SAVE THE DATE: Fairfax Chamber of Commerce 2015 Innovation Awards, April 20, 2015, Nominations Due Jan. 16, 2015

The Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce will present the 2015 Greater Washington Innovation Awards on April 20, 2015, at the Hyatt Regency Reston, 1800 Presidents St., in Reston. The eight awards will recognize the thought leadership, innovation and creativity of the individuals and organizations in select industries in the Greater Washington metro area.

Applications are being accepted for award recipients through Jan. 16, 2015. Special consideration will be given to applicants that demonstrate a high level of impact on the Greater Washington community.

Award categories include:

• Tech Innovator of the Year — Presented to a technology company for an innovative internal or external product or process launched in 2014.
• Public Sector Innovator of the Year — Presented to a public sector organization (including but not limited to local, state and federal government agencies and officials and educational systems) for an innovative internal or external product or process launched in 2014.
• Professional Service Innovator of the Year — Presented to a professional service organization (including but not limited to accounting, legal, banking, HR, real estate and development firms) for an innovative internal or external product or process launched in 2014.
• Hospitality, Tourism & Entertainment Innovator of the Year — Presented to a hospitality organization (including but not limited to hotels, restaurants, entertainment and retail outlets, venues) for an innovative internal or external product or process launched in 2014.
• Health & Life Sciences Innovator of the Year — Presented to a health care organization (including but not limited to health care providers, hospitals, life science organizations, pharmaceutical companies) for an innovative internal or external product or process launched in 2014.
• Marketing & Advertising Innovator of the Year — Presented to a company (within any industry) for an innovative internal or external marketing or advertising campaign launched in 2014.
• Isaac Newton Lifetime Innovator Award — Presented to an individual for lifelong innovation and outstanding contributions to the region and above-and-beyond leadership in the business community. This individual has been a longtime advocate for challenging the status quo and has a longstanding reputation for encouraging disruptive innovation in his or her company and beyond. Honoree will be selected in advance by an independent panel of judges and is not open to applications.
• Emerging Innovator of the Year — Presented to an individual who has emerged as a new innovator and leader within the region. This individual represents and embodies disruptive innovation and has shown a passion for challenging the status quo. Honoree will be selected in advance by an independent panel of judges and is not open to applications.

Applicants must meet one of the following criteria:

• Be headquartered in the Greater Washington area defined as south of Baltimore, north of Richmond, west of the Chesapeake and east of the Shenandoah.
• Have more than 50 percent of employees in the Greater Washington, D.C. region; or
• Have at least 100 or more employees in the Greater Washington, D.C. region

All applications will be evaluated by an independent set of judges. This panel of diverse industry leaders will evaluate each application in order to select approximately five finalists and one winner within each category. Finalists will be announced via online communications in mid-February 2015.

Judges are most interested in the measurable, sufficient results the innovation has obtained while on the market — not the length of time the product has been on the market.