Judging
The AWA judging process is simple and thorough, performed by some of the industry’s leading experts.
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The Process
Australian Web Awards entries are assessed using a combination of ‘judging disciplines’, such as content or development, and ‘judging criteria’ which is a scale from 1 to 5. Each site is reviewed and judged by multiple judges.
Judging disciplines
Each entry will be judged in up to 6 disciplines, and they are:
- Design
- Development
- User experience
- Content
- Accessibility
- SEO
Judging criteria
Each judging discipline contains criteria based on a simple 1 to 5 scale. Here’s how that works:
- 1 is the minimum level accepted – if an entry doesn’t get at least a 1 for each discipline it won’t qualify for the awards.
- 3 is the midpoint – this is where an entry would need to be to be considered as a finalist for an awards.
- 5 is considered excellence – an entry that goes above and beyond and is outstanding (ideally what look to award in each category).
Each entry will be judged on its performance against the criteria and awarded points in each discipline to accrue a combined score. As an example, if there are 6 disciplines, an entry could have a total score between 6 and 30.
Judges
Daniel Zuccon
Daniel has over 20 years of experience within the web industry and is a co-founder of SEO agency, Optimising.com.au. Having been an AWA judge for the past few years, Daniel is proud to support and celebrate the most innovative Australian websites.
Andrew Stone
Andrew is an accessibility advocate, and strives to break down barriers in both our physical and digital worlds, helping to create inclusive experiences that improve the quality of life for everyone. Whether working on small, medium, or enterprise-level projects, he focusses on embedding accessibility into culture and processes, always putting humans first.
Jarrad Langdon
Jarrad has always had an interest in computers and design. When he was offered an apprenticeship at a local design firm he keenly embraced the opportunity presented to him. After completing several TAFE courses Jarrad’s talents have resulted in success both locally and internationally. The pinnacle of this success was his gold medal in Website Design at the WorldSkills International Competition, Helsinki 2005.
Ash Nallwalla
Ash Nallawalla is a fractional SEO for hire and author of Accidental SEO Manager (Amazon). His background is mostly in in-house enterprise SEO roles, but has owned and managed SEO agencies and consultancies.
Pamela Meagher
Pamela, a Certified Practising Marketer, is an award-winning digital marketing strategist. She has delivered results for over 600 local and global products/services; gaining award recognition for content development, website strategy, and innovative digital solutions.
Pamela’s industry leadership includes mentoring for the Australian Marketing Institute and guest lecturing at Swinburne University. In addition, she has contributed as an SEO Meetup Organiser, Australian Marketing Institute Award Judge, and Australian Web Awards Judge.
Danny Liang
Danny is an award winning web designer and developer crafting impactful solutions for Australian enterprises, such as Western Sydney University, Optus, Mosman council, many local SMEs and tech startups. He is a passinate educator dedicated to fostering connections between academia and industry through mentoring and running graduate programs for university graduates.
Bob Croft
Bob has over 11 years of marketing experience in the APAC region and has worked with over 400 businesses across the APAC region and scale businesses of all sizes.
Bob helped all-size businesses solve their problems/pain points and grow revenue through technologies. He also has unique skill sets in BTL marketing/1:1 direct communication. He provides both strategic advice and executions.
He is also one of the judges and mentors for the Australian Marketing Institute – AMI. Besides, he is an author for Martech Zone in the US and India.
Sarah Jee Watson
A UX Consultant with over 10 years of experience across digital projects, spanning marketing, conversion optimization, UI design (web and product), branding, and UX design.
Sarah specializes in making digital experiences less frustrating through human-centered design by identifying and solving user and organizational challenges. As the founder of Get With The Brand, she loves to work with organizations who exist to help people, help the planet, or challenge the status quo.
Notable projects include work for the Australian Federal Police (AFP), the Victorian Government, and NYC start-up Beholdr.
