This category recognises public sector organisations that have successfully implemented AI to solve a clear service or operational challenge, delivered measurable impact, and embedded responsible, ethical, and transparent AI practices. Entries should show strong change management, effective staff engagement and training, robust governance, and evidence of real improvements for citizens or employees, along with plans to sustain or scale the initiative.

• Clear Problem Definition & Purpose: Entrants must demonstrate a well‑defined service or operational challenge and show why AI was the right solution. Submissions should outline strategic alignment with organisational or national digital priorities.
• Effective AI Implementation & Responsible Governance: Entries should highlight how the AI solution was developed or deployed responsibly, including governance, transparency, ethical safeguards, data protection, and steps taken to ensure accuracy, fairness, and trust.
• Change Management, Workforce Engagement & Upskilling: Entrants must show strong human‑centred change practices—how staff were engaged, trained, supported, and empowered throughout the transition to AI‑enabled processes.
• Measurable Impact, Sustainability & Scalability: Entries should provide evidence of improvements for citizens or employees (e.g., efficiency, quality, service accessibility) and outline plans for long‑term sustainability, scaling, or replication across the wider public sector.

Celebrates public‑sector organisations that use AI to enhance learning, training, or workforce development, either for citizens or civil servants.

• • Clear Benefit to Learners: Show how the AI tool or project makes learning easier, faster, or more effective for citizens or civil servants.

• • Easy to Use: Demonstrate that the AI solution is simple to access and understand, even for people with limited technical skills.

• • Real Results: Provide a few examples or numbers that show the project has genuinely improved skills, training quality, or learning outcomes.

• • Supports Skill Growth: Show that the AI project helps people learn new skills or improve existing ones in a clear, practical way.

This award recognises public sector organisations that have implemented digital solutions to deliver an exceptional citizen/customer experience. This award category celebrates innovation and excellence in designing and delivering digital solutions that meet the needs of public sector customers and improve their engagement with public services.

Entries for this award category could include a range of digital solutions, such as mobile applications, websites, chatbots, or digital portals that offer convenient and accessible services to the public. The judges will be looking for solutions that demonstrate a strong user-centric design, measurable impact on users experience, and a sustainable and scalable approach that can be replicated in other public sector organisations.

• User‑Centric Design & Accessibility: Entrants should demonstrate how the digital solution was designed around real citizen needs. This can include any user research, accessibility considerations, intuitive design, inclusive service delivery, or how feedback shaped the final experience.
• Measurable Impact on Citizen Experience: Entries should showcase any improvements for citizens made, such as faster access to services, higher satisfaction, reduced effort, improved accessibility, or increased engagement, supported by data, insights, or user feedback.
• Innovation & Service Improvement: Entrants should highlight how the solution uses innovative digital approaches (e.g., mobile-first design, automation, chatbots, personalisation) to significantly enhance the citizen journey and solve long-standing service challenges.
• Scalability & Public‑Sector Value: Entries can show how the solution is built for long-term use, with robust technology and  governance. They can also demonstrate how the solution can scale across teams, departments, or other public bodies to deliver wider public‑sector benefit.

Honours multi‑department or multi‑agency AI initiatives that demonstrate strong collaboration, shared data, and unified service delivery.

• Collaborative Strategy & Multi‑Agency Alignment: Entrants must demonstrate how departments or agencies worked together toward a shared goal
• Joint Learning & Shared Best Practices: Entrants should show how lessons learned, insights, or best practices from the collaboration were shared between agencies to strengthen collective capability and improve future AI initiatives.
• Unified AI Delivery & Real‑World Impact: Entrants must show how the collaborative AI solution improved service delivery, decision‑making, or operational performance in ways that would not have been possible through a single‑agency effort. Evidence of measurable outcomes is essential.
• Scalability, Sustainability & Cross‑Government Value: Entries should outline how the partnership model, AI solution, or shared data approach can be sustained, expanded, or replicated across government  demonstrating long‑term public sector benefit.

This award recognizes outstanding digital marketing strategies that enhance public sector communication and citizen engagement. Public sector organizations, government agencies, and individuals behind impactful digital marketing campaigns are encouraged to enter, showcasing measurable outcomes and innovative approaches to engaging the public.

