The Judging Process

Two Round System

In the majority of categories there are two rounds of judging.

First Round: Selection of finalists is based purely on the information provided in your written entry. Your entry will be reviewed and rated by six local judges who will collectively decide on selecting the finalists of which there will be a maximum of six in each category.

Once the finalists have been selected an international judge is assigned to each category to work with the local judges prior to the second round of judging.

Second Round: Panel judging of the finalists is face-to-face and each finalist gets 30 minutes with the judges. We strongly encourage finalists to attend in person rather than remotely. Once the second round of judging is completed the local judges work together will the assigned international judge to select the winner.

Special Category Judging

A small number of categories follow an alternative process:

• The Most Inspiring Individual category nominees are shortlisted by the Hi-Tech Trustees and subsequently interviewed by an independent writer. Final decisions are made by a panel of three international judges based on these compiled submissions.
• The Best Contribution to the NZ Tech Sector category is judged solely on written submissions by a panel of local judges.
• The Company of the Year category is evaluated exclusively on written submissions by a group of senior international judges.

Each category is judged independently by a dedicated panel to ensure specialised expertise and impartiality.

Judging Confidentiality

All judges adhere to strict confidentiality agreements and access entries exclusively during the judging process.

Conflict of Interest

Recognising the close-knit nature of the New Zealand technology sector, we acknowledge that conflicts of interest may arise. To mitigate this, each category is reviewed by multiple local judges, and all judges must declare any potential conflicts before accessing submissions. Conflicts are reviewed and managed by the Lead Judge of each category, with support from the Convenor of Judges as required, to uphold the integrity of the process.