Ray Kwong
At Franklin AI, Ray is a Senior UX/UI Designer with over six years of experience specialising in MedTech AI, alongside a solid foundation built across various leading agencies. Ray is dedicated to designing intuitive solutions that bridge technology and healthcare, creating meaningful impact for users and society. With a passion for user-centered design and innovation, Ray thrives at the intersection of technology, social good and health care.
Paula Glynn
Paula is a Conversion Rate Optimisation specialist and CoFounder of Pixelstorm. With over 15 years experience in digital working across projects for Government, Manufacturers, Not For Profits & growing businesses across Australia, Paula’s eye for detail, user consideration and conversion rate strategy means delivery of profitable and high user engagement projects. Speaking at events on digital marketing across Australia, Paula is passionate about education and the industry community.
Steve Jaenke
For over two decades, Steve Jaenke has been a distinguished figure in the SEO landscape, demonstrating exceptional proficiency and foresight in digital marketing. His deep insight and adeptness have consistently placed him at the vanguard of the field, where he has excelled in harnessing the potential of Google and digital strategies for SMEs. Renowned for his extensive knowledge and strategic acumen, Steve has been instrumental in elevating the online presence and success of numerous businesses, making a substantial and meaningful impact in the realm of SEO.
His expertise and commitment have earned him prestigious recognitions, including the International Award in Web Excellence and a national award in Marketing Excellence.
John Rosato
For 12+ years John has been helping Australia’s most ambitious brands grow and scale through both organic and paid performance marketing. John is Soul+Wolf’s digital marketing manager and Co-Founder of Break Binge Eating. With over 10 years of digital marketing experience he’s passionate about driving measurable and radical growth for Soul+Wolf’s clients.
Kath Parkis
Kath founded her first business at 21 years old as one of the first e-Commerce entrepreneurs in Australia. With over 19 years of experience as an entrepreneur and investor, Kath has a track record of launching, growing, and scaling successful businesses in the e-commerce and technology sectors.
Kath has extensive knowledge and skills in luxury fashion, fast-fashion, software, retail technologies, e-Commerce, communication solutions, & digital education. Kath has run multiple B2C & B2B businesses over the past 19 years & has developed a wealth of learnings along the way.
Luke Sherwin
Luke Sherwin is a globally experienced Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) with over 17 years experience specializing in digital strategy, branding, transformation and leadership. His career spans New York, Switzerland and Australia where he has honed an international perspective and extensive insights, making him adept at solving complex and urgent priorities with strategic precision and pragmatic solutions.
He has a proven record of success in delivering world-class digital, creative and brand experiences that The Newsroom has hailed as “a beacon of interactive excellence.” His work has garnered multiple prestigious accolades, including at The MUSE Creative Awards, The Marcom Awards and The Content Marketing Awards
Maddi Skeggs
Maddi is a Melbourne-based UX and UI designer on a mission to transform people’s lives through innovative, delightful, and impactful digital experiences. With over eight years of experience, she has honed her craft across the entire design process—research, ideation, prototyping, visual design, and delivery—creating web, app, and strategy projects for clients looking to make waves in their industries.
As a Design Lead at Inlight, Maddi brings a unique blend of deep thinking, creativity, and pragmatism to every challenge. She’s known for clear communication, thoughtful design rationales, and an ability to turn ideas into outcomes that exceed expectations. Whether it’s leading a presentation for stakeholders or rolling up her sleeves to tackle complex design problems, Maddi goes above and beyond because just ‘good enough’ isn’t in her vocabulary.
Michael Bollig
Michael is a seasoned human-centred design lead and experience strategist. His collaborative & value-driven approach bridges the gap between technology, customers and business to drive outcomes for digital transformation success.
Michael thrives solving complex problems for mining & energy, enterprise, retail and government customers, often in complex regulatory and technical environments. He has spent over 15 years working on major digital transformations involving digital experience platforms and more than a decade as a national judge for the Australian Web Awards.
