The Awards recognize innovative, business-focused uses of technology in actual use by insurers. This year's presentations were expanded to six tracks, giving attendees an inside view of nearly three dozen real-world projects. The emphasis was on the business reasoning that gave birth to each project and results that were generated. Read an overview of this year's preliminary and final round judges.

Award recipients by category:

Agent/Broker Management: Producer interfaces, commission-tracking, applications-management through agent/brokers and other third parties, along with producer-oriented portals offered by third parties.
Recipient: American Modern Insurance Group
Finalists: Access Insurance Holdings Inc., Guard Insurance Group, Insurance Capital Management, Hartford Financial Services Group Inc., iPipeline

Claims Management: Property/casualty, health and life claims projects.
Recipient: MarineBidExchange.com
Finalists: CaseKnowledge, BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, West Bend Mutual Insurance Co., PA Consulting Group, Valley Oak Systems

Customer Service and Benefits Management: E-commerce and customer service, marketing projects, customer-relation management projects and others.
Recipient: MetLife
Finalists: Aon's Affinity Insurance Services, GE Insurance Solutions, Online Benefits, Inc., Carroll Enterprises Small Business Service Bureau, Zurich Small Business   

Office Automation Management: All back-office systems projects, both financial and operations-oriented, field automation and productivity centers such as dashboard/cockpit projects.
Recipient: ProcessClaims
Finalists: Business Risk Technologies Inc., InsurSys, Companion Property & Casualty Group, Midland National Life Insurance Co.  

Special Coverage Management: Includes excess and surplus lines for property/casualty insurance business, along with higher-risk and unusual coverages for life, annuity and health products.
Recipient: BARS Holding Inc.
Finalists: eReinsure, Individual Assurance Co., Scottsdale Insurance Co.,

Underwriting Management: Property/casualty and life/health underwriting systems, including risk assessment and other generalized systems.
Recipient: New York Central Mutual Fire Insurance Co.
Finalists: INSpeed, Bristol West Insurance Group, Columbia Insurance Group, IMT Insurance Co., RLI Insurance Co.