Our Sponsors
The Digital DNA Awards are possible thanks to our incredible sponsors
"...the only Awards worth winning if you work in the tech sector..."
Awards
16 Categories
Where
ICC Belfast
When
21st March 2024
Celebrating the Success of the NI Tech & Digital Community
Established in 2016 the Digital DNA Awards celebrate the success of Individuals, Projects and Companies from right across the highly competitive NI Tech and Digital Sector.
With 16 categories up for grabs, the Digital DNA Awards are now widely regarded as “the only awards that matter” by the NI Tech and Digital Community and showcase the very best of the NI tech and digital sector.
- 16 Categories
- Independently Judged
- Free to Enter
2023 Highlights
2024 Categories
Young Person
Recognising an individual under the age of 30, who is really disrupting the market through their radical innovation, energy and endless creativity. The judging panel will look to award the best & brightest young people.
Developer
Our Developer of the Year will be a rock star coder or engineer who has produced ingenious work with real impact over the last 12 months. Judges will not only be looking for technical ability but for someone who works well within a team.
Founder
This award is in recognition of an outstanding individual from Northern Ireland who has made a significant contribution here or beyond through establishing a market leading business.
Tech Ambassador
Learning & Development is a major element of many tech enabled companies. Our Tech Ambassador award recognises an individual who is passionate about promoting the importance of STEM, not just within their own business but to the wider community. This could be via outreach to schools or other organisations.
Business Personality
This award will recognise an individual who makes a positive impact on the local business community. Demonstrating strong leadership skills, creating a culture that excites, motivates and engages staff at all levels and encourages innovation and ambition.
Digital Innovation
This category is open to both digital and non-digital companies, but the project must be a digital or technology-related task that has impacted on the wider business. This can be a bespoke internal system that the business now relies on, or an efficiency driven project that has seen incredible results.
eCommerce Project
A company or organisation that can show itself to be a true vanguard of digital commerce. This could range from an online based retail business to a sports club using online to build its core business. Firms of all sizes can be considered, from small new companies up to major organisation driving change.
Digital Marketing Campaign
Recognition of a marketing team that has enjoyed considerable success with their digital marketing strategy. The judging panel will be looking for a team that has executed a multi-channel campaign, not only with excellent results but also for those that are forward thinking and set it apart from the competition. Entrants are welcome from both agencies representing clients or in-house marketing departments.
Mobile App
Recognition of an app demonstrating excellence either on the IOS or Android operating systems. The app could be either practical or a game that has produced great results for yourself or a client.
Sustainability Project
The Sustainability Project of the Year recognises an amazing company or project that is making a positive impact on reducing climate change and who are contributing to the UN’s Sustainability goals. This project could be a digital innovation or a ground-breaking and technologically advanced hardware innovation being developed here in Northern Ireland.
Tech for Good Project
The Best Tech for Good Innovation will be from a company or organisation from Northern Ireland that has developed a socially responsible and innovative technological response in the last 12 months, to an issue that is affecting wider society in Northern ireland or further afield.
Startup
This award will recognise NI HQ'd Tech startups under 3 years old and have raised no more than £1m in funding or no more than £500k in ARR. The winner will have bold ambitions with evidence that their business is scalable and they have gained some market traction.
Workplace
This company will have instilled an excellent workplace culture where employees are at the core of everything they do. The judges will be looking for evidence of how employee satisfaction is measured as well as what makes the workplace unique. This could be office perks, employee benefits, office environment, wellness programmes or team incentives.
Scaleup
This new award is for ambitious NI HQ'd tech companies who are experiencing rapid growth. Companies should have raised more than £1m or be achieving more than £500k in ARR and growing. The winner will have bold ambitions with evidence that their business is scalable and they have gained some market traction.
Small Tech Company
Recognising an outstanding small, indigenous company with less than 50 people employed. The judges will be looking for a company that is providing an innovative solution (within the last 12 months) that is disrupting a market or industry. This company will be passionate about what they do and may be exporting their services beyond the local market.
Large Tech
This company will employ over 50 people and may have additional locations globally. The judges will be looking for the company that has shown real innovation (in the last 12 months), rolling out new products or services that have had a significant element developed here in Northern Ireland. The Large Tech Company of the year will have also contributed significantly to the local economy by creating jobs within the local market.
How to Enter
Our online system makes it easy to submit your entry or nominate worthy winners
Days
Hours
Minutes
Entry deadline is 5.00pm on 2nd February 2024
Sign Up
Simply register for our online system and enter your details.