Tony Cormack
Combining passions for design, people and community Tony’s design journey has led to an international career over 27 years working on market leading projects across digital, identity, brand and publishing.
For the past 20 years Tony has embraced all things digital and brand with a wealth of experience in producing usable, exciting and engaging user centred brand experiences – including extensive experience working on e-commerce, tourism, not for profits, and loyalty projects.
“From my days initially designing computer games magazines to leading enterprise level digital experiences, my passion has always been for how the user engages, uses, plays and enjoys those designed experiences”
Doyle Buehler
Doyle Buehler is on a mission to help businesses go from Good to Great in the disruptive digital landscape. He believes that by honing our curiosity, creativity & strategic thinking, entrepreneurs can design & create certainty, clarity, and a better understanding of their business, creating remarkable value with immense impact and experiences built to last at www.strategystorming.co
Natasha Williams
Tash Williams is the co-founder and CMO of Word of Mouth Digital, a Sydney-based agency specializing in growth-focused digital marketing for eCommerce, service-based industries, and hospitality.
With deep expertise in brand positioning, performance marketing, and customer acquisition, she leads strategy for her teama and stable of clients that drives measurable results. Known for her data-driven approach and commercial mindset, Tash helps brands scale through innovative campaigns, strategic partnerships, and high-impact content.
George Vasilou
George is the founder of SLICK, a creative agency established in 2005 in Perth. With a strong foundation in design and innovation, he has led SLICK to deliver impactful and award-worthy solutions. His passion for creativity and user-focused design continues to drive the agency’s success in crafting meaningful digital experiences.
Thomas Lutrov
Thomas Lutrov built this first website at the age of 10 years old, using a now retro version of Dreamweaver. His skills in the world of websites have been somewhat refined since then. He is passionate about helping website owners genuinely satisfy the intent of people using search engines, and takes a user-first approach to all things organic search.
Paras Aggarwal
With over two and half decades of experience in design, both as a practitioner and a leader, Paras has worked across the globe solving complex problems for customers. In his recent roles in Australia, Paras has led design practices at large corporates and startups. In pursuit of purpose-led change, Paras founded AmplifiU, an early stage AI EdTech startup based in Sydney, yet solving problems for K-12 teachers all over the world.
Googe Farrugia
Googe is a founding partner and Experience Director of Studio Bravo in Melbourne. For the past 25 years, his focus on design and the way we interact with technology has enabled him to lead the creation meaningful, delightful and effective digital products and services.
Chris Burke
Chris Burke is a senior digital consultant with a wealth of experience finding innovative outcomes for clients across various sectors, including banking, retail, NFP, government, education, health and startups. Chris takes a holistic approach to digital product development, encompassing the areas of discovery, strategy, marketing, UX and accessibility.
Chris was a previous Australian Web Industry Association (AWIA) Board Director, and has been a judge in 7 Australian Web Awards (accessibility) and was the 2021 Web Awards Judging Chair.
James Fitzjohn
James is the Director & Executive Consultant at Brew.
Brew is a boutique consultancy that combines business and marketing strategy with digital CX services to provide clarity and direction for brands who are looking to achieve growth.
Sarah Dam
With a career in web development spanning back to the last century, Sarah brings a wealth of front-end development expertise to the table. Having worked across the UK, Sydney, and Melbourne, and now as Front-end Developer Lead at Luminary, Sarah understands the intricacies of creating exceptional web experiences. A strong advocate for supporting developers and their teams, Sarah hopes to have the opportunity to support and celebrate innovation as a member of the Web Awards judging panel.
Andy Howard
Andy has designed and implemented digital innovations on a national scale and consults to private and public organisations Australia-wide. His work has helped organisations achieve outstanding commercial results and has been globally recognised for its effectiveness.
Sam Penny
Sam Penny is a Senior SEO Specialist who’s worked both agency side and in-house. He is currently the SEO Manager at Rest Super, an $85B superannuation fund.
