Contest entry
Q: How can I enter the contest?
A: You need to fill in the registration form and attach supporting documentation, if any, before 23:59 on 28 October 2016.
Q: Who is eligible to enter the contest?
A: Public administration(s) from an EU Member State or an EFTA country are eligible to enter.
Q: What type of IT solutions are eligible?
A: IT solutions that meet the following criteria:
- developed by of for public administrations from an EU Member State or an EFTA country;
- have been reused by other administrations;
- are either published under an open source licence (in case of a software) or provided as a shared service;
- are published on Joinup the Joinup catalogue. Please note that in case your solution is not yet on Joinup at the time of your registration for the contest, the Joinup team will contact you to help publish your solution.
Q: My solution is in a language other and English, will it be disqualified?
A: No. As long as the solution description and supplementary documentation provided via the registration form are in English, your solution will qualify for entry.
Q: Is there an entry fee?
A: No.
Q: Why are solutions developed by the European Commission, European Parliament or the European Council excluded from the competition?
A: This is done to avoid/prevent conflicts of interest as Evaluation Committee members come from these bodies.
Q: What information do I need in order to fill out the registration form and what supporting documentation do I need to attach?
A: The following types of information need to be provided via the registration form: contact information, a description of the solution, solution design, stakeholders, lessons learnt, extent of reuse, impact and sustainability. There are no specific requirements for what supporting documentation you may upload, but the more information we possess concerning your solution, the easier would be for the Evaluation Committee to assess your application. Please note, that all solutions also need to be added to the Joinup catalogue in order to be eligible.
Q: May I submit supplementary material?
A: Yes. Indeed, the more information we possess concerning your solution, the easier would be for the Evaluation Committee to assess it.
Q: What file types may be uploaded?
A: Any file types may be uploaded during the registration process as long as the individual file size does not exceed 1 MB. For larger files, please use the functional mailbox DIGIT-SR-AWARDS@ec.europa.eu. Supporting documents can be for example vision documents, architecture documents, strategy, case studies, etc.
Q: How will I know that you received my submission?
A: You will receive an online confirmation on the registration form, right after you submit your application. This will include a ticket number for future reference. The Awards team will also send you a confirmation email within three working days.
Q: I found some mistakes in the form I submitted. Can I send you a revised form?
A: Yes. You can send a revised form until the contest deadline.
Q: Is there an alternative to submitting an entry online, e.g. by post/regular mail?
A: No, please send your submission by using the online registration page.
Q: Can an enterprise, having worked with a public administration on a solution, enter the contest?
A: No, the awards contest is meant for public administrations only. However, administrations can apply with IT solutions developed for them by private companies.
Q: My organisation is not based in an EU/EFTA country. Can we still enter the contest?
A: No, the current contest is for EU/EFTA administrations only.
Q: What is the deadline for entering the contest?
A: Your registration needs to be submitted before 23:59 on 28 October 2016.
Q: To whom should I direct questions?
A: For any questions please email: DIGIT-SR-AWARDS@ec.europa.eu
Q: How will you use the information I give you?
A: Please consult our privacy statement here.
Multiple entrants/entries
Q: How many names may be on each entry?
A: There can be only one leading administration (main contact) who applies for the prize, although the awards certificate will mention all participating administrations and one official representing each administration (with their consent).
Q: I have several solutions I’d like to enter in the contest – is that possible?
A: No. One (leading) administration can only enter one project. Please choose the one you consider the most successful.
Q: How does it work in the case of a joint submission, i.e. if I’m submitting an entry on behalf of mine and another public administration?
A: In case of a shared project, there has to be a leading administration (first contact) who applies for the prize. In case of a shared project (among multiple administrations) the monetary award will be transferred to one administration only (to be selected amongst the applicants themselves), while certificates will be given to all participating administrations (one certificate for each participating administration). The certificates will also mention all leading officers of the project (maximum one per administration).
Q: Can I enter a solution for consideration in more than one category?
A: No. Please choose the category your project was most successful in.
Q: Can I submit an entry for a solution I did not personally work on, e.g. on behalf of another colleague?
A: Yes, but only if you work for the same organisation that developed / is the owner of the solution.
Prizes
Q: How will the winning organization(s) receive their cash prizes?
A: The Commission will transfer the monetary prices to the bank account of the winning public administrations.
Q: What if my organisation cannot accept a cash prize?
A: The award is given to administrations, not to natural persons (individuals). In the event that your organisation cannot accept a cash prize, this will be awarded to the next-best solution in the rankings. However, your administration will still receive an award certificate.
Q: How will entries be assessed?
A: Solutions that take part in the contest will be assessed against pre-defined criteria as follows:
- Solution design: What technologies is it based on? What is the architecture of the solution? Is it scalable, extendable? Does it reuse other services / software solutions or standards / open specifications? What license model is used?
- Solution governance/business model: Which organisations, institutions and countries are involved in the solution’s governance process? How is the solutions development and provision financed?
- Impact/results: How does your solution help public administrations? What benefits does your solution bring to its stakeholders, users? What is the cost / benefit? What was the impact so far?
- Extent of reuse: How many administrations haven been using this solution and what is the extent of their use? Are there concrete plans for future reuse? How easily could your solution be implemented in a context different from the one in which it was initially developed?
- Sustainability: How is the sustainability of your solution guaranteed? Can continuous support be provided? Will the solution be further maintained?
Announcement of the winners
Q: When will I receive the feedback from the Evaluation Committee?
A: Winners will be notified in January-February 2017.
Q: How and when will the Commission announce the winners?
A: The winners will be notified via a personal e-mail at the end of January/beginning of February 2017 and invited to the Sharing & reuse conference . We plan to publicly announce the winners at the conference planned to be held in March 2017. This official announcement will be followed by a news article and tweets on Joinup and in several social media sites.