Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 20 February 2019: SME Advisor has announced that it will now be accepting nominations for the 2019 edition of its prestigious Stars of Business Leadership Awards which is set to take place on March 6, 2019 at the JW Marriott Marquis in Dubai.

The Stars of Business Leadership Awards is being hosted in partnership with Exclusive Insurance Partner Cigna Insurance Middle East, Official Freezone Partner Dubai South, Official Airline Partner Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi and Exclusive Car Partner Toyota. The award has been recognizing companies in the region with phenomenal growth stories, exceptional achievements, and top market positioning since its inception more than 13 years ago. This year, the nomination process has become more intensive with every application directly going to a prestigious jury, which will be composed of trailblazers in their respective industries.

This years panel of judges includes Mustafa Kheriba, COO, Abu Dhabi Financial Group (ADFG); Trixie Lohmirmand, Senior Vice President, Dubai World Trade Centre; Jerome Droesch, CEO Cigna MENA; Valerie Lindsay, Professor, American University of Sharjah; Craig Moore, Founder and CEO, Beehive; Sunil John, President Middle East, Asdaa Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW); Waleed Dhaduk, CEO, Emaar Industries & Investments; and Investment Banker Talal Nasrullah.

We have honoured some fabulous, well-merited institutions for more than a decade now and we are continuing this tradition this year when the Stars of Business Leadership Awards returns in March. This years recipients will be recognized for their passion, hard work, vision, and inspiring leadership styles, in addition to their creative and innovative thinking that drives their entire team forward. Whats critical about this years Awards is that they are 100% jury-led and were going a step further to reinforce the credibility of the Awards. We invite everyone to submit their entries across the awards nine categories. We are excited to receive their applications, said Gina OHara, Co-founder, SME Advisor.

Categories for this years awards are Family Business Leader of the Year; Emirati Business Leader of the Year; SME Influencer of the Year; Digital Disruptor of the Year; Youth Leadership Award of the Year; Star of Business Leadership Award 2019 Male; Star of Business Leadership Award 2019 Female; Leader Shaping the Future Award and Social Entrepreneurship Leader of the Year.

Craig Moore, Founder, Beehive, and one of the members of the prestigious jury said: The Stars of Business Leadership Awards is known for its stringent and credible nomination process. We have put in place key criteria to carefully assess and evaluate all submissions to guarantee that they will meet the required standards. The awards are for leading organisations that have made and continue to make a difference in their respective fields--inspiring their fellow leaders and the community at large to make an impact in the future.

Nominations can be submitted at www.starsofbusinessawards.com.