The winners of the 2021 Technical.ly Awards will be revealed on Slack. Join us Dec. 15

How do you hold an awards ceremony when you’re not quite prepared to invite the town to an in-person event, but you’re burnt out on Zoom?

We could always publish the winners’ names. But, this year, we’ll be trying something new: The 2021 Technical.ly Awards  will be held on our public Slack.

The annual Technical.ly Awards series honors impactful leaders, change-making companies and innovative technology products making communities better. Categories include Tech Community Leader, Invention, CTO, Startup, Growth Company and Culture Builder of the Year. Nominees were curated by the Technical.ly newsroom after a public call for suggestions, then voted on by the public.

Starting at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 15, we’ll be gathering to announce the winners via video, right there on the messaging app. You’ll be free to chat with technologists across all of our markets — Philly, Baltimore, DC Delaware and Pittsburgh — or drop congrats for the winners. The event is expected to last about an hour and a half, but we’re casual. You can come and go as you please without disruption.

Voting is closed, but you can get pumped for the event by guessing who won in each of our markets. Check out all of the 2021 nominees:

• Philly
• Baltimore
• DC
• Delaware
• Pittsburgh

We’ve been hosting a version of these awards for many years. Here’s something extra fun for 2021: In addition to the winners decided by the public, the Technical.ly newsroom will name an overall winner in each category. You’ll need to attend the event to see what that means.

P.S. Note some other cool things Technical.ly has going on:

• We launched a weekly newsletter called This Week in Milwaukee Rising that highlights the innovators bringing a more just, equitable and dynamic Rust Belt economy. See the most recent newsletter and check out the full the editorial series. (Why Milwaukee? In short, it is a fast-changing city with considerable challenges and impressive opportunities. It’s a place known for breweries and the Bucks, yes, but also its diversity — even as it grapples with lingering segregation — and a growing entrepreneurship scene. We at Technical.ly want to be a part of those growth stories.)
• We have a few exciting newsroom announcements coming soon, but for now: We’re hiring another Philly reporter by way of Report for America! This beat reporter will cover issues of equity and access in the city’s tech economy, answering questions like: How can Philly companies develop, attract and retain more technologists of color? How can the residents who live in some of its most challenged neighborhoods more directly benefit from the economic gains that come with tech-centric development? What resources are needed to support the next generation of Black and brown entrepreneurs? Learn more about the program and role here.