Awards recognize excellence in IT leadership and innovation in the categories of Champion, Disruptor, Elevate IT CIO, Industry Innovator and Public Sector Visionary
SAN JOSE, Calif. – May 17, 2016 – Nutanix, a leader in enterprise cloud computing, today announced the 16 customer finalists of the inaugural NEXT Awards at the .NEXT Conference in Las Vegas June 20-22, 2016. The award winners in each of the five categories will be unveiled Wednesday, June 22 during the opening day two keynote with Nutanix Founder, CEO and Chairman Dheeraj Pandey.
“These awards are a great platform for recognizing the IT visionaries who are blazing new trails at their organizations,” said Glenn Allison, vice president of enterprise architecture and IT solution delivery at Tractor Supply Company, who is serving as a NEXT Awards judge. “It is inspiring to see such innovative work being carried out across a wide range of industries. We congratulate all the finalists and look forward to awarding the winners in each category at the conference.”
The evaluation of nominations and selection of finalists was undertaken by a panel comprised of Allison and other technology thought leaders, including:
- Maribel Lopez, Founder, Analyst, Lopez Research
- Ben Woo, CEO, Neuralytix Advisers
- Howard Ting, Chief Marketing Officer, Nutanix
The NEXT Award program recognizes IT professionals who are transforming their organizations with innovative enterprise cloud technologies. Finalists were nominated in each category for their unique approach to deploying Nutanix solutions.
NEXT Award Categories and Finalists
Champion Award: Nominees have championed and introduced a change in the IT environment. Along the way, he or she met challenges that affected their likelihood of success, yet persevered to achieve proven business results (e.g., reduction in complexity and/or cost or the introduction of a new business or operating model).
Finalists:
- Jeff Babcock, Manager, IT Infrastructure and Security, Empire Life
- Arun Guruprasad, Assistant Manager, Vehicle and Unit Development Business Systems, Toyota
- Jonathan Seet, Infrastructure Architect, Tronox
Disruptor Award: Nominees have successfully driven an initiative that created significant change in the organization, business or bottom line. Candidate would have brought to bear new ideas and strategies that had tangible impact in their organization.
Finalists:
- William Beckett, Systems Administrator, Followmont Transport
- Alan Feltes, Manager Operations and Support, Telit/Crossbridge USA
- Biju Samuel, Director, Information Technology, Cardlytics
Elevate IT CIO Award: Nominees are CIOs or VPs who have demonstrated best-in-class leadership, strategy and business impact combined. Candidate has shown motivational or inspirational leadership that resulted in the elevation of the IT organization’s performance and impact on the overall business.
Finalists:
- Chris Cate, EVP and CIO, Cox Target Media
- Mark Hindle, Head of Technology/CIO, Relationships Australia NSW
- John Mason, CIO, Bottomline Technologies
- Kelly Michel, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Charter
The Industry Innovator Award: Nominees that have introduced innovative ideas in their organization in order to build differentiation against competition in their industry.
Finalists:
- Matt Day, ICT and Support Manager, Langs Building Supply
- Tim Jones, Director of Technology, Blue Springs School District
- Milind Samant, Director of Infrastructure Services, Bergen Community College
Public Sector Visionary Award: Nominees have made a significant impact by delivering reliable and sustainable services to public sector customers and citizens.
Finalists:
- Thomas Sasala, Chief of the Strategy, Plans & Architecture Center, Joint IT Service Provider, Pentagon
- Randy Steiner, Director Solutions, Secretary of Defense, Pentagon
- Jon Walton, CIO, County of San Mateo
Resources
- Join .NEXT and network with the NEXT Award finalists and peers. Register today at www.nutanix.com/next
- For more information on NEXT award criteria, eligibility and judging process, visit: www.nutanix.com/next/awards
- Join the conversation at #NEXTConf
About Nutanix
Nutanix is a global leader in cloud software and hyperconverged infrastructure solutions, making infrastructure invisible so that IT can focus on the applications and services that power their business. Companies around the world use Nutanix Enterprise Cloud OS software to bring one-click application management and mobility across public, private and distributed edge clouds so they can run any application at any scale with a dramatically lower total cost of ownership. The result is organizations that can rapidly deliver a high-performance IT environment on demand, giving application owners a true cloud-like experience. Learn more at www.nutanix.com or follow us on Twitter @nutanix.
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