Gould Collects Award From Portillo

“Invest, and ignore the doom and gloom merchants,” says thebigword CEO.

Entrepreneur Larry Gould has added another accolade to his collection, receiving an award from former Government Minister and TV presenter Michael Portillo at the Institute of Directors’ (IOD) Director of the Year Awards. Larry Gould, CEO of language services company thebigword, was entered into the IOD’s national awards by the IOD in Yorkshire, which presented him with a Lifetime Achievement award at a ceremony in York last year. Attending the national event in London, he received the ‘Highly Commended’ award in the ‘Global Director of the Year’ category.

Larry Gould founded thebigword and has spearheaded its growth to a £42 million, world top-20 business, employing nearly 500 people in 12 offices in nine countries. With its global HQ in Leeds, thebigword interprets two million minutes of speech and translates 35 million words every month.

The IOD’s judging panel looked at details of the business and financials as well as competitiveness, leadership qualities and the ability to engage and up-skill the workforce. Also taken into account were growth strategy and building an ethically and socially responsible business. Speaking after collecting a certificate from Michael Portillo, Larry Gould said: “I feel tremendously honoured to receive this. These awards represent the pinnacle of achievement for company directors and there are some incredibly clever and successful people amongst the nominees. Our success as a business, and my success as an individual, is based on investment, investment, investment – in people and technology – and not listening to the doom and gloom merchants.”

Larry Gould divides his time between thebigword’s Leeds HQ and its New York operation. He is married to Michele and they have three grown up children and a granddaughter.

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