OFFICIAL PHOTOS: https://www.flickr.com/photos/pathway2grow/albums/72177720333166399

London, UK – The highly anticipated shortlist for The Business Book Awards 2026 in partnership with Pathway Group, was unveiled at a packed live event held at Pearson’s head offices on the Strand, London, on Tuesday 14th April 2026. 

Authors, publishers, and leading business figures gathered for a buzzing shortlist reveal party, where the titles selected to progress to the finals of this year’s awards were announced. 

Welcoming the audience, Julian Partridge, Director of Portfolio Management at Pearson said, “It’s terrific to be able to celebrate this evening with all of you. It’s a tough process. It’s a great process, but enjoy the evening and best of luck.”

2026 has seen an unprecedented growth in titles submitted, with a record-breaking 340 books entered, a 25% increase on 2025. This surge is reflected in the awards’ largest-ever shortlist, with 130 books by business leaders from across the globe named as finalists across 14 categories.

Speaking at the event, Head Judge Jacq Burns extended thanks to the panel of 46 expert judges, recognising their dedication and rigorous evaluation process in selecting this year’s finalists. 

In recent years, the awards have continued to gain significant international recognition within the global thought leadership space. This year, the International Business Book category received 70 entries alone.

Founded in 2017, The Business Book Awards in partnership with Pathway Group, celebrates authors who share their industry insight, market expertise, and professional experience through published works that inform, inspire, and drive business success. 

Winners across all categories will be announced on Wednesday 16th September 2026 at The Drum Wembley (next to Wembley Arena), culminating in the crowning of one outstanding title as Business Book of the Year 2026. 

Early Bird tickets on sale now.

Startup / Scaleup Finalists 2026

• Build, Scale, Sell by Paul Flavin (Self-Published)
• Buy, Run, Build by Charles Skinner (Bloomsbury)
• How to Make a Billion in Nine Steps by Sir Richard Harpin (Piatkus)
• How to Survive in a Scale-Up Business by Vidya Murali (Routledge)
• Lifestyle Business Playbook by Daniel Priestley (Capstone)
• Stand Out Hospitality by Cassie Davison (Rethink Press) 

Sales & Marketing Finalists 2026

• Community Building for Marketers by Areej AbuAli (Kogan Page)
• How To Sell by Steve Radford (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Human First Marketing by Phil Treagus-Evans (Hercules Street Publishing)
• Leads Machine by Francis Rodino (Rethink Press)
• Pitch by Danny Fontaine (Profile Books)
• Rebrand Right by Rachel Fairley & Sarah Robb (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• ROI Reimagined by Martin Newman (Whitefox Publishing)
• The Brand New Future by Bob Sheard (LID Publishing)
• The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook by Sasha Frieze (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• The Work Smarter Guide to Pitching by David Kean & Tanya Khandurova (Robinson) 

People, Culture & Management Finalists 2026

• Confident by Caroline Brewin (Grosvenor House Publishing)
• Connection and Disconnection in Remote Teams by Bree Caggiati & Pilar Orti (Paperplay)
• Generationally Speaking by Alastair Greener (Right Book Press)
• Lost in Transformation by Rupert Brown (Manuscripts)
• People People by Tom Emery (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Represent! by Andy Gurnett (Bench Press)
• Smart Conflict by Louise van Haarst & Alice Driscoll (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• The 10 Ten-Minute Rules by Kevin Mark-Watts (LID Publishing)
• The Art of Less by Mats Alevesson & Andre Spicer (Bloomsbury)
• The Confidence Breakthrough by Jo Blakeley (Mijoma Books)
• The Emotional Life of Organisations by Michael Dayton (Routledge)
• The Power of a Lollipop by Feena May, PhD (Girl Friday Productions) 

