What is the eWEEK eXcellence Awards program?
The eXcellence Awards program provides enterprise IT professionals with a comprehensive assessment of best-in-class product and service innovations that create efficiencies, enhance performance and provide competitive edge. Vendors are invited to nominate new and forthcoming enterprise-class products and services, which are judged for innovation, suitability to task, interoperability, extensibility and security. eXcellence Awards judges are eWEEK Labs analysts and eWEEK Corporate Partners, whose real-world experience and technical expertise will direct organizations to the products and services that will allow them to establish and maintain technology leadership while making the most effective use of corporate resources.
What products are eligible for the program?
Any enterprise-class product or service announced between Jan. 1, 2002, and Jan. 1, 2003. Product or service must be shipping before Jan. 31, 2003, to be eligible. Major upgrades to existing products are also eligible.
What is the program timetable?
Entry process starts: Dec. 2, 2002
Deadline for entries: Jan. 31, 2003
Announcement of finalists: TBD
Announcement of winners: TBD
What do I have to do to enter?
You will have to fill out a form (available at the eWEEK Excellence Awards site) that describes what the product is and for what audience it is intended. Keep in mind that in the past weve received cut-and-pasted marketing/sales material that sometimes made it hard to determine whether the product was hardware or software, let alone how it could help the enterprise audience. There will be plenty of drop-down menus to help you, but our tolerance for vague descriptions is getting lower by the year. Each product also must be accompanied by a user reference who can be called upon to provide evaluation of the product as its performed in the real world and over time. Not every user reference will be contacted; if a user is contacted, we will keep the contact as brief as possible. PR or vendor representatives may act as an intermediary in this process.
Do I have to enter a product into a certain category?
No. The eXcellence Awards judges will categorize the products after the entry period has ended.
Is there a fee to enter?
Yes. There is a fee of $100 per vendor (not product) entering the program. The proceeds from this fee are donated to a charity or charities (still to be determined) and partially to fund the program itself.
What products have won in the past?
Click here for a list of the finalists and winners of last years eXcellence Awards program.