Channel Awards Judges look back: Part One - Favourite Memories

CRN caught up with some of its long-standing Channel Awards Judges to see what they have enjoyed most about the whole process during the last 30 years

When the Channel Awards first launched 30 years ago they did not have the two-stage judging process we have all come to know and love.

Well, most people love it at least.

Instead, the shortlisted companies were allowed to garner votes from the industry at large, all of which were then taken into account on the judging day to decide the winners.

Unfortunately, this process eventually created more problems that it solved, with too many companies encouraging customers to vote for them through incentives, often meaning the votes were unfairly skewed and not based on merit.

It was no mean feat to overhaul the entire process and establish the two-tier judging process, but aside from the usual complaints of the awards being a fix from certain sides, it has been an overwhelming success and has helped establish the Channel Awards as a truly independent awards event.

Just a reminder that the deadline for the 2023 Channel Awards is NEXT FRIDAY 30 June, please don't forget to submit your entries.

Some of our judges have been there from the start of that two-tier process, and many have been involved for well over a decade, so they really have seen it all. They give hours of their time to go through every single entry and it really is a task they take very seriously indeed.

In part one of this two-part article, we caught up with some of our judges round a virtual judging table to find out what they have most enjoyed about judging over the years.

June Hall, former IBM Business Partner Organisation sales director, has been involved with judging for many years.

"I really enjoy catching up with everyone albeit on an annual basis and finding out what everyone has been up to. The Channel is full of interesting characters and I do appreciate the effort that candidates put into their submissions and the final presentations. They always try and make it interesting for us judges whilst getting their message across."

She had one stand out memory of a very well-known channel personality at one judging day.

"I always remember Alex Tatham tested us on the contents of Westcoast's submission and every time we got a question wrong we had to don an accessory for example a wig, a moustache, a funny hat. It was a really fun session and we all got the message. You don't forget that!"

Paul Briggs, director of global corporate development at BNZSA, is new to the judging panel this year, but as a former CRN editor, is more than familiar with the Channel Awards, having shaped them in their earlier days.

"As a former editor of CRN, I had the dual position of being able to define the awards as new technologies and categories emerged, as well as judge them," Briggs said. "It has been satisfying to see that something that I and others have spent a lot of time and effort on continually evolve and thrive as the premier event for the channel."

He added: "Given the effort put into the awards it is no surprise over the level of passion and excitement that is displayed on the night for those that win one of the coveted awards."

Channel veteran John Toal has been involved with judging for over 15 years.

"My fondest memories is when someone really nails it in the final presentations - HP and Microsoft have done this a couple of times over the years," he said. " I like to see really well thought through stories to tell us about the immediate business and its wider community role."

Toal added: "I really enjoy reading about the new innovations coming to market and the exuberance of some of the newer entrants."

Simon Meredith, a respected channel journalist/editor and media consultant, has been a judge for the Channel Awards since the very beginning. He has headed up the reseller panel for the last 16 years.

"The nicest thing about it for me is seeing how pleased the people from the resellers are who win on the night - especially when they have really deserved to win," Meredith said. "Many of us have been judges for longer than we care to remember and it's always good to meet up with the group again and compare notes. It's quite a positive and inspiring experience."

"I remember one judge who always used to talk up entries from one company in particular. This judge was not at all biased because they had left their job as MD of that business many years before. But it used to make the rest of us laugh. It also illustrated how one judge alone can't influence the group. Some people still think it is rigged - it's absolutely not."

Sandrijn Stead, CEO of C-View Technologies, has been judging for nine years, latterly as the chair of the vendor panel.

"Every year one or more companies bring something totally new to the table that is clever, innovative and interesting. I LOVE that, it is like a private looking glass into the future of what will be the norm in the channel in years to come," he said. "I also enjoy meeting people who are presenting for the first time that I can tell will be back over and over again. You see people from five or six years ago that were junior and green, who are now leading the presentations."

Carl West, sales director UK & Ireland at Foxintelligence, had been heading up the distribution panel for the last 16 years.

"My fondest memory is always when a company wins for the first time. We have seen many new companies over the period of the CRN Awards," he said. "Another favourite is our first awards night after the pandemic."

Another longstanding judge is Tony Lock, director of engagement and distinguished analyst at freeform Dynamics who has been on the vendor panel for over 16 years.

"Over the years there have been some very ‘innovative' entries and recently some very amusing video submissions as well. These have added a smile or two when going through the dozens of submissions late in the evening," he said.

Stay tuned to Channelweb to find out what our judges have found most annoying and whether they think entries have improved over the years.

Remember the deadline for entries for the 2023 Channel Awards is Friday 30 June. Please click here to submit your entry and for all the information you need to compile your entry.