Change & Sustainability Finalists 2026

• AI Demystified by Antonio Weiss (Pearson)
• Chasing Permanence by Steven N. Adjei (Routledge)
• How to Change the World by Jo Owen (Bloomsbury)
• Karma Capitalism by James Reed (Ebury Edge)
• Nature’s Blueprint for Business by Ines Garcia (Routledge)
• The Good Communicator by Virginia Cinquemani (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• The Human Advantage by Rabi Atiti (Self-Published)
• What Will Your Legacy Be? by Sangeeta Waldron (LID Publishing) 

Leadership Finalists 2026

• Be More Strategic by Charlie Curson (Rethink Press)
• Constellation by Danny Wareham (Firgun Publishing)
• Feminine Intelligence by Elina Teboul (Wiley)
• Good Bye by Lizzie Bentley Bowers & Alison Lucas (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Hope is a Strategy by Ian B Pettigrew (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Lead with Confidence by Jenny Jarvis (Right Book Press)
• Meaning Over Purpose by Angela Rixon (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Shadows at Work by Steven D’Souza (LID Publishing)
• Story Business by Gavin McMahon (Otterpine)
• The Captaincy by Mark Francis (Book Brilliance Publishing)
• The Long-Haul Leader by Chris Ducker (Basic Venture)
• The Through Line by Archana Mohan (Practical Inspiration Publishing) 

Work & Life Finalists 2026

• A Groundhog Career by Dr Helmut Schuster & Dr David Oxley (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Another Door Opens by Eleanor Tweddell (Blink Publishing)
• Flex by Elizabeth Willetts (Wiley)
• Return Journey by Julianne Miles (Piatkus)
• Route 116 To Sonoma by Ross McWilliam (The Book Guild)
• Smart Careers by Jess Annison (Bloomsbury)
• The Rules of Success by Richard Templar (Pearson)
• Tiny Experiments by Anne-Laure Le Cunff (Profile Books) 

Business Self-Development Finalists 2026

• Artificial Death of a Career by Dr Helmut Schuster & Dr David Oxley (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Cut-Through by Dominic Colenso (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Good Girl Rebellion by Anna Campbell (Rethink Press)
• Present With Presence by Isobel Rimmer (Rethink Press)
• Sacred Business by Nikki Trott (Bloomsbury)
• The Failure Advantage by Matthew Egan (Self-Published)
• The Now Woman by Harvi Kaur (Self-Published)
• Trend Leader by Joanna Feeley (Rethink Press)
• You’re the Best! by Dee Blick FCIM (Book Brilliance Publishing)
• Your Platform Power by Ekua Cant (Resilience Press) 

Wellness & Wellbeing Finalists 2026

• Brain Tools for the Busy by Jay Rai (Wiley)
• By Design Not Default by George Anderson (Kinetic Books)
• Do Reset by Jillian Lavender (The Do Book Co)
• Have a Magnificent Menopause by Alison Bladh (Discover Your Bounce)
• How To Help Him by Ryan Parke (Intellectual Perspective Press)
• The Imposter Phenomenon by Dr Kate Atkin (Pearson)
• Uncluttered by Ingrid Pope (Right Book Press)
• Unlearning Masculinity by Cassandra Andrews (Self-Published) 

Short Business Book Finalists 2026

• 12½ Leadership Lessons by Lynn Harris (Friesen Press)
• A Little Book of Leadership Lessons by Steph Edusei (Moja Publishing)
• Box Clever by Rachel Johnson (Hachette Learning)
• Brilliantly Bouncy by Laura Chamberlain (Think Talk Thrive)
• Stop Confusing People by Debbie Jenkins (Intellectual Perspective Press)
• Sustain by Leanne Spencer (Rethink Press)
• The Easy Yes by Janine Coombes (Do It on Purpose Publishing)
• Visibly Brilliant by Esther Stanhope (The Impact Guru) 