Sarah Glaied
At Wax Interactive, our commitment to crafting exceptional digital experiences is the essence of my role as Client Services Director. Overseeing digital strategy, UX design and web application projects. The journey from concept to execution is a collaborative effort, where my leadership fosters innovation and operational excellence.
Mark Gretton
Innovative strategic leader, currently working as CTO at award-winning agency, CHEP Network. 20+ years experience working in the UK & Australia with some of the world’s and Australia’s largest brands (Ford, Samsung, Mercedes, Coles, Nestle, ANZ Bank Mazda, Danone etc.) to help drive their marketing and digital experience programmes forward.
John Wearne
With over 20+ years experience spanning graphic design and product design, helping both start ups and enterprise businesses solve customer problems.
A career covering marketing platforms, tv on demand and the fintech space. Today leading Product teams, drawing on his breadth of industry expertise to help grow and evolve design capabilities to meet the needs of scaling organisations. Driven by placing the customer at the heart of product practice, a strong believer in identifying customer pain points to deliver business value.
Sam Roshan
Driven founder of Blank Theory, a strategy-led digital agency that delivers impactful results. With a sharp focus on e-commerce and lead generation, Sam combines creativity and data to help brands thrive in competitive markets. Known for cutting through the noise, he turns business objectives into measurable outcomes. Passionate about innovation and never settling for “good enough.”
Chris Clark
With over 25 years of experience, Chris currently serves as the Head of E-commerce at Milton & King, a global leader in wallpaper production spanning Australia, the United States, and Europe. His entrepreneurial spirit thrived as the owner of Thirteen Digital for 12 years, where he distinguished himself and his team by designing, developing, and producing award-winning websites, showcasing his prowess in both UI (User Interface) and UX (User Experience) design. Notable clients such as Elements of Byron, Queensland Government, Museum of Brisbane, and Fortitude Music Hall bear testament to his expertise in creating seamless and engaging digital experiences.
Chris’s impact extends beyond his entrepreneurial ventures. He was also the founder of Newlight Media from 2000 until its acquisition by Gallery Group/Clemenger DDB in 2010, further solidifying his influence in the digital design landscape.
David Phung
Dave is a specialist in transforming enterprises through disruptive technologies and human-centred design. He has delivered digital innovations for the likes of Fidelity Investments, the Australian Open, US Golf Association, Sony PlayStation amongst others. In 2022, Dave and his team received a Cannes Lion for innovative use of technology in sport — one of the highest honours in the creative industry. Currently, as the Chief Disruptor at GPTStrategic, Dave leads the implementation of GenAI strategies for a diverse array of clients.
James Ansell
James has over 16+ years of digital experience, account management, strategy, delivery experience across three continents working at some of the industries best advertising, marketing, innovation and digital product companies in London, New York, Sydney and Brisbane.
He has worked directly with a number of incredible people, across a number of disciplines, to gain experience in new business and business development, strategic planning, branding, communications architecture, product innovation, delivery, account management and creative expression. He’s also picked up 3 x Effies for Creative Effectiveness across AUNZ and APAC.
Jason Guo
Jason is a seasoned IT professional with over 20 years of experience, specialising in web-based applications and infrastructure. He has played a pivotal role in high-profile projects for the Australian Government, such as Parliament 2.0, CMS for Trove, and websites such as Australia.gov.au, NDIS.gov.au, DVA.gov.au, and ACNC.gov.au.
In these projects, Jason’s contributions have ranged from software architecture design, CMS development to the implementation of advanced enterprise search technologies, all aimed at enhancing user experience and information accessibility.
Marjo Kaszonyi
Marjo Kaszonyi is a strategic design leader based in Sydney, specializing in service creation and digital experience design. With over 14 years of experience, she bridges the gap between brand and product through innovative digital solutions.
Marjo leads multidisciplinary teams with empathy, guiding projects from research to implementation. Her strengths in collaboration and storytelling promote design-led approaches and foster designer growth. An advocate for accessibility and inclusion, she believes that good design belongs to everybody.
