Step Two’s Intranet & Digital Workplace Awards are now in their 20th year, and it prompts me to look back on its long history.

In 2007, Windows Vista was released and intranets were still undiscovered territory. Step Two had been operating as a consulting business for six years at that point, and we’d connected with a wide range of Australian clients. We’d also run intranet community events, and started speaking at international conferences.

At the time, I had a very strong feeling that every intranet problem had been solved somewhere, just not in the one organisation, and not visibly to other teams struggling with the same challenges.

The NN/g “intranet design annuals” had been running for a few years, and while they were great, they narrowly focused on design and UX. Business benefits and new approaches were beyond the scope of the NN/g awards, and the global community needed more. (The NN/g awards eventually shut down, as did other awards launched at the time.)

As a result, Step Two spawned not one but two long-lasting initiatives: the Intranet Innovation Awards and the Intranet Leadership Forum (more on the Forum in another post).

This was a huge gamble for a small (but passionate) consulting firm based in Australia!

In the first year, the entries were assessed just by Step Two team members, but by the following year we’d established an international judging panel consisting of Martin White, Jane McConnell and Howard McQueen. We also had the support of a wide range of organisations, including IntraTeam, User Interface Engineering, CMS Watch, Prescient Digital Media and Straits Knowledge.

I still remember our first Platinum Award which went to Fiat for their internal transformation effort called “Avante e Veloci” (Fast and Forward), which could justifiably claim to help turn around the fortunes of the whole business. The frontline personas from the Environment Agency in the UK were also delightful.

The Awards from the outset prioritised business impact, with entries having to demonstrate how they helped the business and better supported staff (not just being new and novel). This isn’t easy for any team, but that’s why its so important. Over the years, we’ve seen some extraordinary projects and solutions!

Ten years ago, we broadened the scope of the awards, adding categories and renaming it to the Intranet & Digital Workplace Awards. And still the amazing entries rolled in. Meanwhile, Steve Bynghall came on as the manager of the awards, and has since been capably handling for many years.

If there’s one word that encapsulates the Awards for us, it’s “joy”! Every year it’s like the best birthday from your childhood: new ideas and approaches from around the world to unwrap and enjoy. Plus the chance to give kudos to wonderful teams often overcoming daunting challenges. The Awards have connected us with these teams and practitioners, many of whom have become long-standing friends.

Fast forward to today, and the Awards are celebrating their 20 year anniversary! This is still a massive endeavour run by a small consulting firm based in Australia. It takes a lot of time and money (only some of which is recouped by report sales). We still have an international judging panel who generously contribute their time.

Our goal was always to uncover great ideas and to share them for the benefit of the global community. We also wanted to give kudos to teams to are not often given recognition for their sustained hard work.

The Awards have enriched the community, accelerated the pace of innovation and helped to shape best practices. It’s impossible to quantify the many ways that the Awards have supported practitioners in their strategy, design and delivery work.

We’re not stopping now! We’re waiting in anticipation of a slew of fascinating AI initiatives, and new approaches to the fundamentals will still be surfaced.

The 2026 Awards are open for entries right now (closing April 21), and the 20th year milestone will add an extra special touch for this year’s winners. Don’t be shy: you deserve a trophy!