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SIIA Announces Education Finalists for 2013 CODiE Awards

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 19:41

Today SIIA would like to announce the 148 finalists in Education categories for the 2013 SIIA CODiE Awards. These finalists represent applications, products and services from developers of educational software, digital content, online learning services, and related technologies across the K-20 sector.

This year’s program features 23 Education categories, several of which are new or updated to reflect the latest industry trends and business models. New this year, Best Personalized Learning Solution was the program’s most popular category. Due to its popularity, the category was split into Best PK-12 Personalized Learning Solution and Best Postsecondary Personalized Learning Solution.

Winners will be announced during a special awards dinner at the nation’s leading education technology conference, the Ed Tech Industry Summit, in San Francisco on May 6.

The SIIA CODiE Awards are the industry’s only peer-reviewed awards program. Educators and administrators conduct the first-round review of all education nominees. The judges are responsible for selecting the CODiE Awards finalists, and SIIA members then vote on the finalist products. The scores from both rounds are tabulated to select the winners.

Details about each finalist are listed at http://siia.net/codies/2013/finalists.asp. For more information on the Ed Tech Industry Summit, attending the CODiE Awards dinner, and to see a full schedule of events, visit http://www.siia.net/etis.

2013 CODiE Awards Education Finalists

Best Classroom Management Solution

Best Corporate Learning/Workforce Development Solution

Best Cross-Curricular Solution

Best Education Community Solution

Best Education Game or Simulation

Best Education Reference Solution

Best Educational Use of a Mobile Device

Best Instructional Solution in Other Curriculum Areas

Best K-12 Course or Learning Management Solution

Best K-12 Enterprise Solution

Best Mathematics Instructional Solution

Best PK-12 Personalized Learning Solution

Best Postsecondary Course or Learning Management Solution

Best Postsecondary Enterprise Solution

Best Postsecondary Learning Solution

Best Postsecondary Personalized Learning Solution

Best Professional Learning Solution for Education

Best Reading/English/ELL Instructional Solution

Best Science/Health Instructional Solution

Best Social Sciences Instructional Solution

Best Solution for Special Needs Students

Best Student Assessment Solution

Best Virtual Learning Solution

Karen BillingsKaren Billings is Vice President for the Education Division at SIIA. Follow the SIIA Education Team on Twitter at @SIIAEducation



SIIA Announces Software Finalists for 2013 CODiE Awards

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 19:35

Today SIIA announced the 127 finalists for the 2013 SIIA CODiE Awards in Software Business categories. These finalists recognize applications, products, and services, which deliver solutions for use by business, government, consumers, academic, or other organizations.

This year there were 27 Software categories, including twelve new and updated categories that reflect the continued growth and evolution of cloud computing, mobile, big data, and video. Highlights include Best Cloud Platform as a Service Solution, Best Big Data Solution, Best Mobile Device Application for Consumers, Best Mobile Device Application for Enterprise, and Best Video Tool.

Winners will be announced during a special Awards luncheon on May 9 in San Francisco during the industry’s most comprehensive ISV conference, All About the Cloud.

The SIIA CODiE Awards are the industry’s only peer-reviewed awards program. The first round review of all nominees include industry executives and analysts, representatives of media outlets, bloggers, and investors. The judges are responsible for selecting the CODiE Awards finalists. SIIA members then vote on the finalist products and the scores from both rounds are tabulated to select the winners.

Details about each finalist are listed at http://siia.net/codies/2013/finalists.asp

2013 CODiE Awards Software Finalists

Best Big Data Solution

Best Business Intelligence/Analytics Solution

Best Cloud Application Service

Best Cloud Infrastructure

Best Cloud Management Solution

Best Cloud Platform as a Service

Best Cloud Storage & Back Up Solution

Best Collaboration Solution

Best Commerce Solution

Best Enterprise Mobile Service

Best Financial Management Solution

Best Human Capital/Talent Management Solution

Best Integration Solution

Best Marketing Automation Solution

Best Mobile Development Solution

Best Mobile Device Application for Consumers

Best Mobile Device Application for Enterprises

Best Monetization Solution

Best Open Source Innovation

Best Project Management Solution

Best Relationship Management Solution

Best Security Solution

Best SEO Solution

Best Social Business Solution

Best Supply Chain Management Solution

Best Systems Management Solution

Best Video Tool

For more information on All About the Cloud, attending the CODiE Awards luncheon, and to see a full schedule of events, visit http://www.siia.net/aatc

Rhianna Collier is VP for the Software Division at SIIA. Follow the Software team on Twitter at @SIIASoftware.



