Assessment
The SDC Awards 2022 feature a number of categories, providing a wide range of options for organisations and individuals involved in the IT industry to participate.
Entries for all awards must refer to projects, innovations and initiatives which were completed/first available/launched in EMEA between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022.
Our editorial staff will only validate entries ensuring they have met the entry criteria outlined for each category. We will then announce the ‘shortlist’ to be voted on by the readers of the Digitalisation World stable of titles. Voting takes place in October and November. The selection of winners is based solely on the public votes received. The winners will be announced at a gala evening event in November.
Should your nomination be successful and reach the shortlist ALL material submitted will appear on the website for the public vote. Please do not include confidential information in your submission.
All entries must demonstrate tangible benefits either in terms of cost savings or efficiency gains for the end-user concerned. Particular attention will be paid to examples of exemplary customer service in the delivery of the project.
Project categories entry criteria: Please answer these questions in the general description of your nominations in these categories:
- What was the driving force behind the project – what business or technology challenge needed to be addressed?
- How did the solution address the challenges and were there any particularly innovative aspects that made it stand out?
- What major challenges were faced during the project and how were they overcome?
- What tangible benefits has the organisation seen as a result of the project’s implementation?
Open to any specific data business continuity and disaster recovery project implemented in any organisation of any size in EMEA.
Open to any project, carried out on behalf of any organisation of any size in EMEA, where a Cloud implementation or outsourced MSP project has led to demonstrable business transformation.
Open to any specific IT security project, including compliance and GDPR implemented in any organisation of any size in EMEA.
Open to any project, carried out on behalf of any organisation of any size in EMEA, where the end result has contributed to a significant digital transformation of the business – these might include a focus on topics such as remote/hybrid working; low/no code, API and microservices or data analytics.
Open to any IT automation project implemented within an enterprise or public environment in EMEA - the project is likely to encompass one of the following technologies: orchestration management, IoT, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and/or robotics process automation.
Open to any project, carried out on behalf of any organisation of any size in EMEA, where a storage implementation has led to demonstrable business transformation.
Entry Criteria: Please answer these questions in the general description of your nomination in these categories:
- What is your product's / solution's key distinguishing features and/or USP?
- What tangible impact has your product/solution had on the market and your customers?
- What are the major differentiators between your product/solution and those of your primary competitors?
- Please supply any supportive quotes and/or case study materials to demonstrate the value of this product/solution to your customers/partners.
Open to any system or solution that enhances or improves backup and archive of IT data in any organisation or company of any size.
Open to any BC/DR software - delivered in either single or multi-vendor environments.
Open to any product/technology solution that delivers enhanced IT security and/or compliance in any part of any organisation’s IT environment.
Open to any single or multi-vendor solution that delivers an architecture that tightly integrates compute, storage, networking and virtualisation resources for the end-user.
Open to any clearly identifiable IT storage hardware solution – disk, tape, SSD/Flash etc.
Open to any IT storage management software - delivered in either single or multi-vendor environments.
Entry Criteria: Please answer these questions in the general description of your nomination in these categories:
- What is your product's / solution's key distinguishing features and/or USP?
- What tangible impact has your product/solution had on the market and your customers?
- What are the major differentiators between your product/solution and those of your primary competitors?
- Please supply any supportive quotes and/or case study materials to demonstrate the value of this product/solution to your customers/partners.
Open to any product/technology solution that’s primary design is to provide AI/machine learning for the end user. It’s likely that the innovation will focus on one or more of the following: machine/deep learning (ML/DL), Internet of Things (IoT), robotic process automation (RPA), edge.
Open to any product/technology solution that’s primary design is to provide a data management and / or analytics solution for the end user.
Open to any product/technology solution that’s primary design is to provide either an Open Source and/or DevOps solution for the end user.
Open to any product or service that delivers IT orchestration and/or automation to the enterprise or public organisation.