Select Category
Select your category from the drop down and answer the questions as prompted. You can save a draft at any time to complete at a future date.
Submit
When you have completed all questions, simply submit for our judges to review.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, the Digital DNA Awards are completely free to enter.
Yes, the awards are open to anyone to enter. Individuals can either complete the entry themselves or can nominate someone else.
Our Awards will officially open for entries on Thursday 14th December 2023 and will close on Friday 2nd February 2024.
Our first round of Judging will take place early February with our Shortlist be announced from Monday 12th February.
The winners will be announced at our celebration event on Thursday 21st March 2024.
No! Winners will be informed at the Awards dinner on 21st March 2024. The excited reactions of people hearing they have won is priceless. Check out our previous winners in our highlights video above.
ABSOLUTELY! The Digital DNA Awards are the biggest Awards Dinner and Party in Northern Ireland so it’s one that a lot of people want to be at. It’s a great way to catch up with peers and also a great night out for you and your team. You can buy tables or individual seats at the link above.
No problem.
You can email us at [email protected] and we will get back to you as quickly as we can.
Absolutely! Our Individual, Project and Company awards provide lots of opportunities to get involved with the Digital DNA Awards.
Our judges come from all over the UK & Ireland and are experts from right across many sectors and disciplines within the tech and digital sector. All our judges review and score our entries individually. This prevents group bias from influencing the scoring and ensures the judging process remains completely independent.
Shortlisted nominations and entries will be notified from 12th February.
If you are shortlisted for one of our individual categories, you will be invited to a photo day where we will take professional profile pictures for our online content.
We ask all our judges to provide feedback on submissions and if required we can provide feedback.
We do have limited sponsorship opportunities for the Digital DNA Awards. If you wish to enquire about sponsorship opportunities, please email [email protected]
Yes. Simply send us what you would like to book, the details for the invoice and we will issue an invoice for payment. Send details to [email protected]
Attend the Digital DNA Awards '24
Meet Our Judges
John Ferris
NI Dealmaker | Dept of Intl. Trade
Carol Fitzsimons
CEO | Young Enterprise NI
Kieran McCorry
National Technology Officer | Microsoft
Oonagh O'Reilly
Sales & Marketing Director | ICC Belfast
Paula Kennedy
VP | Intouch247
Ian Browne
MD | NDRC
Alastair Cameron
MD | Startacus
Prof. Jonathan Wallace
Professor of Innovation | Ulster University
Jeremy Biggerstaff
MD | Flint Studios
Dave Feenan
Network Manager | Skillnet
Hilary Moran
Chief Executive | The Fintech Corridor
Trevor Skinner
Digital Director | GSMA
Gary Davidson
Investment Lead | Tech Nation
Lisa Bailie
Lab Manager | Barclays Eagle Labs
Mark Scully
Head of Digital & Innovation | 256
Mary McKenna
Investor | Founder | Awaken Hub
Book your place NOW
The biggest night of the year for the NI tech community is not to be missed. Make sure you book your place to avoid disappointment and guarantee your place.
- ICC Belfast
- 21st March 2024
- 6.00pm - Late
- Business Casual
Bronze
(min 2 tickets)
£
185
+vat
-
Networking Pre Drinks Receptionn
-
Seated at one of Tier 3 Networking Tables
-
Access to Awards Ceremony
-
Network with the best from NI Tech Community
-
3-Course Meal & Wine
-
After Award entertainment
Silver
(min 2 tickets)
£
205
+vat
-
Networking Pre Drinks Reception
-
Seated at one of our Tier 2 Networking Tables
-
Access to Awards Ceremony
-
Network with the best from NI Tech Community
-
3-Course Meal & Wine
-
After Award entertainment
Gold
(min 2 tickets)
£
225
+vat
-
Access to the Private VIP Pre Drinks Reception with Pre award entertainment
-
Seated first at one of our Premium Networking Tables (stage view)
-
Access to Awards Ceremony
-
Network with the best from NI Tech Community
-
3-Course Meal & Wine
-
After Award entertainment
Judges coming soon
Would you like to sponsor the Awards?
Sponsoring the Digital DNA Awards is a fantastic way to get your brand in front of the biggest gathering of tech and digital professionals in Northern Ireland.
Please contact Chloe Ferris on [email protected]
Join the community
Stay up to date with all the latest announcements, offers, exclusive content and more.
- Digital DNA HQ, Clockwise Offices, 48-60 High St, Belfast BT1 2BE
- [email protected]