SIIA Names 2013 Content CODiE Awards Winners

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 18:31

SIIA would like to announce the winners of their 2013 CODiE Awards in 25 Content categories, representing the industry’s best products, technologies, and services created by or for media, publishers, and information services providers.

The SIIA CODiE Awards have been the premier award for the software and information industries, recognizing excellence for 27 years. The awards have over 75 categories organized by industry focus: Content, Education and Software. The 25 Content CODiE Awards winners were announced during a special Awards luncheon today in New York City during IIS 2013: Breakthrough, the SIIA’s annual flagship conference for information industry leaders.

The SIIA Congratulates all the CODiE Award Content Winners listed below.
Details about their products can be found at http://www.siia.net/codies/2013/winners.asp

2013 CODiE Awards Content Winners:
Advertising Management Platform

Best Business Directory (tie)

Best Business Information Solution

Best Consumer Information Resource

Best Content Management Platform

Best Crowd Sourced Solution

Best Digital Rights Management Solution

Best eCommerce & Billing Platform

Best Financial & Market Data Information Solution

Best General Reference Service

Best Governance, Risk and Compliance Solution

Best Lead Generation Solution

Best Legal Information Solution

Best Media & Information Monitoring Solution

Best Medical Information Solution

Best Press Release Distribution Solution

Best Sales & Marketing Intelligence Solution

Best Science and Technology Information Solution

Best Search Technology Solution

Best Semantic Technology Solution

Best Service Using Aggregated Content

Best Social Media Platform

Best Solution for Integrating Content into the Workflow

Best Testing, Monitoring and Analytics Platform

Best Video Platform for Media & Publishers

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



SIIA CODiE Awards Announce 2013 Content Category Finalists

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:20

Today SIIA announced the 82 finalists for the 2013 SIIA CODiE Awards in Content categories. These finalists represent the information industry’s best products, technologies, and services created by or for media, publishers, and information services providers.

This year there were 25 Content categories, featuring several new and updated ones, to reflect the latest industry trends and business models. New categories include Best Crowd Sourced Solution, Best Press Release Distribution Solution, Best Semantic Technology Solution, and Best Social Media Platform.

Winners will be announced during a special Awards luncheon on January 31 in New York City during the SIIA’s annual flagship conference for information industry leaders, IIS 2013: Breakthrough.

This year, finalists are invited to showcase their products in the CODiE Awards Finalist Showcase during IIS 2013: Breakthrough.

The SIIA CODiE Awards are the industry’s only peer-reviewed awards program. The first round review of all nominees is conducted by media, publishing, and information services executives with considerable industry expertise, including members of the industry, analysts, media and bloggers, and bankers and investors. The judges are responsible for selecting the CODiE Awards finalists. SIIA members then vote on the finalist products and the scores from both rounds are tabulated to select the winners.

Details about each finalist are listed here.

2013 CODiE Awards Content Finalists
Best Advertising Management Platform

Best Business Directory

Best Business Information Solution

Best Consumer Information Resource

Best Content Management Platform

Best Crowd Sourced Solution

Best Digital Rights Management Solution

Best eCommerce & Billing Platform

Best Financial & Market Data Information Solution

Best General Reference Service

Best Governance, Risk and Compliance Solution

Best Lead Generation Solution

Best Legal Information Solution

Best Media & Information Monitoring Solution

Best Medical Information Solution

Best Press Release Distribution Solution

Best Sales & Marketing Intelligence Solution

Best Science and Technology Information Solution

Best Search Technology Solution

Best Semantic Technology Solution

Best Service Using Aggregated Content

Best Social Media Platform

Best Solution for Integrating Content into the Workflow

Best Testing, Monitoring and Analytics Platform

Best Video Platform for Media & Publishers

For more information on the Information Industry Summit, attending the CODiE Awards lunch, and to see a full schedule of events, visit the Information Industry Summit website.

