Nominations are now open for the Institute of Information Technology Professionals of South Africa (IITPSA) President’s Awards, which this year includes a new award category for IITPSA members.
This year’s IITPSA President’s Awards will be staged with the theme “Celebrating leaders in ethical digital transformation”, highlighting the importance of keeping ethics at the heart of digital transformation, says the industry body.
IITPSA president Senele Goba says the theme reinforces the IITPSA’s focus on ethical practices and the need for IT professionals to consider the impact of their work on their communities and environment.
“Digital technologies now drive every aspect of work and life. Now more than ever before, it is crucial for IT professionals to be ethical and committed to the public good,” she comments.
The IITPSA President’s Awards include the Visionary CIO and IT Personality of the Year awards – for over 30 years the industry’s most coveted titles, awarded only to the most outstanding individuals in their fields, says the organisation.
The IT Personality Award 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.
In 2023, Mamela Luthuli, founder and CEO of cyber security firm Take Note IT, was the winner of the IT Personality of the Year Award.
The Visionary CIO Award 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 is 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 or the South African economy.
The Social Responsibility/Community Award is 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.
The Dynamism in ICT Youth Award recognises a person younger than 25 for exceptional potential or achievement in ICT. Nominees should be nominated by educators, employers, colleagues or mentors, and may include students excelling in STEM studies with outstanding bodies of work, young entrepreneurs in the IT sector and individual up-and-coming IT professionals.
The Fellowship of the Institute Award is given in recognition of a long-serving individual who has made an extraordinary contribution to the institute or the profession as a whole.
Goba says the President’s Awards are extending the range with a new category – the Member Ambassador award – recognising exceptional commitment and effort by an IITPSA member to serve as an ambassador of the institute.
“Without members who participate actively in our activities and evangelise the institute and what we stand for, we could not have the impact we do. The IITPSA Member Ambassador award will acknowledge those members who help us deliver on our mandates and expand our reach,” she says.
The Member Ambassador award seeks to acknowledge and celebrate an ordinary IITPSA member who has made notable contributions to the institute through activities such as writing insightful pieces for IITPSA publications; represented IITPSA at outreach events; actively participated in webinars as a guest, speaker, or host; served as an ambassador for the IITPSA within the workplace and professional networks; and participated in Chapter and Special Interest Group events.
Nominations will be open until at least the end of August, and the winners will be named at an awards ceremony in November.
To nominate deserving candidates for these awards, click here.
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