• Strategy, Creativity & Audience Insight: Entrants must demonstrate a clear, well‑defined digital marketing strategy built on strong audience insight, creative messaging, and an understanding of public‑sector communication needs. This can include campaign planning, channel selection, and alignment with organisational goals.
• Execution & Innovation Across Digital Channels: Entries should highlight how the campaign leveraged innovative digital approaches, such as social media, video, content marketing, data‑driven targeting, or multi‑channel integration, to effectively reach and engage the public.
• Measurable Outcomes & Public Engagement Impact: Entrants must show tangible results, including metrics such as reach, engagement, behavioural change, traffic increases, conversion rates, or improved citizen awareness. Evidence of meaningful impact on public understanding or participation is essential.
• Effectiveness, Value & Replicability: Entries should demonstrate strong return on investment, efficient use of public resources, and clear lessons that can be applied across other departments or future campaigns.

The Best ICT Project of the Year award recognises a public service technology project that has transformed business operations in the workplace and/or customer experiences. 

The award is not limited to any specific type of project, as long as it uses IT to benefit the organisation or its clients and measurable results or impact can be demonstrated.

• Innovation in ICT Design & Implementation: Entrants must demonstrate how the project applies technology in a creative, efficient, or modern way to address a clear organisational or service challenge. This includes system design, technical execution, and problem‑solving approaches.
• Transformation of Operations or Customer Experience: Entries should provide evidence of how the ICT project has significantly improved internal operations, workflows, or public‑facing services such as enhanced efficiency, reduced manual processes, improved accessibility, or better customer satisfaction.
• Measurable Results & Demonstrable Impact: Entrants must show outcomes, supported by data if available or case studies, or user feedback..
• Sustainability, Scalability & Long‑Term Value: Entries should outline how the project is designed for long‑term use, with strong governance, ongoing support, and potential for expansion or replication within the organisation or across the public sector

Local authorities carry out a broad range of activities that make a significant contribution to the physical, cultural, social and environmental development of their communities.

This award recognises Local Government Authorities that have successfully engaged with their local communities through innovative and effective digital solutions.

This award category celebrates innovation and excellence in using digital tools and platforms to foster collaboration, dialogue, and co-creation with local communities.

This award will recognise the best local government project from each province as well as awarding an overall winner. Entries for this award category could include a range of digital solutions, such as online platforms for community feedback, citizen-led initiatives, or participatory budgeting tools that enable local communities to be more involved in decision-making processes. The judges will be looking for solutions that demonstrate an effective approach to community engagement, measurable impact on the community, and a sustainable and innovative approach that can be replicated in other public sector organisations.

• Community Engagement & Participation: Entrants should demonstrate how the digital solution meaningfully engaged local residents, enabling stronger collaboration, dialogue, or co‑creation. This can include outreach methods etc
• Innovation in Local Service Delivery: Entries should highlight how any digital tools, platforms, or processes were used in a new or creative way to strengthen local services, enhance transparency, or improve how communities interact with their local authority.
• Measurable Impact on the Community: Entrants should highlight positive outcomes for the community, such as increased participation, improved service accessibility, stronger trust, or better decision‑making, supported by any feedback, or case examples.
• Scalability, Sustainability & Replicability: Entries must outline how the project is designed for long‑term success, with robust governance and continuous improvement. They should also demonstrate potential for expansion within the authority or replication across other local government bodies.

Much has been said about the undisputed power of the cloud and its positive impact on organisational security, sustainability, and accessibility. This category celebrates the project or initiative within the public sector that is implementing cloud-based technologies to transform Irish public services and deliver major benefits for both users and public sector bodies. 

Entrants should be able to demonstrate how their cloud solution has upgraded legacy systems, improves service delivery, and protects data sovereignty in an effort to modernise the public sector. These could be self-service applications such as government information portals, student admissions and enrolment processes, or medical applications. Organisations using hybrid cloud solutions will also be considered, so long as they can demonstrate innovation, measurable impact, and scalability.

