Sewickley, Penn., August 20, 2024 — The Technology Councils of North America (TECNA), representing over 60 technology associations across the U.S. and Canada, announces the winners of its sixth-annual TECNA Innovation Awards. These awards recognize and celebrate the exceptional creativity and groundbreaking contributions made by individuals and teams to improve their technology community.
The award ceremony was held in Boston, Massachusetts, during the annual TECNA Summer Conference on August 7. The awards were presented by Doug Robertson, CEO from Venn Innovation in Moncton, New Brunswick, and Zakiyyah Ali, Executive Director from Tech Council of Delaware in Wilmington, along with Avvey Peters, Head of Ecosystem Strategy from NorthGuide based in Kitchener, Ontario.
“This year’s TECNA Innovation Awards exemplify the crucial role of collaboration, advocacy, education and innovation regional tech councils and tech hubs play in the tech sector,” said Jennifer Young, TECNA CEO. “These awards highlight the exceptional work TECNA’s member organizations do each year, but also provide inspiration to others to consider new ideas and embrace a culture of continuous improvement. Tech jobs are in every community, so we all benefit when TECNA members and their member companies are thriving and active parts of these communities.”
The 2024 Innovation Awards winners included:
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Award – recognizing teams who have developed innovative initiatives in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Winner – North Forge Technology Exchange
The North Forge Technology Exchange developed the Women in Innovation Lab (WiLab™) to address the distinctive challenges women entrepreneurs encounter in the workforce by providing essential resources, mentorship, and education to transform innovative ideas into viable businesses. North Forge also launched the Global Entrepreneurship Initiative to support the participants in the Start-up Visa (SUV) Program. This program focuses on North Forge’s initiative to not only support women’s entrepreneurial aspirations but also expand the existing services through North Forge that empower women entrepreneurs. In addition, North Forge’s development of a national virtual program has provided comprehensive assistance to women entrepreneurs entering Canada via the SUV and Provincial Nominee Program.
Marketing & Communications Award – recognizing teams who developed innovative marketing, communications, or social media strategies strengthening the brand and community engagement of the tech council.
Winner – Nebraska Tech Collaborative
The Nebraska Tech Collaborative created its own Tech Entrepreneurs Nebraska (TEN) Podcast. The podcast has grown into a platform for authentic discussions concerning the tech and entrepreneurship aspects of Nebraska.
Public Policy Advocacy Award – recognizing teams who have led creative efforts on behalf of their tech council in the area of public policy advocacy.
Winner – OhioX
OhioX partnered with Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted and the State of Ohio’s Office of Innovate Ohio on a series of AI Forums across Ohio. This partnership allowed OhioX to dive into the transformative impact of AI on Ohio and explore how our educators, companies, and ideas will shape the future of the State. OhioX also provided networking opportunities with professionals in the tech, government, and education industries and heard from leaders of companies and organizations including the Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University, John Carroll University, Microsoft, and many more.
Major Impact on Tech Community Award – recognizing teams who have made a substantial impact on the tech community or on the community at large.
Winner – Technology Association of Georgia
The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) is at the epicenter of Georgia’s technology industry. Founded in 1998, TAG has made it their sole priority to provide its members with the best resources available for working and aspiring technologists. With new programs launched within the TAG Education Collaborative, TAG has worked to prove it is far more than a trade association. Studies from NAICS and Lightcast show that the state of Georgia is projected to create another 100,000 jobs in technology by 2033, in turn advancing the number of full-time tech employees in Georgia to 450,000. After 25 years of devotion to its member’s success, Georgia has rightfully taken its place as a global leader in technology.
Member & Client Services Award – Two Winners – recognizing teams who implemented innovative work or projects that creatively recruited or retained council members and/or clients beyond normal daily operations and events to recruit or retain member clients.
Canadian Winner – Quebec Technology Association
The Quebec Technology Association (AQT) Next Generation Fund works as a testament to its commitment to nurturing Quebec’s future technology leaders. Through meaningful connections, knowledge exchange, and personalized guidance, the AQT Next Generation Fund empowers young startups to increase their chances of success in a competitive market. The AQT Next Generation Fund is dedicated to bolstering the efforts of Quebec’s tech startups. It is supported by voluntary financial contributions with scholarship offers for emerging enterprises. These scholarships include corporate memberships, complimentary or discounted event tickets, participation in discussion groups, personalized mentorship, and specialized activities tailored to young businesses. Overall, the AQT Next Generation Fund creates ground to foster an environment where innovation for new businesses can thrive.
American Winner – Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council
The Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council (MTLC) has improved its Tech Hot Topic Series launched in 2023 with the promise to unite its members so that they may explore how cutting-edge technologies are leveraged for business process and product improvements. The goal of the Tech Hot Topic Series is to increase a company’s growth through a series of critically designed events and sessions. Each half-day event focuses on an emerging technology trend with sessions small enough to facilitate meaningful interactions and network building that share real cases and best practices that attendees can implement in their own companies.
Talent Pipeline & Workforce: STEM & Students Award – recognizing teams who have developed innovative workforce or talent pipeline initiatives for K-12 STEM, higher-ed STEM, CTE, or internships.
Winner – Greater Cleveland Partnership
The Greater Cleveland Partnership’s (GCP) IT Career Exploration Portfolio of Programs dedicates its work to inspiring high school students to pursue IT careers in Northeast Ohio. These programs promote awareness and readiness, facilitating pathways to internships, apprenticeships, and further education. Through this program, GCP has been able to increase the engagement of females and students of color while also improving volunteer participation. Today, these programs are supported by all 30 Cleveland Metropolitan School District high schools.
Talent Pipeline and Workforce: Upskilling & Professional Development Award – recognizing teams who have developed innovative workforce or talent pipeline initiatives for training/re-training, apprenticeships, job portals, mentoring, coding and DEI.
Winner – Technology Association of Georgia
The Technology Association of Georgia Education Collaborative (TAG-Ed) launched its new Bridge Builders program in 2022 as a commitment to social justice and equity. TAG Bridge Builders is designed to bring the technology and business community together to drive meaningful change within the workforce.
About TECNA
The Technology Councils of North America (TECNA) is a federation of more than 60 highly collaborative technology councils and trade associations in the US and Canada. TECNA combines the expertise and influence of its member councils and associations – and the 22,000 technology companies they serve – to achieve outcomes that individual organizations cannot achieve alone. We use that expertise and influence to promote innovation and help grow the North American economy. More information on TECNA can be found at: tecna.org, on Twitter or Linkedin.
Contact:
Alina Hardy
Communications Director
ahardy@tecna.org
Jennifer G. Young
Chief Executive Officer
jyoung@tecna.org