Earlier this month CSN released its call for nominations for the 2006 awards, in 3 categories: 1) Client-side (that is, buy-side) localization professionals for people who punch the clock every day at companies like HP, General Motors, IBM, and Symantec to work on globalization, internationalization, localization, and translation issues; 2) vendors who supply these buyers with products and services; and 3) industry trade and professional associations like the ATA, GALA, and LISA that represent the buyers, suppliers, or both. According to CSN the number of nominees rose 50% from 2003 to 2005, with around 2,000 people voting this year.

Should you nominate someone or a company for the 2006 awards? While we could find fault with just about anything we look at, we think that the localization industry needs its own Oscars. Whatever the motivation -- recognizing an innovative language professional, rewarding a good supplier for some outstanding work, or even citing the popularity of a vendor -- these awards benefit the industry by highlighting the accomplishments of the people and companies that enable global communication and commerce.

The nomination, judging, and voting processes are transparent, and promise to get even more so with the likely addition of judges from industry organizations to complement the current judging panel that represents client-side, LSP, software vendor, and CSN interests. More participation in the nomination and voting phases would make these awards more desirable to the winners and, over time, more indicative of professional stature and vendor performance. Nominate your favorites, then vote when the polls open.

Full disclosure: Common Sense Advisory was voted best in the "General Consulting" category in 2003 and 2005. Through its association with the Globalization and Localization Association (GALA), Common Sense Advisory supports the awards effort.