Launched in 1980, the idea of setting up recruitment awards was jointly proposed by the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) and the IPM (Institute of Personnel Management), now the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). The objectives were to give annual recognition to the best recruitment advertisements published over the year, and reward excellence and professionalism achieved by the recruitment industry.

In 1994 The Guardian took over the sponsorship and organisation of the event and the IPA’s involvement ceased.

By 2002 it was clear that the original objective of recognising published recruitment advertisements was outdated; there was so much more to recruitment than on-the-page advertising so new media and other pioneering recruitment techniques were embraced.

And so, with exec-appointments.com (part of Financial Times Recruitment Solutions) as the new headline sponsor, we are celebrating our thirtieth year. The evolution of the awards continues with new categories and judging criteria introduced this year to reflect the innovation, creativity and effectiveness of recruitment practices.

The CIPD Recruitment Marketing Awards remain the most coveted, robust and prestigious awards in the UK recruitment industry.