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



CODiE Awards Judges: A Conversation with the Coordinator

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 19:59

Nominations have closed for the 2013 CODiE Awards, and I am definitely excited about the variety and caliber of products in this year’s program. I know our judges are looking forward to reviewing the products as well. Our first round review is the core of the CODiE Awards. It is also the portion of the program that gives me the most interaction with the judges and nominees. I am constantly in contact with both groups, ensuring that everyone has a great experience.

What is the first round review?

For the first round review, two judges review each product in each category. For example, products nominated in two categories will be assigned four judges. During this first round, judges participate in product demonstration s given by the nominees. Two options are available for the products demonstrations:

– Live product demonstration: Nominations walk through their product webinar-style with the judges participating as they do the walk-through

– Recorded product demonstration: Nominees may already have a video product demo that can be sent to the judges to watch.

We recommend that the nominees keep the demos to under an hour. If it is a live demo, remember to leave time for Q&A with the judges.

The first round review also includes product access. It’s beneficial for the judges to get a feel for the product on their own, as a supplement to the guided demo. Product access can happen in several forms, including temporary online login information or by sending the physical product to the judge.

I also suggest sending as much additional information as you would like to the judges. This can be additional links to PDF’s, videos, news releases, etc.

Who are the judges?

We take great care in selecting the industry experts who volunteer as judges. Each division reviews every judge application to determine if he/she is qualified. We want to ensure there are no conflicts of interest.

For our software and content categories, the judges consist of industry executives and analysts, members of the media, bloggers, investors, and even some customers.
For our education categories, we use educators and administrators as our judges. They are the users of these products and can best determine what products may work the best in their classrooms.

Judging is a great experience because it gives the customers a chance to review the products and provide feedback that the companies can use to make improvements.

How can you help?

We are still looking for judges in several of our categories in Content, Software, and Education. If you are interested in judging or can recommend a colleague please complete our brief judge application.

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Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



The Evolving Ed Tech CODiE Awards

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 12:30

Karen Billings, VP of the Education Division, joined SIIA 10 years ago, and has been involved with the CODiE Awards ever since. She even remembers the very first Education category – the Best Learning Product in 1986. Since then, the number of Education categories has grown at a steady pace, reflecting the advances in the ed tech industry. Karen shares her thoughts on this constantly evolving industry and what’s new in this year’s education CODiE Awards.

Tell us a little about the history of Education categories in the CODiE Awards.

The first year of the CODiE Awards, the one education winner was Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, for the Best Learning Product. It was such a popular product, and I remember later on there were spin-off products, and even one called Where in North Dakota is Carmen Sandiego! It’s interesting because even today, Carmen Sandiego is still a product at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Even after a series of acquisitions and mergers, the company is marketing and selling an updated version of this product, decades later. The point is that a good education product with a good instructional design that changes with the hardware capabilities is going to have longevity and certainly, branding. It’s very possible that the teachers who are buying Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego today could have used the product when they were young. The CODiE Awards are in its 28th year and it’s amazing to think about how the very first education CODiE Award winner is not only in the market, but has her own Facebook page.

Why do educators and administrators judge all of the education categories in the first round of judging?

The Education Division wanted to have educators and administrators review the products in the first round because they are the real experts. They know what other products are out there, and they have probably used a number of different products in their category, so they have the expertise. They are the best judge of what is going to work in the classroom, and that is a big part of what we mean when we say a product is the best.

