Everything you need to know about the CRN Impact Awards

The CRN Impact Awards celebrate supplier-led Australian IT projects and technology innovators that are making a difference for customer organisations.

It's pretty simple - we are looking for the best IT projects that are driving outcomes for Australian customers and the most incredible technology products born out of Australian innovation.

This article should help answer the most frequently asked questions you might have about the CRN Impact Awards.

Getting prepared

We have tried to make the entry form as simple as possible. You can get a full overview of the awards by downloading the PDF of the entry kit now, which should have all the answers you need.

It might make life easier if you pre-prepare your responses before filling in the online entry form. We have created a Word document for this very purpose.

The best way to stand out in the awards is to include testimonials from customers, partners, vendors or other relevant stakeholders. We have created a handy email template that you can edit and use for this.

What's new?

The CRN Impact Awards were launched in 2017 to focus on Australian IT projects delivered by channel partners.

This year we have expanded the categories to allow entries from Australian software startups and established Aussie tech vendors as well as distributors that are active in Australia.

Closing date

Awards submissions close at 5.00pm on Thursday 22 February.

You can help us keep a handle on submissions by heading to the online entry form right now and filling out the first page. It will only take a sec.

Why should I enter?

Winning a CRN Impact Award is an incredible way to recognise your team, to promote your capabilities, to prove yourself to customers and to get an edge on your competitors. Plus it will feel incredible to stand up on stage at the awards night and give your acceptance speech!

And there are plenty of other benefits:

All winners and finalists will be announced and promoted on the CRN website and email newsletter - get your brand in front of tens of thousands of readers.

CRN will publish profiles of all winning projects in our printed magazine in May - reach more than 8000 subscribers.

Winners will be revealed at a gala awards dinner in front of the IT industry and called up on stage to accept their win.

Winners will receive a trophy acknowledging their win.

Coverage on all winners and finalists will be promoted on CRN's sister title, iTnews, which is read every day by tens of thousands of major IT customers and CIOs.

All winners and finalists will receive a brand pack containing the awards logo to use on their website and marketing

We may also recognise Highly Commended and Commended companies in each category.

Past winners

Who has won before? Some of the most exciting technology companies operating in Australia today, including Vibrato, DiUS, DXC Connect, Cloud Plus, Comunet, Kinetic IT, OBT and Trident Computer Services.

All the winners from 2017 can be found here on the CRN Impact Awards digital hub.

You can find also find a full list of all finalists and winners, as well as commended and highly commended from 2017.

Project categories

Did you deploy modern technology to totally change the way a customer goes to market? That's just one example of digital transformation.

Did you help a customer move away from paper-based processes into digital, or else free workers from their desks? Those are examples of workplace transformation.

Did you help a customer move from paying upfront for IT hardware and instead move to a monthly fee, or go from installing their own software to running on SaaS? Those are examples of optimising investments.

Did you overhaul outdated hardware or ageing systems with the latest technology, such as replacing compute, storage, networking or enterprise software (or a combination of all of the above)? Those would be examples of modernising infrastructure.

Did you help a customer protect their company with cybersecurity products and services, disaster recovery or business continuity? Those belong in the trusted systems category.

Did you design a new front-end for your customer organisation to help them work better with their own customers, such as a website, mobile apps or even a wireless deployment? Those projects would be eligible for customer experience.

Did you work side-by-side with another reseller or IT service provider on a customer project? That's working together.

Innovation categories

Did you build a software product or app and you've sold it to overseas customers? That's exporting innovation.

Are you an Australian software startup or fast-growing Aussie technology vendor that is carving out a commercial market? You're an emerging innovator.

Are you a reseller, MSP or system integrator that has built its own intellectual property? You're an evolving innovator.