Spirit of Service Awards 2023
Winners, finalists, and judges
We are now welcoming Expressions of Interest (EOIs) for Te Hāpai Hapori | Spirit of Service Awards 2024. Please complete a separate EOI for each entry you would like to submit. You do not need to complete EOIs for the Young Leader of the Year award.
If you would like to learn more about these awards and the entry process, please join us at one of our information sessions:
An invite will be sent to all awards contacts. All are welcome - please email us at awards@publicservice.govt.nz if you would like to join.
Te Tohu mō ngā Hua E Pai Ake Ana | The Better Outcomes Award celebrates the achievement of significant outcomes in areas that matter most for the long-term wellbeing for New Zealanders.
The judges will be looking for initiatives that demonstrate spirit of service through:
Te Tohu mō te Ratonga Whakahirahira | Service Excellence Award celebrates leading-edge service improvements that are making a real difference to the lives of New Zealanders.
The judges will be looking for initiatives that demonstrate spirit of service through:
Te Tohu mō te Tūhonotanga a Ngāi Māori me te Karauna | The Māori Crown Relationships Award celebrates outstanding contributions to strengthening the health of Māori Crown relationships through:
The judges will be looking for initiatives that demonstrate:
Te Tohu mō te Hiranga o te Mahi Kaupapa Here | Excellence in Public Policy Award celebrates outstanding public policy development.
The judges will be looking for public policy that:
Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | The Young Leader of the Year Award celebrates inspirational young public sector leaders who exemplify the spirit of service.
The judges will be looking for nominees who demonstrate spirit of service through:
Nominees must be aged 35 years or under as at 31 December in the year of application.
Te Tohu Oranga Angitū | The Lifetime Achievement Award honours an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to New Zealand or their community and who exemplifies a spirit of service.
The recipient is selected by the Public Service Commissioner.
Te Tohu a te Pirimia | The Prime Minister’s Award for the overall winner of the year is selected from the winners of the Better Outcomes Award, Service Excellence Award, Māori Crown Relationship Award and Excellence in Public Policy Award.
This award is not open to nominations.
Entries for Te Tohu mō ngā Hua E Pai Ake Ana | Better Outcomes, Te Tohu mō te Ratonga Whakahirahira | Service Excellence, Te Tohu mō te Hiranga o te Mahi Kaupapa Here | Excellence in Public Policy Award and Te Tohu mō te Tūhonotanga a Ngāi Māori me te Karauna | Māori Crown Relationships Awards will be accepted from single agencies or collaborative cross-agency initiatives and may include partners outside the public sector.
Entries are invited from:
Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | Young Leader of the Year Nominees must:
Complete an Expressions of Interest (EOI) form.
The Awards team will be in contact to discuss your EOI and next steps.
Once you have completed your EOI the Awards team will send you an entry form.
Young Leader of the Year Entry Form - EOIs are not required for Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | Young Leader of the Year
We recommend using Adobe DC to open these editable PDFs. Unfortunately, macrons may not show correctly. The Awards team will correct any macron issues before the shortlisting process.
Your entry must be endorsed by the relevant chair or chief executive. If multiple agencies are involved, including partners outside the public sector, the endorsement of all chief executives is required. We will accept a brief email from the chief executives of partner organisations indicating that they endorse the entry.
Please allow sufficient time for all groups involved to read and endorse the entry. We advise collaborating early with partner agencies to ensure all voices are captured.
Those selected as finalists will be notified via email and asked to confirm a short bio to be published on our webpage. All finalists are asked to prepare a 10-minute presentation, which will be presented to the judges at Te Kawa Mataaho | Public Service Commission in Wellington. Following the presentation, finalists sit with the judges for an informal Q&A session.
Ngā mihi ki ngā kaitautoko o 2024. Thank you to our 2024 sponsors.
Email: awards@publicservice.govt.nz
The Spirit of Service team is available to assist with any queries you have regarding public service awards and recognition.
We engage with key contacts at each government agency throughout the year about the awards programme. Please contact us if you have any questions.