The Education Division is able to leverage its relationships with the professional associations and online education communities such as edWeb to reach the teachers. We partner with them because they can directly reach out to their members. For example, SIIA cosponsors a games channel on edWeb, so we can reach teachers who are active in the games-for-learning community. That community helps us find those educators who would be the best at judging the games category.

Why do you like having three top awards, for Best PK-12, Best Postsecondary, and Best Overall?

First of all, I think it’s very special to have some very high-level categories where companies don’t nominate but they are recognized. It’s a very special recognition. It’s a way to pull out the best of the best. In some sense we are following other awards programs. In the Oscars, they have lots of awards, but the most exciting one is Best Picture of the Year. We know that the winners have appreciated that award.

Why do so many education companies love to nominate for the CODiE Awards?

The number of products that are out there in the market have grown substantially for over 25 years. It’s followed the growth of technology, as schools have started to move from the use of print materials and transitioned to the use of digital. Twenty-five years ago, using Carmen Sandiego was a very unique and probably isolated event by a few special teachers who were excited about using that Apple II in the classroom. As access to hardware increased, the software market evolved, and professional development supported technology integration, educators and administrators started to see the benefits of using technology. They saw student engagement, and positive results. The market grew, and as the market grew, the CODiE Award nominations grew, the interest grew, and school budgets grew. It has been a consistent, steady growth for 25 years.

Many of the products that were submitted in the first 10 years for the CODiE Awards had been developed by teachers. Teachers themselves then ended up forming companies. Jan Davidson was a Language Arts English teacher. She wrote a program called Reading Blaster for kids to use in her classrooms on an Apple II. She started sharing it with other teachers, and her husband, Bob Davidson, decided that there might be a business in selling that program to other teachers. They formed a company called Davidson & Associates, which was an early member of the then SPA (Software Publishers Association.) I like knowing that some of the educators reviewing this year’s products may be designing a product that could be a CODiE Awards winner in a few years. It could be the next Carmen Sandiego or Oregon Trail!

Which category are you most excited about this year?

I’m always anxious to see who is nominating in brand new categories. This year, our new category is Best Personalized Learning Solution, which evolved from work we have been doing in the Education Division for the last several years. It started with a working group on personalized learning after our Education Board undertook this as a key initiative. Personalized learning is a new market. Legacy companies can incorporate those attributes as they modify their products, and so can the startups who are designing new products. The thing I look forward to most is seeing nominations come in from companies I don’t know yet. There are so many new companies each year, and some are so new I haven’t even heard from them. When I see their nominations come in, I go to their website and find out about them, and it makes me excited about the direction that education technology is taking.

How can small companies compete in the CODiE Awards?

I think that the small companies with brand new products are viewed very positively by judges. The judges like seeing something new. It’s great to see the start-ups getting the same amount of visibility as larger companies when the finalists are announced. And when the SIIA member companies vote in the second round of judging, every company gets the same number of votes in each category, no matter what size they are. When all of the winners are listed on the press release, some will be large companies, some will be small companies. Some will be companies educators will recognize, and some will be totally unknown. Hopefully when people see a winner they’ve never heard of, they will go to their website and check them out.

What makes the education CODiE Awards banquet so special?

We have so much fun at our awards banquet! It’s a very special event for our companies. They enjoy it. It’s another thing to look forward to at the Ed Tech Industry Summit. We held the gala for the 2012 CODiE Awards on the second evening of the conference and will continue the tradition in 2013.

It’s funny, before I worked at SIIA, I worked at various member companies for 15 years. I came to many of the conferences and even spoke at them, but I never attended a CODiE Awards event! I’m not sure why. The first CODiE Awards gala I ever went to was the first year I started working for SIIA in 2002-in fact it was my second day on the job! I discovered how much fun it was, and how special it is. I really have had fun every year since.

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



Software CODiE Awards: Tips & Tricks for CODiE Success

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 21:01

Yesterday we hosted a CODiE Awards webinar specifically for software categories. The primary purpose of the webinar was to provide important updates made to the process, including the addition/revision of several categories for a total of 29 software-related categories.

