Voting Methods

AwardKit programs are judge-scored by default: a curated panel of judges evaluates every entry, which is what most professional juries want. Configuring judging on the Judging page comes down to one main decision, the voting method (how judges score), with an optional second step to also let the public vote.

Click Edit scoring in the Scoring section to open the editor. It reads top to bottom:

• Voting Method: two choices, Score Criteria for detailed weighted scoring, or Top Picks for fast pick-and-rank shortlisting. The selected tile expands to show its one setting: the Scale for Score Criteria, Picks per judge for Top Picks.
• The rubric (Score Criteria only): the Default rubric and any Per category rubrics.
• Round Options: two switches, Public voting and Blind judging (see Blind judging). With public voting on, the tile also holds the Audience ballot choice.

On a multi-round program the editor applies to the round selected in the Judging rounds card, so a screening round can run Top Picks while the final runs Score Criteria.

Score Criteria

Judges score each entry against weighted criteria on a numeric scale. This is the default method and the right choice for most professional award programs where you want detailed, defensible scores.

How it works

You define criteria (for example "Impact", "Innovation", "Execution") with weights that total 100%. Judges rate each entry on every criterion using a slider. The final score is the weighted average across all criteria.

Score scale

The Scale select inside the Score Criteria tile offers three ranges:

• 0 - 5: Simple, fast scoring. Good for shortlist rounds or non-specialist panels.
• 0 - 10 (default): The right balance of granularity and speed for most professional award programs.
• 0 - 100: Maximum differentiation. Useful when you have a large field and need to separate close entries.

Adding criteria

Below the tiles, the Default rubric lists the criteria every category uses unless you give it its own. Click Add criterion to add one.

Each criterion has:

• Name: What's being evaluated (for example "Impact", "Innovation", "Storytelling")
• Description (optional): Guidelines for judges on what to look for. The more specific, the more consistently judges score.

Which rubric a criterion belongs to is determined by where you add it (the default rubric or a specific category), not by a setting inside the dialog.

Weights

When you have two or more criteria, each one gets a weight. Weights must total 100% across all criteria.

Edit weights by typing into the percentage fields next to each criterion. Click Equal to distribute weights evenly, or adjust them manually to prioritize what matters most for your program. A "Weights updated" toast confirms each save.

Per-category rubrics

If your program has multiple categories, each category is scored on one rubric. By default that's your default rubric, applied everywhere; its subtitle tells you how far it reaches ("Used by every entry", "Used by 3 of 5 categories", or "Overridden by every category"). Give a category its own rubric when it needs to be judged on different dimensions.

The Per category section lists only the categories that have their own rubric ("Give a category its own criteria. Otherwise it's scored on the default rubric above."). To add one, use the Customize a category picker, search for the category, and select it; a section for it appears with its own Add criterion button and weights. A category's section can be reset to the default rubric at any time.

A category's own rubric replaces the default for that category, it does not add to it. An entry in a customized category is scored only on that category's criteria; an entry in any other category is scored only on the default rubric. This is what keeps a multi-category work judged independently in each category it entered.

For example, a "Best Sustainability Initiative" category could be scored on "Measurable Environmental Impact" and "Scalability" while the rest of your program runs on Impact / Innovation / Execution. Entries in that category see only its rubric; everything else sees the default.

Tips

• Keep the number of criteria between 3 and 5. More than that and judges either skim or burn out.
• Write clear descriptions so judges evaluate consistently. "Impact" alone is ambiguous; "Measurable results affecting more than 1,000 people" is specific.
• Match weights to your program's priorities. If you announce that "Impact" is what matters most, weight it accordingly.
• Use per-category rubrics sparingly. Most programs run every category on the default rubric; only customize a category that genuinely needs different dimensions.

Top Picks

Judges pick and rank their favorite entries instead of scoring individual criteria. This is a simpler, faster method best for shortlist rounds, smaller programs, or "best of" awards.

How it works

Picks are per category. In each category, a judge selects up to the set number of favorites and ranks them; a work entered in two categories can be picked in both. Each pick earns points by rank (with 3 picks: 3 points for a first pick, 2 for a second, 1 for a third), and the category ranking sums every judge's points. No criteria, no weights, just picks. A single-category program is one list.

Configuring Top Picks

The only setting is Picks per judge, inside the Top Picks tile: how many entries each judge can select in each category, from 1 to 20. Adjust based on your category size. For 30 entries in a category, 5 picks gives judges enough room to differentiate. For a "40 Under 40" with 200 nominations, 10 picks per judge calibrates the long tail well.

When to use Top Picks

• Shortlist rounds where you're narrowing 200 entries down to 40 finalists
• Programs with non-specialist judges who can't reliably score on multiple dimensions
• "People's Choice" or community voting alongside formal Score Criteria judging
• Annual "best of" awards where you want gut-feel evaluation

Resetting votes

At the bottom of the Scoring editor, Reset votes (or Reset Screening votes on a multi-round program) clears every vote in the round after a confirmation ("This will permanently delete all judge and audience votes in Screening. Other rounds keep their scores, and judge assignments are kept. This cannot be undone."). Use it to wipe test scores before real judging, or to unlock a round's setup when you must change criteria after votes exist.

Letting the public vote

By default only your judges score entries. To run a public people's choice vote alongside them, flip the Public voting tile in Round Options ("A people's choice vote anyone can cast from a shareable link, counted separately from your judges."). It's off by default, because most professional-awards programs run on a juried panel alone. The Public voting guide link next to the tile's title opens this section.

The switch is set per round. On a single-round program it reads Also let the public vote; on a multi-round program it reads Let the public vote in [round name], and each round decides independently whether the audience votes. The public voting link always follows whichever round is currently live.

When it's on, the tile expands:

• It shows the Audience ballot choice, set to Favorites with 3 picks per category from the start (see below).
• It points you to the link: "The shareable link and QR code are in the Audience Voting card below." That Audience Voting card appears above Judge Voting with the Audience Voting Link and a QR code. Anyone with the link can vote, no account required.
• Voting opens during the round's judging window; there is no separate open switch for the audience.
• Audience and judge results are tallied separately and never blended, so you can compare them on the Results page and publish a "People's Choice" alongside the juried winners.
• If the round is blind, the audience votes anonymously too.

Turning the switch off again is non-destructive: audience votes are kept in case you switch it back on.

The audience ballot

Judges and the audience rarely want the same ballot: a jury scores a weighted rubric, while a room of forty people scanning a QR code finishes a pick-your-favorites ballot and abandons three sliders per entry. So switching Public voting on gives the round a Favorites ballot straight away, and the Audience ballot select inside the tile lets you change it:

• Favorites: pick up to N per category (on by default, 3 picks): each voter picks their top N in every category, in order. Adjust Picks per category next to it (1 to 20). Picks are tallied into points exactly like Top Picks, kept apart from the judges' scores. The judges keep the rubric you configured above.
• Same as judges: score the rubric: the audience scores your judges' rubric alongside them. Their votes are still tallied separately.

When your judges use Top Picks themselves, there is nothing to choose: the tile simply notes that the audience picks and ranks favorites on the same ballot as your judges, with the same number of picks per category. Switch the judges back to Score Criteria and the audience gets its own Favorites ballot again.

The choice is per round, so a screening round can share the judges' rubric while the final gives the audience its own favorites ballot. Once the audience has cast live votes on a round, its ballot locks ("The audience ballot cannot change after voting has started."); in Test mode, changing it resets the preview picks.