The April 1 issue of CIO magazine stressed the importance of “Marketing IT to the Business.” Per the call to "innovate and communicate," you can also market your projects via industrywide recognition.  Which brings me to the Premier IT Awards, where we’re a few weeks to the end of our call for submissions.

CIO custom solutions group and Intel have been receiving numerous IT department submissions from around North America that demonstrate best practices in data center or client fleet management.    Grassroots IT innovation and dedication to driving business value.  The submissions span projects valued from $10K to $2.5M, from customers with in-house vs. managed data centers and client solutions.   Intel products at the center of these solutions include not just Intel Core 2 processors with vPro technology or Intel Xeon processor-based servers, but Intel Itanium processor-based servers, Intel XScale technology and devices.

Just a few examples of our diverse submissions include a:

-Law firm

-Leading transportation company

-State government

-Non-profit healthcare network

-Managed service providers with small/medium business customers

-One of Fortune magazine 100 Best Companies to Work For

The short list of contenders for the awards will be posted on the Intel Premier IT Professional site soon.  And you’ll have the chance to vote for the “people’s choice” winner if you’re a member (it’s free to join).

If you think you’re too small or your industry doesn’t lend itself to driving business value because you’re state/local government or a nonprofit, I encourage you to think again.  Submit your best practices.  For more information visit the program website or if you have any questions, ask me here.