Categories

Channel Choice

Vendor of the Year
Awarded to the vendor receiving the most votes for outstanding channel support in our online poll. Only one vote will be accepted per email address and you cannot vote for the company you work for.

Distributor of the Year
Awarded to the distributor with the highest tally of votes in our online poll. Only one vote will be accepted per email address and you cannot vote for the company you work for.

Reseller of the Year
Awarded to the reseller, integrator or service provider receiving the most votes from its peers as well as vendor and distribution partners in our online poll. Only one vote will be accepted per email address and you cannot vote for the company you work for.

Green Channel

Vendor of the Year
Recognising the vendor that is working hardest to promote environmental integrity and minimise its impact on the environment. Submissions should provide details of initiatives to manufacture environmentally responsible products and minimize e-waste through channel and end-user education.

Project of the Year
This award will be presented to a reseller, integrator or service provider that has helped a client reduce the environmental impact of its technology infrastructure. More weight will be given to innovation than to size of project but submissions should demonstrate how the solution is scalable.

Product of the Year
Many vendors are now producing products aimed at improving energy efficiency and reducing environmental impact. But what was the most important of these to hit the market in 2008?

Personal Innovation Awards

These awards have been created to recognise creativity. When working in a fast-moving industry it can be difficult to step back and think of new ways to do things. Those who manage to do so are the leaders of today and tomorrow.

Sales Excellence
Nominations for Sales Excellence will be accepted for any channel professional working for a vendor, distributor or reseller who has done an outstanding job for the past 12 months. Maybe this person beat their targets by a huge margin, closed a landmark deal in the face of serious competition or just has such good people skills that you are convinced they could sell snow to an Eskimo.

Technical Excellence
Who is the person in your office who seems happiest when up to their eyeballs in algorithms? It’s time to nominate that person for our Technical Excellence award. This category is open to any channel professional working for a vendor, distributor or reseller.

Customer Service
We’ve all been guilty of making a sale and moving on to the next prospect at some stage. But it seems some people just can’t do enough for their clients. If you know somebody who fits that description, nominate them for our Customer Service award and help them get the credit they deserve.

Hall of Fame

The Australian IT industry is packed with individuals that have done outstanding work over a long period of time. We think these people are worthy of special accolade and have established the ARN Hall of Fame for that very purpose.

At the first ARN IT Industry Awards, held in September 2007, the industry was asked to vote from a shortlist of 12 names, with the three receiving most votes inducted into ARN’s Hall of Fame.

This year, those three winners – David Henderson, Peter Kazacos and Jon Shein – and all members of our judging panel will each be asked to nominate a reseller, distributor and vendor to join our illustrious Hall of Fame. The three individuals with the most nominations will be inducted.

Vendor Awards

These awards will be presented to vendors that best demonstrate how they are helping the channel to be successful through a combination of market leading products, innovative channel rewards, training and marketing programs and outstanding levels of support. Vendors are invited to enter as many categories as they feel are relevant to their business.

Hardware Vendor of the Year
Whether its product range includes smartphones and ruggedised notebooks, or a broad range of servers and storage boxes, this award will be presented to the hardware vendor most dedicated to making its channel successful.

Software Vendor of the Year
From business productivity and CRM to security and storage, this award will be presented to the software vendor that is going the extra mile to help its channel be successful.

Specialist Vendor of the Year
This category is open to all vendors that specialise in a particular area of technology such as audio-visual, components or printing. Submissions must demonstrate how this company is helping its channel to be successful.

Distributor Award

These awards will be presented to distributors that best demonstrate how they are working to help resellers grow their business. Submissions should provide details of core distribution functions such as credit, logistics and market development initiatives as well as value-added services such as pre- and post-sales support. Distributors are invited to enter as many categories as they feel are relevant to their business.

Hardware Distributor of the Year
Which distributor is doing the best job of helping resellers put together comprehensive infrastructure solutions?

Software Distributor of the Year
Which distributor is doing the best job of helping resellers wade through the complex world of software licensing?

Specialist Distributor of the Year
Which distributor is doing the best job of helping resellers in a specific area of technology such as networking, security or storage?

Reseller Award

These awards will recognise outstanding performance in the provision of products and services. Submissions should demonstrate how the reseller is working to educate its customer base about the benefits of technology, improving productivity and reducing costs.

Enterprise Reseller of the Year
This award is open to all resellers, integrators and service providers that do most of their work for clients with 500 or more users. Entries should demonstrate how your organisation is innovating to stay ahead of the pack.

SMB Reseller of the Year
This award is open to all resellers plying their trade in the SMB market. Whether your sweet spot is 10 users or 200, tell us what your company is doing to stand out from the crowd.

Retailer of the Year
Recognising the efforts of a retailer that has done outstanding work in bringing a wide range of technology products to the consumer market. Extra credit will be given for innovation in demonstrating the convergence of IT and consumer electronics to customers.