During the webinar we covered:

We were especially pleased to have two guests join us for the webinar: Sarah Lander, Director of Marketing for ShopVisible and a 2012 CODiE Award winner, and Richard Dym, Managing Partner of Bondi Group, a longtime CODiE Awards judge.

Watch the webinar to hear everything that Sarah and Richard had to say, in addition to the information we provided. And remember, nominations for the Software categories must be submitted by Friday, October 5.

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



Content CODiE Awards: Tips & Tricks for CODiE Success

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 17:55

Yesterday we hosted a webinar about the 2013 CODiE Awards specifically for the Content categories. The purpose of the webinar was to make sure you know about the important changes we made to the content categories and process, including the addition/revision of several categories for a total of 28 content related categories.

During the webinar we covered:

• How to nominate
• What happens during the first-round judging process
• The complete CODiE Awards timeline
• Content categories
• Our all-new Buyer Review program

We were especially pleased to have two guests join us for the webinar: Michael Bird, President of NetProspex, a 2012 SIIA CODiE Award winner, as well as longtime CODiE Awards judge Angus Robertson, Media Consultant for Robinson Advisors.
Michael provided invaluable information on how NetProspex has been able to leverage their CODiE Award win (very interesting stuff, so more on that in a future blog post!). But what I want to focus on here is the great advice and tips both Michael and Angus provided to help you prepare for your first-round review, including:

• As soon as you receive judge assignments, reach out to them immediately to select a date that best suits their schedules for your product demo.
• Do your best to arrange for a live demo versus a pre-recorded version.
• Remember, your demo is not a sales pitch, but a product demo.
• Have your most knowledgeable person conduct the demo i.e. someone from the product team.
• Use the SIIA judging criteria to help structure your demo.

Watch the webinar to hear everything that Michael and Angus had to say, in addition to the information we provided. And remember, nominations for the Content categories must be submitted by Friday, September 28.

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



You Be the Judge: Call for SIIA CODiE Awards Judges in Ed Tech Categories

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 14:38

SIIA today announced its call for judges for the 2013 CODiE Awards in Education categories. For the past 27 years, the CODiE Awards have celebrated excellence in the education industry, and finalists and winners have later garnered market share in U.S. classrooms.

The Education Division is looking for educators and administrators to review 3-5 products each between mid-November and late January. Sign up to be a judge at the CODiE Awards web site.

“The educators are the real experts,” said Karen Billings, vice president of the Education Division at SIIA. “They know what other products are out there, and they have probably used a number of different products in their category, so they have the expertise. They are the best judge of what is going to work in the classroom, and that is a big part of what we mean when we say a product is the best.”

This year, there are 22 education categories, which include:

* Best Classroom Management Solution
* Best Corporate Learning/Workforce Development Solution
* Best Cross-Curricular Solution
* Best Education Community Solution
* Best Education Game or Simulation
* Best Education Reference Solution
* Best Educational Use of a Mobile Device
* Best Instructional Solution in Other Curriculum Areas
* Best K-12 Course or Learning Management Solution
* Best K-12 Enterprise Solution
* Best Mathematics Instructional Solution
* Best Personalized Learning Solution
* Best Postsecondary Course or Learning Management Solution
* Best Postsecondary Enterprise Solution
* Best Postsecondary Learning Solution
* Best Professional Learning Solution for Education
* Best Reading/English/ELL Instructional Solution
* Best Science/Health Instructional Solution
* Best Social Sciences Instructional Solution
* Best Solution for Specials Needs Students
* Best Student Assessment Solution
* Best Virtual Learning Solution

For more information on the CODiE Awards, visit http://www.siia.net/codies.

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards



Rock Your Demo and Maximize Your Win: Tips from a CODiE Awards Winner

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 13:00

I spoke with Craig McGuire, Product Marketing Manager for LexisNexis® Web Visibility Solutions (Websites/SEO/Social Media Products). Last year was Craig’s first time managing the submission process for his group of products, and it resulted in a win. LexisNexis® Client Center won the 2012 CODiE Award in Best Legal Solution.

