Intense debate, playful banter and deep industry knowledge were on display at the jury meet of the second edition of ET Prime Women Leadership Awards 2020.

The awards celebrate and acknowledge current and future women leaders, who exhibit the spirit of entrepreneurship, innovation, and excellence. The 90+ women business leaders considered under various categories have had great career paths. All of them have disrupted their industries with their presence. They have changed perceptions about leadership in their own unique way.

The jury meeting was chaired by Shanti Ekambaram, president (consumer banking) and member of the executive board, Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited; Aisha De Sequeira (Co-Country Head, Morgan Stanley); Amit Chandra (Managing Director, Bain Capital); Ashu Khullar (CEO, Citi India); Gautam Sinha (CEO, Times Internet Ltd.); Karthik B. Reddy (Managing Partner, Blume Ventures); Rakesh Jhunjhunwala (Partner, Rare Enterprises); Rekha M. Menon (Chairman and Senior Managing Director, Accenture in India); Samina Hamied (Executive Vice-Chairman, Cipla), and Santrupt Misra (Director, Group Human Resources, Aditya Birla Group).

The process:
* The editorial team, along with the knowledge partner Accord India, did the initial research on worthy candidates and their companies.
* The teams conducted extensive research on each nominee, cross-referenced each nominee and their companies/organisations.
* An extensive financial due diligence was carried out on their companies – both listed and privately held.
* Research was also done on the candidates’ achievements and their innovative contributions.
* The long list of 700 was then pruned and given to the jury to weigh in with their wise counsel and choose the winners.

The jury deliberated over the nominee list for about two hours. The discussion was engaging and at times, intense. There were a couple of dramatic moments during the discussion, especially when the jury members decided to use their personal knowledge to talk about candidates.

Award Categories:

1. Lifetime Achievement
2. Business Woman of the Year
3. CEO of the Year
4. Entrepreneur of the Year
5. Global Indian of the Year
6. Beyond Business
7. HR Leader of the Year
8. Finance Leader of the Year
9. Brand and Marketing Leader of the Year
10. Technology Leader of the Year
11. Accenture 'Vaahini' Innovator of the Year
12. Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year
13. Emerging Leader of the Year

The winners will be felicitated at a function on March 13 in Mumbai.