• Innovative: Describe how the project is innovative, leveraging the cloud to upgrade a tired system or solve a challenge.
• Scalability: Detail the scalability of the project, does it have the potential to be scaled up or replicated to have a wider impact on the public sector.
• Impact: Demonstrate any measurable impact of this project either within the team that has deployed it and/or for the community that it benefits or the problem it solves.
• Resilience & Security: Describe how the cloud solution strengthens the resilience, reliability, and security of the service or system. Explain how the project ensures data protection, uptime, disaster recovery, compliance with public‑sector standards, and the safeguarding of sensitive information. Demonstrate how the cloud environment enhances trust, continuity, and operational stability for both users and the organisation.

Open Source software is fast becoming an indispensable and prominent tool for government infrastructure. OSS allows the public sector to retain and share knowledge and skills between departments and also aids in troubleshooting existing software challenges. 

This category celebrates an organisation within the public sector that is leveraging the use of open source technology to improve efficiency and agility, promote transparency and security all while being able to cut costs in the long-term. Open-source government software brings better security, documentation, software designs, ownership, and processes to the forefront. Has your team been successfully using OSS to add value to the public sector for your organisation itself or for the public community you serve? 

The judges will award the entrant that is able to demonstrate use of OSS with a clear value proposition that is innovative, impactful and scalable.

• Innovative: Describe how the project is innovative, leveraging open-source technologies to enhance security, create efficiencies, reduce costs, solve a challenge and benefit the public.
• Scalability: Detail the scalability of the project, does it have the potential to be scaled up or replicated to have a wider impact on the public sector.
• Impact: Demonstrate any measurable impact of this project either within the team that has deployed it and/or for the community that it benefits or the problem it solves.
• Governance & Security: Explain how the project ensures strong governance, responsible stewardship, and robust security practices in its use of open‑source technologies.

This award category recognises outstanding achievements in the development and deployment of data solutions that can significantly enhance public sector operations and services. This award category celebrates innovation and excellence in the design and delivery of big data products or services that can help improve decision-making, provide insights and generate value from large and complex data sets.

Entries for this award category could include a range of data solutions, such as data visualisation tools, predictive analytics solutions or machine learning platforms. The judges will be looking for solutions that have a clear value proposition, can demonstrate a tangible impact on public sector operations, and are developed in a responsible and sustainable manner.

• Long‑Term Impact, Replicability & System‑Wide Value: Evidence that the solution can expand, sustain results, or be reused across teams, departments, or agencies to drive broader public sector impact.
• Strategic Alignment & Problem Solving: How clearly the entry demonstrates a public sector challenge and shows how the data solution strategically addresses it.
• Operational Transformation & Service Improvement: Proof that the data innovation transformed a workflow or streamlined services, or reduced administrative burden, or improved outcomes for staff or citizens.
• User Adoption & Capability Building: How the solution was embedded into day‑to‑day operations such as staff training, stakeholder engagement, and building data literacy or analytical capability.

This award category recognises individual excellence and outstanding leadership in driving digital transformation within the public sector. This award category celebrates individuals who have shown exceptional vision, strategy, and leadership in the delivery of digital services and solutions that have had a positive impact on the public sector.

Entries for this award category are open to individuals who are currently employed in the public sector, with a clear track record of driving digital transformation within their organisation or across the public sector. The judges will be looking for individuals who have a clear passion for digital transformation, can demonstrate tangible achievements, and have the potential to make a significant impact in the field of digital leadership within the public sector.

• Vision, Strategy & Digital Leadership: Entrants must demonstrate a clear, forward‑thinking digital vision and the ability to develop and execute strategies that drive meaningful digital transformation within their organisation or across the public sector.
• Tangible Achievements & Impact: Entries should provide evidence of measurable outcomes delivered under the individual’s leadership — such as improved services, enhanced efficiency, better citizen experience, or strengthened organisational capability.
• Influence, Collaboration & Culture Building: Entrants should show how they have inspired teams, fostered a culture of innovation, and built strong relationships across departments, agencies, or sectors to advance digital transformation efforts.
• Commitment to Future Public‑Sector Digital Excellence: Entries must demonstrate the individual’s ongoing commitment to developing digital talent, championing best practices, and contributing to long‑term improvement and innovation across the public service.