Entry Criteria: Please answer these questions in the general description of your nomination in these categories:
- What is your product's / solution's key distinguishing features and/or USP?
- What tangible impact has your product/solution had on the market and your customers?
- What are the major differentiators between your product/solution and those of your primary competitors?
- Please supply any supportive quotes and/or case study materials to demonstrate the value of this product/solution to your customers/partners.
Open to any product/technology solution that’s design is to provide a cloud-based platform via a service offering in the public or private domain.
Open to any product/technology solution that’s design is to enable or enhance cloud-based security via a service offering.
Open to any product/technology solution that’s design is to enable or enhance specific cloud-based data storage via a service offering
Open to any product/technology/service or solution that would identifiable within the IaaS classification, delivering a fully outsourced infrastructure service to end-use organisations.
Open to any product/technology solution that is not covered by any other Cloud Innovation category, and which is delivered via a Cloud/service offering.
Please answer these questions in the general description of your nomination in these categories:
- How long has this organisation been involved in the IT services and solutions market in EMEA?
- Are there any key projects delivered in the last year that demonstrate this candidate’s suitability for the award?
- What endorsements does that nominee have from their customers and/or their technology partners?
- Please highlight any particular aspects of customer services delivered as part of the program(s).
Open to any IT vendor or Channel organisation delivering end-user customer service in the UK or EMEA markets. Entries must be accompanied by a minimum of THREE customer testimonials (in English) attesting to the high level of customer service delivered that sets the entrant apart from their competition.
Open to any Managed Services Provider or Value-Added Reseller delivering end-user services in the storage, cloud and/or digitalization technologies market in the EMEA region.
Open to any innovative Managed Service(s) or VAR solution designed around cyber-security technologies available in the EMEA region.
Open to any individual recognised to have made a significant contribution to business development in the storage, digitalisation, cloud and cyber-security spaces – they should be working within a systems distributor, VAR or MSP organisation.
SDC Company Awards - entrants must have been present in the EMEA markets prior to 1st January 2022. Companies entering any of the project or innovation awards should also consider submitting themselves for these Company awards using the other entry as the basis for their consideration here:
Entry Criteria: Please answer these questions in the general description of your nomination:
- What are your company’s key distinguishing features and/or USP with regard to your products and/or services?
- What tangible impact has your company had on the market and your customers? (you can use the project or innovation award for this justification)
- Please supply any supportive quotes and/or case study materials to support your entry.
Open to any company supplying a range of cloud products and/or technologies/solutions and services in the EMEA Market.
This award recognizes a corporate or individual contribution (between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022) which has had a significant, positive benefit in developing a positive company culture – likely to include some or all of the following: inclusivity, environmental and social responsibility, the digital/hybrid workplace
Open to any company which can demonstrate major success in supplying technology solutions which enable end users to undertake digital transformation projects.
This award recognizes a corporate or individual contribution ( between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022) in developing a training/education programme to help address the current IT industry skills shortage. This might include anything from STEM-focused work, the re-training of personnel from other industry sectors (ie accessing transferable skills), or more general personal digital skills improvement projects.
This award recognizes a corporate or individual contribution (between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022) in developing a company-wide inclusivity initiative that has inclusivity designed-in to the project (ie occurring ‘organically’), as opposed to a specific quota-led focus (whether women, LGBTQ, BAME, disabled).
This award recognizes a corporate or individual contribution (between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022) in developing a corporate mental health initiative designed to improve the mental well-being of employees.
This award recognizes a corporate or individual contribution (between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022) which engages in a structured programme of mentoring individuals and/or small groups, helping them with their educational needs and/or helping them with their professional career development.
This award recognizes a corporate or individual contribution ( between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2022) which has a beneficial impact outside of the workplace – with the main focus likely to be some combination of charitable, local community, environmental and/or fundraising activities.
Open to any company supplying a range of storage products and/or technologies/solutions and services in the EMEA Market.