Program Overview

The Computerworld Honors Program brings together the Chairmen or Chief Executive Officers of the one hundred foremost information technology companies in the world to help the world's leading universities, libraries and research institutions document a revolution in progress, the global information technology revolution.

Established in 1988, the Program is dedicated to identifying the men and women, the organizations and institutions, that are leading this revolution and to recording the impact of their achievements on society. The "Computerworld Smithsonian Awards Program" was established to document the progress of information technology as it unfolds. Each year, the results of the program are presented to the Smithsonian Institution to add to its permanent research collection.

Primary source materials, such as case studies, video tapes, oral histories, biographies, conference proceedings, publications, and other records generated by this on-going "search for new heroes" are preserved, protected, and made available to both scholars and the general public, not only on line but also through a program of source and license donations to affiliated universities, libraries, and research institutions around the world

Over the course of each year, members of the Chairman's Committee identify, in ten fields of human endeavor , those organizations whose use of information technology has been especially noteworthy for the originality of its conception, the breadth of its vision, and the significance of its benefit to society.

In April of each year, these organizations are recognized as Computerworld Honors Program Laureates in formal ceremonies marking the donation of their case-studies and other historic materials to the world's libraries.

In June, from each of the ten fields, the five Laureates deemed most outstanding by a panel of judges distinguished in that field are given special recognition as Worldwide Finalists in ceremonies in Washington, D.C. Finally, one Worldwide Finalist from each field is selected to receive the Computerworld Honors Award.

In addition to recognizing the efforts of outstanding organizations, the Computerworld Honors Program, at the June ceremonies, also gives out a series of Information Technology Leadership Awards, each sponsored by a participating corporation, to honor the extraordinary achievements of particular individuals whose careers have left an indelible mark on the information technology industry and, by extension, on the world.

| Back to Smithsonian Home Page |

Return To Carol LaRow Homepage