2026 Versaterm Innovation Award Winners

First Place: Sumner County Sheriff’s Office, Gallatin, Tennessee

Project: Using Versaterm IAPro and Versaterm BlueTeam for a New Purpose

Second Place: Glendale Fire Department, Glendale, Arizona

Project: Enhancing Command and Control to Work with Multiple Responding Agencies

Third Place: Baltimore Police Forensic Laboratory, Baltimore, Maryland

Project: Implementing Versaterm Forensics — Lab Information Management System (LIMS)

About the Award

Public safety agencies face complex challenges that require thoughtful, practical solutions. The strongest innovations go beyond introducing new technology to consider how changes affect staff, improve operations and benefit the communities they serve.

The Versaterm Innovation Award recognizes public safety agencies, forensic labs, court systems, prosecutor offices, schools and other organizations that use Versaterm’s platform, alongside related technologies when applicable, to address challenges and achieve better outcomes for their organization and community.

Whether incremental or transformative, every meaningful improvement has a story worth sharing. The award offers an opportunity to showcase what’s working, learn from peers and gain recognition for the people and ideas driving progress across public safety and related fields.

Winners are announced in April, with in-person award presentations typically taking place on the second day of the Versaterm Users Conference. During a dedicated keynote session, winning projects are presented in greater detail, giving attendees an opportunity to learn directly from the teams behind the innovations.

Recognizing Innovation That Moves Us Forward

Versaterm believes innovation means finding creative, new and meaningful ways to solve problems and improve outcomes. The Versaterm Innovation Award celebrates your successes, highlights the work you’re doing and gives you a platform to share what you’ve learned. As partners, we grow stronger when we learn from one another, and sharing your experience can inspire new ideas and progress across the industry.

Innovation takes many forms. It might mean rethinking an established process, finding a more effective way to use technology or bringing different solutions together to address a persistent challenge. Whatever the scale, the impact matters. By recognizing these efforts, we aim to celebrate the people behind the progress and help other organizations discover new possibilities for their own teams and communities.

2026 Prizes

1st Prize

2nd Prize

3rd Prize
  • Versaterm will cover all expenses for two people to attend the annual Versaterm Users Conference, including registration, flights, hotel and food allowances
  • A plaque will be presented to the organization recognizing the benefits to public safety and the community
  • The organization will be given a time slot in the agenda of the next annual Versaterm Users Conference to present their accomplishment
  • Versaterm will cover registration costs for two people to attend the annual Versaterm Users Conference
  • The organization will be given a time slot in the agenda of the next annual Versaterm Users Conference to present their accomplishment
  • Versaterm will cover registration costs for one person to attend the annual Versaterm Users Conference
  • The organization will be given a time slot in the agenda of the next annual Versaterm Users Conference to present their accomplishment

Note: Prizes are awarded to the organization. The organization determines who attends the Versaterm Users Conference and who presents the project. Other arrangements can be made if you are unable to attend.

Who Can Apply?

To be eligible for the Versaterm Innovation Award, your organization must use at least one Versaterm solution and have applied Versaterm technology, either on its own or alongside solutions from other providers, to address a challenge and achieve a meaningful outcome for your organization or community.

Submission Rules & Overview

The rules below reflect the 2026 submission cycle. Updated guidelines will be posted when the next submission period opens.

1. Submission Form & Method

Participating organizations must complete every field on the submission form, which outlines the information required about the project, or the submission will not be processed. Please submit your entry via our online form. You may either enter the information directly into all the fields or upload the Word document. Versaterm will acknowledge your submission once received.

2. Submission Length

Submissions should be approximately 500 words per section, with up to five supporting materials (screenshots, graphics, etc.) in addition to the text fields. The written portion should be a maximum of four pages.

3. Submission Life Cycle

Submissions remain valid only for the year in which they are received. The same project may be resubmitted the following year if it did not receive an award the previous year. It is the responsibility of the agency to resubmit.

4. Evaluation of Award Submissions

Submissions are evaluated by the content of the forms. A small panel of agency-neutral evaluators reviews all submissions, and their decision is final. The announcement of winners allows Versaterm to schedule them for the next annual Versaterm Users Conference and gives winners time to plan their attendance.

Points are given based on the results, the wow factor and the effectiveness of the solution, rather than the sophistication of the solution. Solutions that primarily use the Versaterm ecosystem may receive extra points. Points are also awarded based on the magnitude of the project, the number of people impacted and whether the submission discusses how success was measured.

5. Permission to Post

The Versaterm Innovation Award is built on the importance of sharing what was learned. The company reserves the right to make information from contest submissions accessible to Versaterm clients upon request. For winning entries, Versaterm will publish your agency name, location, project name and the solution(s) used on the awards website, and will announce winners on social media without naming specific solutions. All other materials and information will remain private and will not be shared publicly without prior consent.

Stay in the Loop

Want to know when the Versaterm Innovation Award opens for submissions? Contact us to be notified as soon as the next cycle begins.