This Award recognises outstanding achievements in the development and implementation of initiatives that promote digital skills and talent development in the public sector. This award category celebrates innovation and excellence in the design and delivery of products or services that can help bridge the digital skills gap, upskill public sector employees and create a digitally competent workforce.

Entries for this award category could include a range of digital skills or talent development initiatives, such as training programmes, mentorship schemes, digital competency frameworks or online learning platforms. The judges will be looking for solutions that have a clear value proposition, can demonstrate a tangible impact on digital skills development in the public sector, and are scalable to promote broader adoption of digital skills and talent development initiatives.

• Innovation in Skills Development & Programme Design: Entrants must demonstrate how the initiative uses creative, modern, or technology‑enabled approaches (e.g., online learning, mentorship, competency frameworks, blended training) to address a clearly defined digital skills gap within the public sector.
• Impact on Workforce Capability & Digital Competence: Entries should provide measurable evidence of improved digital skills and/or greater confidence among staff and/or enhanced service delivery capability, and/or  increased adoption of digital tools
• Engagement, Accessibility & Inclusion: Entrants must outline how the initiative was made accessible, relevant, and engaging for public sector employees. This includes participation levels, outreach strategies, user‑centred design, and efforts to ensure inclusive access to training.
• Scalability, Sustainability & System‑Wide Value: Entries should demonstrate how the initiative is built for long‑term success, with strong governance, continuous improvement, and the potential to scale or be replicated across departments or agencies

This award category recognises outstanding achievements in the development and deployment of technology-driven solutions that promote health and wellbeing. This award category celebrates innovation and excellence in the design and delivery of HealthTech products or services that can help improve health outcomes, reduce healthcare costs, and enhance patient experience.

Entries for this award category could include a range of HealthTech solutions, such as telemedicine platforms, wearable devices, health management applications, or medical devices. The judges will be looking for solutions that have a clear value proposition, can demonstrate a tangible impact on health outcomes, and are scalable to promote broader adoption of HealthTech solutions in the public sector.

• Innovation & Design Excellence: Entrants must demonstrate how the HealthTech product or service uses novel, evidence‑based or technology‑driven approaches to address a clear healthcare challenge. This includes design quality, clinical relevance, user‑centred development, and innovation compared to existing solutions.
• Impact on Health Outcomes & Patient Experience: Entries should provide measurable evidence of improved health outcomes, enhanced patient experience, increased access to care, or reduced healthcare burden. Data, case studies, or user feedback should support claims of real‑world impact.
• Value Proposition & Cost Efficiency: Entrants should clearly outline the product or service’s value to healthcare providers, patients, and the wider system. This includes cost‑effectiveness, improved efficiency, reduced workloads, or the ability to streamline clinical or administrative processes.
• Scalability, Safety & Adoption Potential: Entries must show how the solution is built for safe, reliable, long‑term use with appropriate governance, data protection, and regulatory compliance. They should also demonstrate strong potential for scaling within the public sector or broader healthcare ecosystem.

In today’s complex landscape, effective collaboration is more needed than ever, especially in government projects. Balancing bureaucracy, security, community impact, and innovation requires not just technical expertise but strategic thinking and leadership. Collaboration is at the very core of success in any organisation, but in the world of government projects, it takes on an even more vital and nuanced role.

This award celebrates a cross-departmental public sector project or initiative that involves two or more teams/organisations working in tandem for a greater outcome. Entries for this award category can be fully completed and implemented projects or can be at a growing stage. The project might be one that creates efficiencies, has strong community impact, or solves a public sector challenge. 

The judges will be looking for collaborative projects that have a clear value proposition and that can demonstrate a tangible positive impact, while also being innovative and scalable. 

