business Book Awards The KPMG Business Book Awards were a United Kingdom literary prize recognising excellence in business writing, established to celebrate authors addressing corporate governance, management consulting, financial markets, leadership studies, and entrepreneurship. The prize brought together figures from accountancy, investment banking, management consulting firms, publishing industry, and academic institutions to spotlight works that influenced practitioners at organisations like PwC, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, Barclays, and HSBC. The awards operated alongside other British literary and professional prizes such as the British Book Awards, Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award, and the Man Booker Prize in the wider cultural landscape.

History

The awards were launched in 2011 during a period of heightened public interest in corporate accountability following events tied to Lehman Brothers, Royal Bank of Scotland, Anglo Irish Bank, Lloyds Banking Group, and national responses by policymakers at HM Treasury, Bank of England, and the European Central Bank. Early ceremonies took place in London venues near Canary Wharf, The City of London, and institutions such as London Stock Exchange Group, attracting authors, editors from houses like Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, and strategists from Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Company. Over subsequent years the awards reflected trends shaping Silicon Valley, Wall Street, Shenzhen, Beijing, and Bangalore through shortlisted titles addressing innovation at firms like Google, Amazon (company), Facebook, Tesla, Inc., and Alibaba Group. Sponsors and partners included multinational firms such as KPMG International and media partners from Financial Times, The Economist, and broadcasters like BBC.

Award Criteria and Eligibility

Eligible works typically consisted of non-fiction books published in the United Kingdom by authors who examined organisations, markets, or public policy with relevance to practitioners at firms including Microsoft, Apple Inc., Siemens, General Electric, and Unilever. Criteria emphasised originality, rigorous research drawing on sources such as reports from International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and archival materials from repositories like the British Library and National Archives (UK). Submissions were required to be in English and available through distributors serving retailers such as Waterstones, WHSmith, Amazon (company), and Barnes & Noble. The rules also addressed previous awards won by titles in competitions such as the Costa Book Awards and the Samuel Johnson Prize.

Selection Process and Jury

A longlist and shortlist were compiled annually by a panel of judges composed of editors from Financial Times, academics from London School of Economics, Oxford University (UK), Cambridge University, business leaders from Shell plc, BP, and journalists from The Guardian, The Times (London), and The Wall Street Journal. The process involved initial screening by a submissions committee including representatives from KPMG International and independent book reviewers from organisations such as NPR and The New York Times. Final deliberations occurred in meetings that referenced comparative awards like the FT/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award and consulted experts linked to think tanks such as Chatham House, Rand Corporation, and Institute for Fiscal Studies.

Categories and Prizes

Prizes recognised commercial and academic contributions to discourse on management and corporate practice, often awarding a top prize accompanied by monetary awards and promotional support from partners including KPMG International and media partners such as Bloomberg. Categories reflected themes seen in titles about corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, innovation, and strategy and sometimes included special jury prizes in collaboration with organisations like CFA Institute, Institute of Directors (UK), and Federation of Small Businesses. Winning often led to speaking engagements at conferences hosted by institutions such as TED, Web Summit, Davos (World Economic Forum), and university lecture series at Harvard Business School and Judge Business School.

Notable Winners and Shortlisted Books

Shortlisted and winning authors often included high-profile writers and academics whose works intersected with institutions and events such as Black Monday (1987), Dot-com bubble, 2008 financial crisis, and corporate case studies involving Enron, WorldCom, Toyota Motor Corporation, BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and Volkswagen emissions scandal. Notable authors mirrored in coverage included figures associated with Harvard University, Stanford University, Wharton School, MIT Sloan School of Management, and chroniclers publishing with Faber and Faber and Bloomsbury Publishing. Shortlisted works frequently entered prize conversations alongside titles lauded by Pulitzer Prize juries, National Book Award panels, and commentators from The Economist and Financial Times.

Impact and Reception

The awards influenced book sales in retail outlets such as Waterstones and online platforms like Amazon (company), prompting invitations for winners to contribute op-eds in The Guardian, Financial Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Recognition boosted authors’ profiles leading to consultancies with firms like McKinsey & Company, board appointments at companies such as Unilever and Diageo, and lecture tours at institutions including London Business School and Said Business School. Coverage by broadcasters including BBC Radio 4, CNBC, and Bloomberg Television extended the reach of shortlisted ideas into discussions at policy forums convened by World Economic Forum and regional bodies like European Commission.

Controversies and Criticism

Critics questioned potential conflicts of interest arising from sponsorship by multinational firms including KPMG International and corporate partners tied to accountancy and consulting sectors represented by Big Four (accounting firms), PwC, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young. Commentators from outlets such as The Guardian, The Financial Times, and The Independent debated editorial independence, while academics at London School of Economics and commentators from Institute of Directors (UK) pointed to selection transparency and perceived bias toward commercially oriented titles. Debates paralleled controversies in other sponsored prizes like discussions around the Man Booker Prize sponsorships and funding models involving institutions such as Arts Council England.

Category:British literary awards