Celebrating excellence in adversity: 2020 IITPSA President’s Awards to go ahead!

Nominations now open for SA’s top IT Personality, Visionary CIO and other awards

The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) has announced that the prestigious annual IITPSA President’s Awards will go ahead this year, despite restrictions on gatherings and face to face engagements.

The IITPSA Board has resolved to go ahead with the awards, which include the IT Personality and Visionary CIO of the Year accolades, using online nominations and virtual meetings to support judging.

IITPSA CEO Tony Parry says: “The Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown have illustrated how crucial ICT is to the functioning of all organisations, but enabling business as usual in this challenging time has put heavy pressure on ICT professionals. This year’s awards are therefore to be held with the theme ‘Excellence in Adversity’, and will celebrate those who enabled their organisations to survive and grow despite particularly challenging circumstances.”

The IITPSA President’s awards, presented in partnership with leading ICT media publications and other awards partners, have recognised the South African IT industry’s leading lights for over 40 years. Past winners include the likes of Geekulcha COO Tiyani Nghonyama as the IT Personality of the Year and Alexander Forbes Group CIO Sandra La Bella as the Visionary CIO (2019), Etion CEO Teddy Daka and Absa CIO for Virtual Channels Jacques Barkhuizen (2018), Entelect CEO Shashi Hansjee and former Sasol Global CIO Alec Joannou (2017) and Adapt IT CEO Sbu Shabalala and Peter Alkema, business banking CIO at First National Bank (2016).

IITPSA has called for nominations for the following awards:

The IT Personality Award, which recognises a highly respected and outstanding ICT professional who has made a significant technical or academic contribution to the industry, who has been successful in building a highly-respected IT organisation or business, and/or who has made a major contribution to the IT profession over a number of years.

The Visionary CIO Award, which honours a CIO who has demonstrated visionary leadership in using IT to support, grow and transform business and/or who has established best practice in implementing technology solutions in an organisation.

The Technology Excellence Award, which will be presented to a person or team who has made exceptional or innovative use of technology for an organisation and/or who has exhibited technological excellence that has delivered measurable benefit for business/the SA Economy.

The Social Responsibility/Community Award, which will be presented to a person, team or project that delivers the benefits of IT on a not-for-profit basis into the community or brings the community into the IT space.

Click here to nominate candidates. Nominations close on Tuesday 20 October, after which a judging panel will select this year’s winners.

IITSPA aims to hold the awards ceremony in the first quarter of 2021, circumstances permitting.
For further information visit: https://www.iitpsa.org.za/annual-presidents-awards-2020/