Thinkers360 Annual Awards Program Rules

 

1. Program Overview

The Thinkers360 Annual Awards celebrate the most influential and accomplished thought leaders, identifying individuals and organizations that have made remarkable contributions to their industries through high-quality content, engagement, and innovation.

 

2. Award Categories

The awards are divided into four core pillars. Some categories are free to enter, while others—typically organizational or programmatic awards—require an entry fee (marked as “Paid”).

  • Personal Excellence: Includes Thought Leader of the Year, Analyst of the Year, Author of the Year, Consultant of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, Influencer of the Year, Speaker of the Year, and Rising Star of the Year. (Paid categories include Founder, CEO, CIO, and CMO of the Year).
  • Organizational Excellence: Includes Startup of the Year and Non-Profit of the Year. (Paid categories include Thought Leading Company, Best Place to Work, Analyst Firm, Consulting Firm, and Services Company of the Year).
  • Content Excellence: Includes Article, Book, Newsletter, Podcast, and Video Content of the Year. (Paid categories include Thought Leadership Program, Influencer Marketing Program, and Best Proprietary Research of the Year).
  • Technology Excellence: (Paid categories include Most Innovative Product/Service, Best Use of AI/Emerging Technology, and Best B2B Innovation).

 

3. Eligibility

  • Employees and Contractors: Individuals employed by or serving as contractors for Thinkers360 are not eligible to nominate themselves or to be nominated for any award category, whether free or paid.
  • Thinkers360 Ambassadors: Thinkers360 Ambassadors are generally not eligible to enter or be nominated for the competition. An exception may be granted only if the Ambassador receives specific, advance approval in writing from Thinkers360, and they must be formally removed from the judging panel for the entire awards cycle.

 

4. Nomination Rules & Limits

The following rules apply to the frequency and quantity of nominations a user may submit.

A. Self-Nominations (Free Categories)

  • Maximum Total Nominations:A nominator may not nominate themselves for more than 3 different awards in the free categories.
    • Example: A nominee may submit 1 nomination for Author of the Year, 1 nomination for Speaker of the Year, and 1 nomination for Article of the Year. This totals 3 different awards and is permitted.
  • Category Limits: A nominator may not nominate themselves in the exact same category/sub-category combination more than once.

B. Nominating Others (Free Categories)

  • Maximum Nominations Per Person: A nominator may not nominate the same person (other than themselves) for more than 3 different awards in the free categories.
    • Example: A nominator may nominate a colleague 1 time for Analyst of the Year, 1 time for Book of the Year, and 1 time for Podcast of the Year. This totals 3 different awards for the same colleague and is permitted.
  • Category Limits: A nominator may not nominate the same person in the exact same category/sub-category combination more than once.

C. Paid Categories

  • Unlimited Entries: If the nominations are for paid categories, a nominator may nominate themselves or another person/organization as many times as they wish, provided the applicable entry fees are paid.

D. Receiving Nominations & Scoring

  • Unlimited Receipt: A specific nominee may receive an unlimited number of nominations from many different people. There is no cap on the total nominations a candidate can accumulate from the community.
  • Impact of Nomination Volume: The number of nominations received by an individual or company does not affect the likelihood of receiving an award. The outcome is determined solely by the results of the voting phase (public voting and/or judging).

 

5. Process & Timeline

  • Submissions (Winter): The submission window opens (typically December – February). Nominators must submit their entries within this timeframe.
  • Public Voting (Spring): Following the close of submissions, eligible entries enter a public voting phase (March – May). The community votes to help select finalists.
  • Final Judging (Spring/Summer): Finalists are determined by a combination of public votes and a panel of judges. The final winners are selected by an exclusive group of Thinkers360 Ambassadors.
  • Winners Announcement (Fall): Finalists are announced in the summer, with winners revealed in the fall (September – November) during the annual awards ceremony.

 

6. Judging Integrity and Professionalism

  • Conflict of Interest Policy: Thinkers360 Ambassadors serving as judges must adhere to the rule that any judge with a direct or immediate conflict (e.g., a current client, direct competitor, or immediate family member as a nominee) must recuse themselves from scoring that specific entry. Judges are expected to abide by this policy and all other applicable program rules.

 

7. Submission Integrity and Verification

  • A. Authenticity and Ownership: By submitting an entry, the nominator warrants that all information provided is accurate and truthful, and that the nominated content is the original work of the nominee or that the nominee has the necessary rights to submit it for consideration.
  • B. Plagiarism and Misrepresentation: Thinkers360 reserves the right to use plagiarism detection tools. Any entry found to contain substantial plagiarism or material misrepresentation of facts will be immediately disqualified, and the nominee may be banned from future awards programs.
  • C. Right to Audit: Thinkers360 reserves the right to request reasonable documentation or verification from the nominee to substantiate the claims, achievements, or metrics included in the nomination package. Failure to provide such verification within a specified timeframe may result in disqualification.

 

8. Confidentiality and Use of Materials

  • A. Submission Confidentiality: All non-public information contained within an entry will be treated as confidential and will only be shared with the awards program administrationand the final judging panel for the sole purpose of evaluating the entry.
  • B. Publicity Rights: By becoming a nominee, finalist or winner, the nominee grants Thinkers360 the right to use their name, image, organization, and a description of their nomination and/or winning achievement/content for promotional purposes related to the Annual Awards program, without further compensation.

 

9. Dispute Resolution

  • Final Decision: All decisions made by the public voters and the Thinkers360 Ambassador judging panel are final and binding in all matters related to the Annual Awards program.
  • No Appeal: There will be no mechanism for formal appeals regarding the final results or the selection of winners.

 

10. Entry Fees

For paid categories, fees cover administrative costs, the expert judging process, and marketing promotion. Pricing is tiered based on submission date (Early Bird, Standard, and Late Entry). Entry fees are non-refundable.