INDIVIDUAL AWARDS CATEGORIES
01
YOUNG ENGINEER OF THE YEAR AWARD
GUIDELINE
To promote the consulting engineering industry to young professionals, CESA recognises the contribution Young Engineers make to the industry and the future of the profession.
Nominees for this category will be adjudicated according to the following eligibility criteria:
- The nominee must be younger than 36 years of age on the 1st of January of the year in which the awards are made.
- The nominee must be an ECSA registered candidate or professional engineering practitioner.
- The nominee must be a member of the CESA YPF.
- The nomination may be made by co-workers BUT must be approved by the head of the Firm.
- In addition, the nominee must be available to serve on CESA’s Young Professionals Forum (YPF Executive Committee) for a 12-month period in line with the responsibilities given to them by the YPF Chairperson.
- The nomination must consist of a motivation of the outstanding achievements of the nominee under the following headings:
- Post Matric education achievement.
- Technical achievements (project based).
- Career achievements (baccalaureate degree).
- Industry recognition and awards received.
- Contribution to, and understanding of, sustainable development and the green economy.
- Industry involvement (voluntary organisations / councils / university and research).
- Community involvement and social responsibility.
- Leadership ability both within their member firm, and in society in general.
- Papers and presentations delivered.
- Please note, firms can only submit two entries for the Young Engineer of the Year category.
- The entry must include written consent from the nominee and Head of the Firm.
- The entry must include a well-presented and neatly bound report or motivation that is sufficiently comprehensive in describing the nomination. Where relevant, drawings, graphics, tables, and other supporting material must be included. The report must contain as one of its main headings, a clear motivation (not exceeding 10 pages) by the entrant, highlighting the merits of the nomination in terms of the CESA Aon Engineering Awards criteria.
- 3x full length (standing, photo from head to toe) and 3x close up (standing, photo from head to waist) casual & work high resolution (minimum 1MB) photographs in jpeg format must be included.
- Other forms of evidence or project photographs or video can be submitted in support of the entry.
- See Appendix B for Physical Requirements Regarding Material for Awards Entry Submission.
NB: All nominees will be interviewed in June 2025 at the CESA offices situated in Paulshof, Johannesburg. Time slots will be allocated closer to the time.
| AWARD CRITERIA | POINTS |
| 20 |
| 20 |
| 10 |
| 10 |
| 10 |
| 10 |
| 10 |
| 15 |
| 15 |
| TOTAL | 120 points |
- Technical achievement on a Project.
The nominee is required to show how he /she contributed (within a team or on his/her) to the technical achievement on a Project / Projects. The nominee’s role in developing a solution needs to be demonstrated. The explanation needs to include their level of responsibility in the design and implementation, including stakeholder management as well as the complexity of the problem and how the technical achievement added value to the project, community and/or industry.
- Post matriculation educational achievement.
Include all tertiary qualifications, both undergraduate and postgraduate, including those currently in progress. Other notable training that does not necessarily have to be a Degree/ Diploma, should be added.
- Career achievements after completion of baccalaureate degree.
The candidate must demonstrate how their career has developed after completing their bachelor’s degree. This can be demonstrated through industry involvement through participation in committees and institutions, growth within the company, participation in academia and development of youth, professional registration etc.
- Industry recognition, such as awards.
- Contribution to sustainable development / green economy.
The candidate must demonstrate how they have supported sustainability and a green economy in a project, within the workplace and in their personal capacity. This could include engineering solutions that were implemented on a project that were driven by sustainability considerations; or personal ideas on sustainable development / green economy etc.
- Papers and presentations delivered.
- Community involvement and social responsibility.
- Leadership ability of the nominee and his or her contribution to building the image of the firm and the engineering industry in general.
The candidate must showcase their leadership ability on a project, within the team and firm. The nominee must also demonstrate how they have contributed to building the image of the firm as well as the engineering industry, in general.
The entrant must showcase their skill at managing a team to successfully produce the necessary deliverables. They must describe any involvement in company mentoring programmes, their involvement in giving technical and self-development talks, committee work, involvement in university work or industry committees.