Caleb Mcglew
Caleb is a digital marketing expert and website creator with a passion for digital solutions architecture. Skilled in Website Creation, Social Media Marketing, Google Advertising, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Communications, & Brand Development. Strong operations professional who loves to solve problems through creative solutions.
Philip Allen
Phil is a digital strategy expert and the co-owner of Dapth, a forward-thinking digital consultancy based in Perth, Western Australia. With over two decades of experience, he specialises in developing and implementing cutting-edge digital strategies that drive business growth. His expertise spans Digital Strategies, Content Strategies, Web Strategies, Intranet Strategies, and commercial application Strategies.
Jason Isaks
A multidisciplinary designer and technology leader for over 10 years. Founder of Murbu Design and current Head of Product at AmazingCo. I am passionate about customer centric digital products and using technology to address social and environmental issues.
Christopher Harris
Chris is a visionary leader and accomplished entrepreneur with extensive experience in brand management, digital transformation, advertising, marketing and business growth. As the Founder and CEO of Open Worldwide, Welcome and The Social Party, he has successfully built a dynamic group of agencies that form a comprehensive services ecosystem across multiple disciplines.
Chris’s expertise and contributions to the industry are widely recognised. He serves as a Member and Judge at the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, as well as a judge for the International Web Awards. He is an active member of ADMA, AMI and AIM, and has received numerous web, digital and media awards for his outstanding work.
Scott Pelham
Scott is a seasoned UX/UI designer and researcher with 10+ years’ experience across the private and public sector. His company, Iterativ, specialises in UX design and, as part of his research PhD, Scott is collaborating with the Department of Fire and Emergency Services to develop an innovative internal tool to empower users and boost staff efficiencies.
Jason Arnold
With two decades of experience in digital, Jason has evolved from a junior developer through to a seasoned UX professional through a variety of different roles, including production, project management, account management, user experience research and design. His true passion is exploring emerging and innovative technologies and using them to solve complex problems that really help people.
Dave Eddy
Dave is Managing Director at Redback Solutions. Founded in 1999, Redback is one of Australia’s longest-running digital agencies. They specialise in website design and development, digital marketing and content. From small-medium companies, to large institutions, universities, government, NGOs and Ecommerce brands, their team of 30 have experience producing results for a broad range of clients, receiving multiple national and international awards.
Sharon Latour
Sharon Latour is the founder of Marketing Bee, an internationally award-winning agency specialising in innovative and impactful digital strategies for retail products. The agency’s expertise lies in fostering meaningful connections with customers to drive business growth while collaborating closely with brand and marketing managers. She is also an active contributor to client groups and consults on various boards.
Richard Smith
Richard is an accomplished design leader with over 15 years of leading cross-functional design teams. He has worked with notable brands such as Google, Commonwealth Bank, Qantas, Fairfax, American Express, NRMA and most recently Service NSW.
Richard has spent over a decade working in a mixture of design consultancies and experience agencies leading teams at M&C Saatchi, VML, CX Lavender and Folk where he has won over a dozen international awards.
He’s currently leading enterprise design at Service NSW.
Oliver Muñoz
Oliver Muñoz is the founder of Uncommon, an award-winning boutique studio specialising in crafting exceptional digital experiences. With over a decade of experience spanning digital, creative, and design agencies across the United States, Australia, and Mexico, Oliver has collaborated with industry-leading companies worldwide.
At Uncommon, he unifies diverse teams of specialists under a shared creative vision, ensuring projects deliver both impactful results and seamless user experiences.
Oliver’s design philosophy is rooted in purpose. He believes that design’s ultimate role is to solve problems for users by striking the perfect balance between functionality and aesthetics. This user-centric approach drives his commitment to producing work that is not only visually compelling but also meaningful and effective.
Nick Smith
Nick Smith is a Senior SEO Specialist who has worked both agency and in-house. He is currently working for adidas with a focus on Asia Pacific.