JUDGING PROCESS

CRN Channel Awards Australia - the judging process explained!


Composition of the jury

A panel of experts from the ANZ IT channel forms the jury for the CRN Channel Awards Australia. All judges have extensive experience in the ICT industry and bring their deep channel expertise to CRN. They ensure that all entries, finalists, and ultimately the winners meet the high standards we expect from participants.


The CRN panel of judges includes senior leaders from vendors, distributors, partners, industry associations, and the CRN editorial team. Members of the CRN Readers' Advisory Board also serve on the jury.


Initial Review – First Step

After the submission deadline, the CRN editorial team conducts an initial review of all entries. This includes checking whether each submission meets the criteria for its category—such as word count and video length. Entries that consist solely of marketing brochures, company profiles, or general content without clear relevance to the CRN Channel Awards will be disqualified.


Evaluation by the Judges

Each judge independently scores entries out of a maximum of 10 points and provides a brief justification for their score. The entire evaluation process is conducted digitally, and judges assess entries independently to ensure fairness.


Conflict of Interest and Fairness
Judges are not permitted to evaluate entries from their own company or from companies that include their employer. For example:

• Vendor representatives do not assess vendor entries
• Distributors do not assess distributor entries
• Partners (e.g. MSPs, system integrators) do not assess partner entries

This ensures a transparent and impartial judging process.


Finalist Selection and Announcement

Once scoring is complete, CRN calculates the average score for each entry in each category. Entries that meet or exceed the minimum score threshold qualify as finalists. All finalists will be announced by CRN on this Awards webpage, on CRN Australia and on LinkedIn.

CRN invites all finalists to attend the CRN Channel Awards gala evening by booking a finalist package.

And the Winner is....

The entry with the highest average score in each category is declared the winner. In the event of a tie, the panel of judges will deliberate to select a winner. Winners will be announced and celebrated at the CRN Channel Awards gala evening.

Confidentiality
All submitted information—including data, customer quotes, and supporting materials—remains confidential. Only judges have access to entries, and only to those outside their own category (vendor, distributor, partner).

Why This Rigour?

We believe that only the most outstanding initiatives, projects, solutions, and go-to-market strategies deserve recognition. A CRN Award honours the hard work, passion, and expertise that teams across the ANZ channel bring to the table.


Finalist status and a CRN Award are earned—not given. These highly respected accolades are backed by a globally recognised channel publication and a transparent, fair judging process. That’s the promise of the CRN Channel Awards Australia.

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