- Industry involvement (position held and achievements) – CESA / CESA YPF / FIDIC / other ECSA’s VAs.
Submit your pre-entry for Young Engineer of the Year Award
02
MENTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD
GUIDELINE
This award emphasises the mentorship of young engineers and technologists and recognises the valuable contribution mentors make in the consulting engineering industry.
SUBMISSION
The nomination must be a well-presented bound document containing:
- Please note, firms can only submit one entry for the Mentor of the Year category.
- The written consent of the nominee and the head of the firm.
- A clear motivation highlighting the merits of the nomination in terms of the competition award criteria (not exceeding 10 pages).
- Testimony of at least three mentees/candidates who have been mentored by the nominee (no more than one A4 page per testimony).
- Any supporting documents (action plans, 2-5-year mentoring plans, etc.) that the nominee or proposer may wish to submit.
- 3x full length (standing, photo from head to toe) and 3x close up (standing, photo from head to waist) casual & work high resolution (minimum 1MB) photographs in jpeg format must be included.
- Other forms of evidence or videos can be submitted in support of the entry.
- See Appendix B for Physical Requirements Regarding Material for Awards Entry Submission.
The entry must contain sufficient evidence to enable the adjudicators to assess the nominee.
| AWARD CRITERIA | POINTS |
Passion and ability to support and guide young engineering professionals to develop and grow holistically in:
| 70 |
8. Maintaining ongoing contact and interaction with the supervisor/line manager of the mentee/candidate | 10 |
9. Regular documented monitoring of development and growth | 20 |
10. Level of planning to achieve ECSA registration | 10 |
11. Understanding ECSA requirements for candidacy training | 15 |
12. Registration with ECSA as a mentor (yes or no) | 15 |
| TOTAL | 140 |
Submit your pre-entry for Mentor of the Year Award
03
THE LIFETIME INDUSTRY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
This is a discretionary award to recognise an individual who has contributed significantly to the development and promotion of the Consulting Engineering Industry in South Africa during their lifetime.
CESA Board will consider an individual with a consistent and outstanding track record of no less than 20 years’ active involvement in a consulting engineering practice who has provided leadership, commitment, mentorship entrepreneurship with unfailing integrity and professionalism.
The Award may be made to retirees even to the point of recognising individuals posthumously who have made such contribution from the dawn of our democracy in 1994 that may have passed on.
INDIVIDUAL
- Please note, firms can only submit one entry for the Lifetime Industry Achievement category.
- The nominees shall be visionary who has influenced the shaping of the business of consulting engineering.
- The nominees shall have achieved great success using their engineering and business acumen to become a leader and trusted advisor in their communities, engineering institutions and client bodies.
- The nominee must have unquestioned integrity, have displayed visionary attributes, determination to succeed, professionalism, inventiveness, entrepreneurship, individuality, team leadership and selflessness resulting in a pre-eminently high measure of accomplishment in the business of Consulting Engineering according to the judgment of the associates of the nominee and other industry leaders.
- The nominee must be of such stature in the Consulting Engineering and broader business environment to be an icon in the industry.
- The nominees shall be or should have been a principal or executive manager in a member firm of CESA for at least 15 years.
- The nominees shall be a South African citizen (by birth or naturalisation) and an engineering practitioner who has succeeded and achieved major successes in the business of consulting engineering services for a period of no less than 20 years.
- The nominees shall have an extensive track record about the mentoring of upcoming engineering practitioners and involvement in projects aimed at uplifting the engineering profession and the consulting engineering industry in South Africa.
- This award shall be given to an individual for exemplary achievement in the business of consulting engineering.
NB: Your nomination must include a written motivation no longer than 4 pages or 1750 words and 3x full length (standing, photo from head to toe) and 3x close up (standing, photo from head to waist) casual & work high resolution (minimum 1MB) photographs in jpeg format.
Submit your pre-entry for the Lifetime Industry Achievement Award
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