What was the best part about winning?

To compete effectively as a product marketing manager, I need to identify our competitive differentiators. With the LexisNexis Client Center, our competitive advantage is inherent in the product itself, but we also need independent third-party validation to promote that value. That is what we achieved with our CODiE Award win. It’s not only the award itself–it’s the substance of the organization that backs the CODiE Awards that made it so attractive.

Keep in mind that participating requires a level of investment. It’s not only the fee, it’s actually the time and effort preparing the nomination and presentation, and then performing the demonstration. There is a lot of internal coordination. For a solution as complex as LexisNexis® Client Center, a number of different product managers are involved.

The value that we get is really the independent third-party validation from an organization of the caliber of SIIA. This is very important for us. SIIA has strong brand recognition. You folks also differentiate yourself with the way you structure and organize the competition, from the caliber of the judges, to the very fact that the judging is done on site or over web conference. It’s actually a live judging and demonstration. As someone who is participating, it gives you a reassurance that it is a sound judging process. If you are going to take the time to participate in a competition, it’s important to know that it is a fair and sound judging process. I can’t say enough about the quality of the judges. We had two judges who understood the unique challenges of the legal vertical, as well as the knowledge of the technology. They had a good base of knowledge to effectively and fairly judge the solution.

How did you announce and promote your company’s CODiE Award win?

I map out a whole project plan, just like I would for a product launch or a feature launch. It’s a major project if our award wins, so we create a basic project plan, and map out how we are going to promote and communicate it internally and externally. Internally, it’s a big morale booster. It’s a competitive industry, and everyone has their heads down, working very hard toward the same goal, so this recognition is rewarding. Externally, we issued a press release through a wire service and we posted a blog about it. Because this specific solution is a feature in multiple products, we revised all of our product brochures and sales presentations. We made it available through the iPad and PowerPoint versions of sales presentation and featured it on our website. We made sure we got that extra marketing cache that comes along with the SIIA brand and the CODiE Awards brand.

What advice would you give to a company nominating for a CODiE Award for the first time?

Listen to Wendy! (laughs) I remember that there was a best practices webinar. I enter several competitions for various products and features, and I don’t see organizers taking the time to provide the webinar like you guys did. It provided a forum where we could ask questions, and getting that first person instruction was very helpful. It answered a lot of questions I might have had, and made the nominations much easier.

Also, make sure you have a presenter who is charismatic and also understands the vertical and the benefits that the solution provides, not just the features. The presenter should understand the solution’s place in the market, and its reason for being. We take time to research our market and develop products that solve problems, and you need someone who is familiar with that whole product development cycle, someone who can articulate why your solution is great and what needs it serves. If you want to make a connection with the judges, it’s more than just the features–you really have to understand the benefits.

Lastly, I would say invest in your demo. This is something you can use for marketing in the future. With LexisNexis Client Center, we have a nice demo that we put on our YouTube channel and our website for sales enablement. Invest in a demonstration that you can send as a video to the judges, and that you can repurpose in your marketing.

Why do you think your product won?

One of the big reasons why I think it won (and it seems really obvious) is the legal-vertical specificity. We have been developing website solutions for more than a decade now, and the company as a whole has been in the legal industry for more than 100 years. We really understand the legal vertical. There are many cloud solutions out there for document sharing and data storage, but the legal vertical has higher standards when it comes to securely sharing documents. We understand the needs of the legal vertical, which is why we created an online document sharing solution, an extranet that is built into every LexisNexis Web Visibility website we offer. It’s created for the changing needs of legal professionals to provide a secure, real-time online portal that is built in. It puts everything you need to manage clients, cases, and matter in one place. It’s a simple tool that helps attorneys access the most pertinent information on their website and share it securely with their clients. We focus on the small law firms and solo practitioners, and it’s something that gives them a competitive edge.

Wendy Tanner Wendy Tanner is CODiE Awards Coordinator. Follow the CODiE Awards on Twitter @CODiEAwards