Women in IT Awards

The Women in IT Awards is the world’s largest event devoted to challenging the technology industry’s dismaying gender imbalance. It does this by showcasing the achievements and innovation of women in technology, recognising new role models and endorsing further dialogue around diversity among industry influencers.

Organised by business-technology magazine Information Age, the Women in IT Awards has gathered resounding support from trade associations, politicians and companies of all sizes and sectors since launching in 2015. With 1,000 business and technology leaders in attendance, the third annual Women in IT Awards on 25 January 2017 was the largest technology diversity event ever staged in the world.

The award categories are as follows:

Vendors Awards:

• Innovator of the Year - A technology company that has demonstrated outstanding innovation, customer wins and deployments in the last 18 months, in which a woman was integral to that success.
• Business Leader of the Year - A female leader of a technology company, or a business leader within a large technology company, who has demonstrated outstanding business leadership in the last 18 months.
• Advocate of the Year - A company or person that has gone out of its/her/his way to support the cause of getting more women in IT in the last 18 months.
• E-Skills Initiative of the Year - This award category is open to organisations that have undertaken an initiative that encouraged and helped women and girls to improve their digital skills and consider a career in the ICT sector. These could involve education, training, marketing and various other campaigns.
• Business Role Model of the Year - A female business leader in technology who has been an effective role model to other women in the last 18 months.
• Entrepreneur of the Year - A female leader of a technology, digital or e-commerce start-up that has demonstrated excellent growth in the last 18 months, with a coherent and sustainable strategy in achieving it.

End-User Awards:

• Deployment of the Year - An ICT project/deployment over the last 18 months in which a woman was instrumental to its success.
• CIO of the Year - A female CIO who has demonstrated particular innovation, IT excellence and leadership in the last 18 months.
• Future CIO of the Year - A woman who has shown outstanding IT excellence and innovation in the last 18 months and demonstrates signs that she will one day become a successful CIO.
• Digital Leader of the Year - A woman in a senior digital position in an end-user organisation, such as a chief digital officer, digital director or leader of a digital transformation.
• Security Champion of the Year - A female IT security professional whose has demonstrated outstanding work in progressing the industry and/or protecting the company from cyber threats.
• Transformation of the Year - An organisation that has undergone a major, and successful, IT or digital transformation in the last 18 months, in which a woman has played an integral part.

Special Recognition:

• Woman of the Year - The woman who has demonstrated the highest degree of IT excellence, innovation and leadership in the last year, and shone a light on the great things women in IT can achieve.
• Global Leader of the Year - A woman in a global technology and/or digital leadership position who has demonstrated outstanding leadership, innovation and business success in the last 18 months.
• Rising Star of the Year - A woman who began a career in technology in the last five years and has shown great promise that she will go on to achieve great things in the industry.
• Employer of the Year - This can be either a technology company that has demonstrated a great desire to attract and retain more women, or a company from any other industry that has demonstrated a great desire to attract and retain more women to its IT and/or digital department.
• Editor’s Choice - A woman who has achieved something exceptional in the IT industry, chosen by Information Age’s editorial team.