"This year again we have concluded a successful, large-scale event with nearly 300 participants, which not only we, the board, and the management, but also all award winners, award recipients, and guests look forward to this special occasion every year.

This year, I was again the presenter of the iconic Manager of the Year Award, the oldest copyright-protected award of the association. For me, it is perhaps my favorite award of all, because winning this award in 2019 has inspired me to use my knowledge to support the Hungarian management community in the future as president of the organization," said István Kapitány, president of the association.

"This year, we honored a top leader who has had an incredible career in a leading international company, who has made his mark all over the world and who has led the Hungarian company to success in the difficult times of recent years.

This year's Manager of the Year is Péter Noszek, managing director of Nestlé Hungária. Congratulations to him and to all the winners! All the awards are well deserved, and it is a great pride that we were able to raise the prestige of the Manager of the Year Awards and the dala with such leaders again this year," he added.

"The highlight of every year is our Manager of the Year Awards Gala, which takes six months of preparation, including the nomination and selection process.

This event gives us the opportunity to celebrate with our members all our middle and senior managers for their fantastic work over the past year, and to say a special thank you to the eight outstanding leaders who have gone the extra mile, the recipients of the Manager of the Year Awards," added Tímea Buday Kollárik, the association's CEO.

"This year we have come up with a new concept in response to changing needs. After a spectacular red carpet arrival, a gala dinner, and awards ceremony, our guests were invited to join in the celebrations and entertainment. For the first time - after the ceremony - we took official photos of the award winners and the award ceremony with the help of photographer Gergő Pejkó, which we are now sharing with the press and our dear readers."

The Winners

- Nestlé Hungária's managing director, Péter Noszek, is the recipient of the Manager of the Year Award of the Association of Executives. The award was presented by István Kapitány.

- Gabriella Heiszler, president and CEO of SPAR Hungary, is the recipient of the Women Manager of the Year Special Award, jointly presented by the association and Bayer Hungária Kft. The award was presented by Krisztina Kárpát, managing director of Bayer Hungária Kft.

- Barnabás Birmacher, CEO and co-founder of Bitrise, is the recipient of the Young Manager of the Year Award, a joint award of the association and DAS Legal Defence Insurance. The award was presented by György Szabó, CEO of DAS Legal Protection Insurance Company. 

- Tamás Kádár, the founder-CEO of Seon, is the recipient of the Future Manager Special Award, a joint award of the association and Foxconn. The award was presented by Péter Tálos, VP of Foxconn Group. Tamás Kádár flew home from the United States for the award ceremony, but unfortunately, he could not attend the gala due to a viral infection, the award was accepted by Tamás Lajtner, SEON's Head of communications.

- Borbála Czakó, former Hungarian Ambassador to London and strategic advisor is the recipient of the joint Lifetime Achievement Award of the Hungarian Association of Executives and Granit Bank Zrt. The award was presented by Éva Hegedüs, chairman and CEO of Gránit Bank Zrt.

- György Jaksity, founder and chairman of the board of directors of Concorde Zrt., is the recipient of the Special Manager of the Year Award for Society, jointly presented by the association and Shell Hungary Zrt. The award was presented by Andrea Solti Istenes, chairman of the board of Directors of Shell Hungary Zrt.

- Katalin Kiss, managing director of MAM-Hungária Kft. and chief production officer of the MAM Group, is the recipient of the Blue Innovation Special Award, a joint award of the association and Volkswagen. The award was presented by Zoltán Papp, brand director of Volkswagen.

- Zsolt Jamniczky, deputy CEO of the E.ON Hungária Group, is the recipient of the Special Award for the Manager of the Year for the Environmentally Conscious Economy, jointly awarded by the association and Linde Gáz Magyarország Zrt. The award was presented by Ákos Hegedüs, CEO of Linde Gáz Magyarország Zrt.

At the beginning of the year, nearly 15 partner organizations of the association, the president and the executive board of the association, as well as the chairman of the nominating committee, György Beck, and the members of the committee, last year's award winners, made their recommendations in all eight categories. 

Based on the scoring of the committee, three candidates per category were presented to the president of the association, without ranking. And this year again, the board decided by secret ballot - after a six-month nomination and decision-making process - who the most outstanding managers and the best of the best were for 2022.

The presenters of the gala were Krisztina Bombera and Gergely Váczi. During the dinner, La Movida Cuba provided the background music, and later on they created a pleasant Latin atmosphere on the terrace.

The Future Manager Party started at 11 p.m. with the biggest international hits, interpreted by DJ Leslie2Long and Telma Lincoln. In addition to the award sponsors, the 28th Manager of the Year Awards Gala was co-sponsored by the Budapest Marriott Hotel, Francois Champagne, Premirum Europe, Coca-Cola HBC Hungary, Nespresso Professional, Gerbeaud Café and Confectionery and the Pannonhalma Abbey.

This year, the beneficiary of the charity raffle draw was United Way Hungary, who raised a record HUF 2,000,000.