The Bracken Bower Prize is named after Brendan Bracken, Chairman of the  FT from 1945 to 1958, and Marvin Bower, Managing Director of McKinsey & Company from 1950 to 1967, who were instrumental in laying the foundation for the present day success of the two institutions. The prize aims to encourage young writers and researchers to identify and analyse the business trends of the future.

The annual prize will be awarded to the best proposal. The judges will favour authors who write with knowledge, creativity, originality and style and whose proposed books promise to break new ground, or examine pressing business challenges in original ways. 

Only writers who are over 18 and under 35 on 30 November 2021 will be eligible. They can be a published author, but the proposal itself must be original and must not have been previously submitted to a publisher.

 The Bracken Bower Prize will be presented at the Business Book of the Year Award event on 1 December 2021.

Register your interest now so we can keep you informed of key deadlines and updates on the prize. We will share our frequently asked questions and answers and give you access to our booklet on 'How to Write a Winning Proposal' with tips and ideas from previous winners.

Stephen Boyle

Head of Data Design

Lloyds Banking Group

Stephen Boyle leads the data design team at Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) where he helps to set strategy and direction for the data function. He is interested in how big data and technology are changing both finance and people’s experience of it. He is particularly focused on how banks can make the most of the huge amount of data they hold to benefit their customers and stakeholders while maintaining robust privacy protections, ideas he’s exploring as part of his part-time MBA at Henley Business School. 

Originally from Dublin, Ireland, Stephen moved to America for two years in 2009 after graduating with a master’s degree in economic science from University College Dublin. He was a communications lecturer and coached the debating team at the University of Vermont, a job he secured after a successful time as a university debater, winning the Irish Times national championships, the Yale Intervarsity competition and the gold medal of the Literary & Historical Society. 

Stephen moved to London, England in 2011, taking up a job with Accenture as a management consultant before moving to LBG. He lives in south-east London with his wife Anna. His hobbies include cookery, photography, playing football badly and supporting Liverpool ardently.

The Serendipity Mindset: The Art and Science of Creating Good Luck

by Dr Christian Bush

2017 Winner

Competition is Killing Us: How Big Business is Harming Our Society and Planet – and What To Do About It

by Michelle Meagher

2018 Shortlist

The Serendipity Mindset: The Art and Science of Creating Good Luck

by Dr Christian Bush

2017 Winner

Out-Innovate:  How Global Entrepreneurs--from Delhi to Detroit--Are Rewriting the Rules of Silicon Valley

by Alexandre Lazarow 

2017 Finalist 

Blockchain Babel: The Crypto Craze and the Challenge to Business

by Igor Pejic

2016 Finalist

The Fuzzy and the Techie

by Scott Hartley 

2016 Finalist

Meltdown: Why Our Systems Fail and What We Can Do About It

by Christopher Clearfield & András Tilcsik

2015 Winners

The Next Factory of the World: How Chinese Investment Is Reshaping Africa

by Irene Yuan Sun

2015 Finalist

The Power of Being Divisive: Understanding Negative Social Evaluations

by Thomas J. Roulet

2015 Finalist

The Puzzle of Prison Order: Why Life Behind Bars Varies Around the World

by David Skarbek

2015 Shortlist

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