Rising Star Award

Award Description: Recognizes an emerging technology professional who has demonstrated exceptional early-career achievements, leadership potential, or innovation.

Ideal Nominees: Young professionals (generally under 35) or individuals within the first 5 years of their tech careers. 

Judging Criteria:

Visionary Educator Award

Award Description: Honors an educator using innovative technology or teaching methods to advance STEM or tech education.

Ideal Nominees: K-12 teachers, professors, or instructors.

Judging Criteria:

Student Innovator Award

Award Description: Celebrates a student who demonstrates exceptional promise through tech projects, leadership, or innovation.

Ideal Nominees: High school, undergraduate, or graduate students pursuing technology-related fields.

Judging Criteria:

Exceptional Tech Environment Award

Award Description: Recognizes an organization that has built an exceptional technology environment where people can do their best work. This includes fostering innovation, supporting diverse perspectives, encouraging collaboration, and creating clear opportunities for growth and development. 

Ideal Nominees: Any organization, regardless of size, with a technology team or strong focus on technology. 

Judging Criteria:

Key Contributor Award

Award Description: This award recognizes an individual contributor or leader who consistently delivers exceptional performance, reliability, and team impact, bringing expertise, sound judgment, and a steady presence that others depend on. Beyond their own work, they elevate those around them by sharing knowledge, collaborating generously, and fostering a team environment defined by strong engagement, satisfaction, and a positive overall experience. 

Ideal Nominees: An individual contributor or leader that plays a critical role in their team’s success through consistent performance, reliability, and impact. 

Judging Criteria:

• Consistency in Performance and Execution: Demonstrates a strong track record of delivering high-quality work and dependable results.
• Ownership and Accountability: Takes responsibility for their work, follows through, and contributes to team success.
• Problem-Solving and Initiative: Proactively identifies challenges and works toward solutions without needing direction.
• Positive Impact on Team and Outcomes: Contributes to team momentum, supports peers, and helps drive results through everyday actions.

Tech For All Award

Award Description:  Recognizes individuals or organizations that are leveraging technology to expand access, equity, and opportunity in underserved communities within the Western New York region. This award highlights efforts that use technology to bridge the digital divide, improve access to education or essential services, and foster long-term inclusion within the regional tech ecosystem.

Ideal Nominees: Tech organizations, leaders, or community programs that apply technology to support underserved populations, promote digital inclusion, or address systemic barriers through innovation and outreach.

Judging Criteria:

•  Meaningful impact in underserved communities
•  Technology-driven solutions that improve equity and access
•  Sustained commitment to inclusion through community engagement
  

Excellence in Tech Service Team

Award Description:  Honors a technology team that exemplifies exceptional service, collaboration, and impact. This award recognizes teams that go beyond technical execution—acting as trusted partners who bridge the gap between technology and business outcomes. Whether through support, implementation, or ongoing service delivery, these teams demonstrate clear communication, accountability, and a customer-first mindset that drives organizational success.

Ideal Nominees: IT service desks, infrastructure support teams, implementation teams, or any cross-functional tech groups delivering consistent, high-quality service and engagement with internal or external stakeholders.

AI & Emerging Technology Innovation Excellence Award

Award Description: Recognizes a standout technology initiative or organization that has successfully implemented innovative tools or strategies, including but not limited to artificial intelligence, to deliver transformational outcomes. This award honors the use of forward-thinking technologies to improve operations, experiences, or capabilities in measurable ways.

Ideal Nominees: Organizations or teams that have adopted emerging technologies, such as AI, automation, advanced analytics, or machine learning, to solve real-world challenges.

Judging Criteria:

•   Innovation and originality of implementation
•   Measurable impact on business or community
•   Operational scale and sustainability

Delivery Excellence Award

Award Description: Recognizes a team that delivered exceptional outcomes through strong execution, clear alignment, and cross-functional collaboration. This award celebrates teams that turn vision into measurable impact, improving business performance and delivering meaningful results for both the organization and its customers. 

Ideal Nominees: Cross-functional project teams, product development teams, or implementation teams that have successfully delivered high-impact initiatives through strong collaboration and execution. 

Judging Criteria:

•    Business Impact and Measurable Outcomes: Demonstrates clear improvement in business performance, customer value, or operational effectiveness.
•    Execution and Delivery Excellence: Consistently delivers high-quality outcomes on time and within scope, regardless of methodology used.
•    Cross-Functional Collaboration and Alignment: Brings together stakeholders across teams to drive progress, solve challenges, and maintain momentum.
•    Adaptability and Problem-Solving: Navigates complexity, adjusts to change, and overcomes obstacles to achieve successful outcomes.

Engineering Excellence Award

Award Description: Honors an individual or team that has demonstrated exceptional engineering expertise in designing innovative solutions or solving complex technical challenges. This award recognizes not only technical skill, but also the creativity, precision, and problem-solving required to drive meaningful outcomes through engineering.

Ideal Nominees: Open to professionals across all engineering disciplines—software, systems, network, electrical, mechanical, hardware, and beyond—who are based in Western New York and have delivered impactful work within their domain.

Judging Criteria:

•    Technical complexity, creativity, and innovation
•    Scalability and real-world impact of the solution
•    Effective collaboration and execution from concept to delivery

Security Leader of the Year Award

Award Description: Recognizes an exceptional security leader who has demonstrated visionary leadership in protecting their organization’s assets. This award honors individuals who have advanced their corporate security posture through strategic planning, operational excellence, and a proactive approach to risk management.

Ideal Nominees: CISOs, security directors, or team leaders who have led impactful cybersecurity programs across any industry in Western New York.

Judging Criteria:

•   Leadership in developing and executing security strategy
•   Demonstrated improvements in risk reduction and security maturity
•   Effective cross-functional collaboration and organizational influence

Tech Leader Award

Award Description: Celebrates a forward-thinking technology leader whose vision, strategy, and execution have significantly influenced their organization’s direction or contributed meaningfully to the broader tech ecosystem. This award honors individuals who drive innovation, lead with purpose, and elevate both business outcomes and community impact.

Ideal Nominees: CIOs, CTOs, senior technology executives, or tech founders who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and made a lasting mark on their organization and the Western New York tech community.

Judging Criteria:

•   Visionary leadership and strategic direction
•   Tangible business and technical outcomes
•   Industry influence, mentorship, and community engagement