Elevate 2021

About the Elevate Awards

The software development life cycle (SDLC) and its associated software supply chain is the driving engine for innovation across enterprises, nonprofits, and government agencies across the globe. The Sonatype Elevate Awards celebrate those organizations and teams of bold innovators and fearless experimenters powering this engine and delivering stunning successes with remarkable results.

What Does Winning an Award Mean?

Recognition. This is your opportunity to stand out from over a thousand organizations, consisting of hundreds of thousands of engineers, developers, architects, security professionals, and others like you from across the globe by showcasing your innovations and stories of success in the SDLC. You and your team deserve recognition for your achievements beyond your own organization. This is that opportunity. And of course, there is the coveted, shiny, Elevate Award.

Software Supply Chain Impact

Tuning a high-performance and secure software supply chain isn’t easy. Perhaps the greatest achievement along the way is when involved teams (e.g., DevOps, Development, AppSec) sing your praises. If you’ve empowered your teams with the techniques and technologies to help build better software, faster, this award will honor your superb planning and execution across the SDLC.

Innovator of the Year

The SDLC is the innovation engine for modern organizations. We know your SDLC generated innovations that made your organization better, more streamlined, more competitive, more profitable, etc. Tell us about this innovation and how it has improved your organization.

Fastest Time to Value

You’ve invested in Sonatype’s Nexus platform for a reason. If you’re able to clearly articulate your purchase goals and demonstrate fast fulfillment of those goals, this award is for you. Showcase how quickly you were able to demonstrate value in terms of real measurable gains and share your approach.

Tech Debt Destroyer

Technical debt results in re-work and ultimately slows innovation. Many organizations ignore a mountain of debt at their peril, but not you. Tell us about where you started and where you are today. Share how your organization reduced this debt and increased your software innovation throughput in the process.

Silo-Bridger

Adopting transformative technologies requires organizational change, often spans multiple disciplines, and is invariably met with resistance. This can be daunting, yet some teams make overcoming this resistance look easy. Showcase how you overcame obstacles and silos on your path to broad-based Nexus Lifecycle adoption, resulting in reduced OSS security risk and enhanced developer productivity.

Community Contribution of the Year

We’re told from an early age how sharing is caring. Thanks to generous contributors like you, we are all able to take advantage of the benefits of your creations. Share the details of your contributions to the Nexus Exchange and/or Nexus Repository OSS edition.

What is the submission process?

Head over to the submission page to download an entry template for the award you’re interested in. Once completed upload your submission on the same page. Reach out to your Customer Success Engineer if you have any questions or would like some help crafting your submission.

Who is eligible to enter?

All active Sonatype customers from around the world, who are registered for the virtual Sonatype Elevate User Conference, are eligible for the Elevate Awards.

What is the timeline leading up to the award announcement?

• Award entry deadline: May 31, 2021 - Deadline extended
• Finalists announced: June 10, 2021
• Winners announced: June 17, 2021 during the Elevate conference

To be eligible to win, must I be registered for the Elevate conference?

Yes! But of course we know you were already planning to virtually attend. We want to encourage the Sonatype community to share their experiences and learn from one another. As a reminder, there is no cost to attend the conference.

How many finalists will be announced in each category?

We expect a high volume of outstanding submissions, so we’ll announce up to five finalists per category. Finalists will receive recognition to honor their achievement. No single company will be selected as a finalist, or winner in more than three categories. And there will be only one winner in each category.

Can I enter multiple categories?

Yes! However, we ask that you enter only once per category. If the judging panel determines your submission is miscategorized, we’ll reach out to let you know that it is being moved into a new category. No single company will be selected as a finalist, or winner in more than three categories.

Can I submit for an award based on work started prior to the past year?

Yes! We recognize innovating in software can take time. We want to recognize these stories.

What makes a winning entry?

The judges get excited about entries that tell a story, help us to understand the challenge you were working to overcome, and/or goal you were aiming to achieve, and include robust, measurable results. The strongest submissions call out specific metrics and include visuals to illustrate success. Keep in mind that we prefer substance over length of submission. Distilling your story down to the most important facts makes your entry much more compelling.