Judging Process

The 2026 Alberta Business Awards of Distinction are committed to maintaining the highest standards of fairness and impartiality in the judging process. Applications are reviewed using the secure Awardify platform, which supports anonymized evaluation and structured scoring. This ensures submissions are assessed objectively and based solely on their merit.

The Judging Process

All applications undergo a structured multi-step evaluation process designed to ensure fairness and consistency. Judges can log in here.

Step 1: Eligibility Review

All submissions are reviewed to confirm eligibility and compliance with award criteria. Financial information is reviewed only during this stage to confirm that applicants represent actively operating businesses. Financial statements are not used as part of the judging criteria.

Step 2: Independent Adjudication

Eligible applications are independently evaluated by judges using a standardized scoring matrix and clearly defined criteria. Each submission is reviewed by three independent judges within its award category. Judges assess applications based solely on the content of the submission and the evaluation criteria. Using Awardify's secure platform:

• Judges review submissions anonymously
• Judges do not see identifying business information
• Judges cannot view how other judges score applications
• Scores are compiled and ranked objectively by the platform.

Step 3: Judging Committee Review

Following adjudication, the top-ranked submissions are reviewed by the Judging Committee to confirm finalists. The committee reviews scoring results, discusses submissions, and confirms up to five finalists in each award category. If fewer suitable candidates are identified, a category may advance with fewer finalists.

Judging Integrity Safeguards

To ensure fairness and objectivity, the Alberta Business Awards of Distinction uses several safeguards:

1. Anonymized Submissions:
   • Identifying business information is removed prior to adjudication. Judges evaluate applications based only on the content of the submission. 
2. Defined Criteria for Objectivity:
   • Each submission is assessed against clearly defined evaluation criteria using a standardized scoring framework.
3. Independent Evaluation:
   • Each application is reviewed by multiple judges, ensuring balanced evaluation and minimizing bias.
4. Secure Judging Platform:
   • All scoring is conducted through the secure Awardify system, which compiles results objectively and ensures transparency in rankings.

Judging Committee

The Alberta Business Awards of Distinction Judging Committee is composed of respected leaders from across Alberta's business and chamber community. The committee includes

• Current members of the Alberta Chambers of Commerce Executive Committee
• Past Chairs of the Alberta Chambers of Commerce
• Past Alberta's Best of Business recipients
• Community members at large

This diverse composition ensures a balanced perspective and strong governance throughout the evaluation process.

Alberta's Best of Business Award

Finalists from the 12 award categories may be eligible for consideration for Alberta's Best of Business. Judges evaluate eligible finalists using additional criteria through the Awardify platform before meeting to determine:

• Alberta's Best of Business Finalists
• One Alberta's Best of Business recipient

The winner is selected based on overall excellence, leadership, innovation, and economic impact in Alberta.

Timeline

This rigorous and transparent process ensures that the Alberta Business Awards of Distinction recognize businesses that truly demonstrate excellence, innovation, and leadership across the province.

Judges can log in here.