by Bright Ewuru | Jul 29, 2025 | Articles
Managing awards programs used to mean juggling spreadsheets, emails and a patchwork of tools—but those days are quickly fading. The awards management software market is booming, valued at USD 1.2 billion in 2024 and projected to grow by another USD 1.3 billion by 2033.
This rapid growth signals a clear shift: more organisations are turning to dedicated platforms to streamline how they run awards, prizes, competitions and recognition programs.
Still relying on manual processes or DIY solutions? Now’s the time to modernise.
Awarding organisations are continuing to opt for professional awards management software because it can help reduce overhead costs. Such platforms require fewer staff and reduce the need for printing, postage, travel and physical storage, helping brands save money.
Return on investment is often measured in financial terms, but it’s not limited to that. ROI is also about value created.
Using awards management software can position your brand as forward-thinking, organised and credible, enhancing its brand reputation and boosting the prestige of your awards program. This can attract sponsors and new applicants, while encouraging old applicants to reapply and even recommend the program to others.
You likely want your awards program to grow.
Growing your awards program involves the following:
Scaling your awards program offers better visibility, greater revenue generation, enhanced participation and stronger networking opportunities.
However, manual operations can hinder growth due to administrative overload, disjointed and inconsistent processes, and an inability to meet complex needs.
Award managers are learning that award management software is essential for scaling awards. Awards management software supports automation, system centralisation and amazing entrant experiences, all of which translate to entry growth. In fact, Award Force users enjoy a whopping 38.17% increase in entry volumes.
Awards management software can help your awards program remain impactful and relevant over time, without burnout, loss of quality or loss of purpose. Reducing manual workload and streamlining the entire process allows managers to focus on making improvements.
Traditional DIY setups aren’t ideal for sudden changes and challenges, such as policy shifts and any problems that arise. With purpose-built platforms, awarding organisations can continue running their awards programs online in the face of unforeseen events. What’s more, such tools can help award managers accommodate different scenarios by supporting customised workflows, deadline extensions and context-based evaluations.
Thanks to the security features of awards management platforms, sensitive participant data is shielded from malicious players. This data privacy supports compliance with various regulations, preventing legal and financial risks that could force the program to a halt.
These capabilities future-proof awards programs and ensure continuity.
Organisations are making the switch to awards management platforms because of their efficiency and accuracy. These tools make every aspect of award management smooth.
Firstly, they can support multiple award programs concurrently. Also, applications can be collected online, while built-in communication tools can keep all participants in the loop.
Automation can reduce time spent on tasks and minimise errors, while integration can facilitate connection with other mission-critical apps used by your organisation, boosting productivity.
Awards management software can power your awards program with the support of insightful program data, which can offer real-time dashboards, detailed analytics and reporting, and ensure you make informed decisions.
Award management platforms offer amazing experiences to program participants; just another reason why organisation leaders prefer them to traditional setups.
With Award Force, for example, entrants have great submission experiences thanks to intuitive entry portals, accessibility functionalities, robust file compatibility and support. Judges, too, enjoy much value as they operate in a streamlined environment.
The different judging modes available can help them make standard objective evaluations. The central management system that software provides can save team members the hassle of dealing with disjointed processes and scattered files.
Whether for contests, employee recognition, scholarships or any other type of submission and assessment program, awards management platforms are better than manual processes. They can help awarding organisations boost their ROI, scale without the need to invest more resources or compromise on quality, sustain their programs, operate efficiently and provide an awesome user experience.
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