• Cross‑Agency Partnership & Joint Leadership: Entrants must demonstrate meaningful collaboration between two or more public sector teams or organisations, showing shared ownership, coordinated decision‑making, and strong partnership structures that enabled the project to progress effectively.
• Clear Purpose, Innovation & Problem‑Solving: Entries should outline the challenge addressed and show how collaboration enabled more innovative or effective solutions than a single team could have achieved alone. This includes creative approaches, co‑design, or new ways of working.
• Measurable Positive Impact: Entrants can provide evidence of tangible outcomes — such as operational efficiencies, improved service delivery, community impact, reduced duplication, or better use of resources — supported by data, feedback, or real‑world examples.
• Scalability, Sustainability & Wider Public‑Sector Value: Entries should demonstrate how the collaborative model, frameworks, or outputs can be sustained over time and have the potential to be scaled or replicated across other departments, regions, or sectors to benefit the wider public service.

This award recognises outstanding achievements in the planning, development and deployment of technology-driven solutions that promote sustainability, help to reduce carbon emissions, and that aim to protect the environment. This award category celebrates innovation and excellence in the design and delivery of sustainable products or services, supported by technology, that can help tackle the environmental challenges faced by society today.

Entries for this award category can be fully completed and implemented projects or can be at an advanced stage of design. The range of solutions could include: energy-efficient technologies, government data centre sustainability initiatives, smart grids, renewable energy systems, or sustainable transportation solutions.

The judges will be looking for solutions that have a clear value proposition and that can demonstrate a tangible positive impact on the environment, while also being innovative and scalable to promote broader adoption of sustainability driven solutions.

• Innovation: Describe how the product or service is innovative, leveraging technology to address environmental challenges.
• Scalability: Detail the scalability of the product or service, does it have the potential to be scaled up or replicated to have a wider impact on the environment and society.
• Impact: Demonstrate any measurable impacts of this initiative.
• Stakeholder & Ecosystem Engagement: Describe how the product or service engages key stakeholders—such as citizens, public‑sector teams, industry partners, or environmental organisations—to strengthen its environmental contribution.

This award recognises individual excellence and outstanding achievements in the field of IT within the public sector. This award category celebrates individuals who have shown exceptional potential, dedication and innovation in the delivery of IT services and solutions that have had a positive impact on the public sector.

Entries for this award category are open to individuals who are currently employed in the public sector, have been working in the IT field for less than 5 years, and have demonstrated exceptional potential, dedication and innovation in the delivery of IT services and solutions. The judges will be looking for individuals who have a clear passion for IT, can demonstrate tangible achievements, and have the potential to make a significant impact in the field of IT in the public sector.

Give an overview of the of the nominees outstanding academic and career highlights to date

This award recognises both individuals and teams within public sector organisations who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in implementing security and privacy measures to protect public sector information systems.

Entries for this award category could include individuals and teams who have implemented good data protection policies, risk management frameworks, secure infrastructure deployment and data encryption protocols. It could also include those who have promoted the development of privacy-enhancing technologies, innovative approaches to data anonymisation, and successful implementation of data privacy impact assessments. Any individual or team nominated should be able to showcase how they have made all relevant stakeholders within the organisation aware of the importance of security and privacy in the workplace.

• Excellence in Security & Privacy Governance: Entrants must demonstrate strong leadership in developing and implementing robust security and privacy frameworks — including data protection policies, risk management processes, compliance practices, and governance structures that safeguard public sector information systems.
• Implementation of Advanced Security & Privacy Measures: Entries should showcase successful delivery of security and privacy initiatives such as secure infrastructure deployment, encryption protocols, privacy‑enhancing technologies, data anonymisation techniques, or data privacy impact assessments, with evidence of measurable improvements.
• Innovation, Problem‑Solving & Resilience: Entrants must highlight innovative approaches to managing threats, mitigating risks, and strengthening organisational resilience. This may include introducing new tools, modernising legacy systems, adopting proactive threat monitoring, or improving incident response capabilities.
• Organisational Awareness, Culture Building & Stakeholder Engagement: Entries should demonstrate how the individual or team has actively promoted a culture of security and privacy across the organisation, driving awareness, training, cross‑department collaboration, and strong communication with key stakeholders to embed best practices at every level.

We look forward to receiving your entry. There will be no shortlist published in this category. One overall winner will be chosen by the judges in advance and will be announced on the night.

Give an overview of the nominees career and why you feel they have excelled above the rest