Specialist Business Book Finalists 2026

• Business Architecture by Jonathan Hunsley, Debra Paul, Victoria Banner, Michael Greenhalgh & Vicky Rothwell (BCS Publishing)
• Governing the Machine by Ray Eitel-Porter, Paul Dongha & Miriam Vogel (Bloomsbury)
• How to Job Search in Book Publishing by Suzanne Collier (bookcareers.com)
• Internal Communication in Times of Crisis by Alison Arnot (Kogan Page)
• Personal Threat Management by Philip Grindell (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Shift – AI for Agencies by Jules Love (Rethink Press)
• Squad Safe by Joanna Gamper Cuthbert (FCM Publishing)
• Tech-Enabled Hospitality by Jessica Gillingham (Kogan Page)
• The Climate Intelligent Organization by Iggy Bassi & Karan Chopra (Wiley)
• The Cyber Security Handbook by Stephen Delahunty & Sebastien Jardin (Pearson)
• The Financial Times Guide to Business Ethics by Pablo Hepworth Lloyd (FT Publishing)
• The Shape of Taste by Chris Lukehurst (Right Book Press) 

Diversity, Inclusion & Equality Finalists 2026

• Can I Say That? by Poornima Luthra (Publishing Rebel)
• DEI and Me by David Otudeko (Stone Quill Press)
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Explained by Shakil Butt (Kogan Page)
• From Intent to Impact by Asif Sadiq MBE (Emerald Publishing)
• How to Build LGBTQ+ Inclusive Workplaces by Binna Kandola & Ashley Williams (Routledge) 
• M-Power by Laura Haycock (Practical Inspiration Publishing)

Business Journey Finalists 2026

• How to Make a Million in Business by Gary Beckwith (Wrate’s Publishing)
• It’s About Tyme by Adrian Saville & Bruce Whitfield (Pan Macmillan)
• Sole Survivor by Daniel Rubin (Canbury Press)
• The Firkin Saga by David Bruce OBE (Right Book Press)
• The Slingshot Formula by Pascal Clarysse (John Murray Business)
• The Stoic Capitalist by Robert Rosenkranz (Bloomsbury) 

Smart Thinking Finalists 2026

• Decoding Efficiency and Innovation by A. J. Thoresen (Second Order Press)
• DEFY by Dr Sunita Sah (Blink Publishing)
• Judo Thinking by Ben Almond (Brookridge Partners Publishing)
• Junk Values by Erika Clegg (Softwood Books)
• One Size Fits None by Alejandro Juárez Crawford & Miriam Plavin-Masterman (Emerald Publishing)
• Radical Doubt by Bidhan L. Parmar (Diversion Press)
• The Entrepreneur Within by Mark Roberts (Unicorn)
• The Human Edge by Bethan Winn (Human Skills Co)
• The Work We Need by Hilary Cottam (Virago)
• Vibe Coding by Gene Kim & Steve Yegge (IT Revolution)
• We Need New Leaders by Charlotte Otter (Practical Inspiration Publishing)
• Yeah, But by Marc A. Wolfe (Logic Catalyst Press) 

International Business Book Finalists 2026

• A CEO for All Seasons by Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, Vik Malhotra & Kurt Strovink (John Murray Business)
• Brilliant Data by Dr. Diederick van Thiel (LID Publishing)
• Change Fluency by Jay Kiew (Page Two)
• De-Positioning by Todd Irwin (LID Publishing)
• Exceptional Experiences by Neen James (Page Two)
• Pioneers – Neri Karra Sillaman (Wiley)
• The 4 Jobs Club by Kathryn Sollmann (John Murray Business)
• The Belonging Paradox by Danny Gal (LID Publishing)
• The Dark Pattern by Guido Palazzo & Ulrich Hoffrage (PublicAffairs)
• The Seismic Shift in You by Michelle K. Johnston, PhD & Marhshall Goldsmith, PhD (Amplify Publishing Group)
• The Uncertainty Principle by Peter Hinssen (Uitgeverij LannooCampus)
• Voiceprint by Sally Prosser (Dean Publishing)