What is awards software?

Awards software helps organizations manage the intake of applications, and facilitates the review of awards applications by judges. Robust awards management software platforms integrate with CRM, Salesforce, or an AMS in order to pass back and forth critical information about membership participation.

How much does OpenWater’s Awards Management Software cost?

OpenWater’s Awards Management Software’s pricing is based on a few factors such as the number of award programs or workflows that you want to add into the software, the need for integrations with your CRM, multiple languages, and the number of supported administrators who will be using our system. While we tend to focus on larger organizations who have lots of programs, but we do have a few options for organizations getting a relatively few amount of submissions or who are very price sensitive. Reach out to schedule a demo and we can start a conversation about your needs to get exact pricing.

What makes OpenWater stand out from other awards management tools?

Based on feedback from clients who have used other systems, OpenWater particularly excels in its customer support (our team’s average response time is 10 minutes), breadth of integrations with popular CRM and AMS solutions, and adaptability to nuances in the workflows of various awards programs.

What are OpenWater’s reporting capabilities like?

Our reporting engine makes it easy to slice and dice any type of data collected in the system. Export data as a PDF, Excel, CVS, Word, or JSON file with the click of a button. There is also a bulk download feature that you can use to compress all submissions for a particular award into a zipped folder that you can save to your desktop or share with your team.

WE’LL HELP YOU NAVIGATE

Enhanced Accreditation and Certification Management

Name: Awards Management Software
Brand: OpenWater

OpenWater runs your entire accreditation or certification program: application intake, multi-stage review, decisions, credentialing, payments, and annual renewal. Together with the association management software you already use, everything runs as one auditable system.

Request a Demo

Watch a Quick Tour

PURPOSE-BUILT

Made for how your programs run.

Flexible multi-stage submission and review

Configurable stages, deadlines, and committee assignments that mirror your real process.

One-click cloning

Start next year’s application and renewal cycle from last year’s, instead of rebuilding from scratch.

Reopen for edits

Send submissions back to applicants with notes, then re-lock them on resubmission.

Compliance and outcomes

Track standards, compliance, and outcomes in every accreditation, reaccreditation, certification, and recertification cycle.

INTEGRATION

Connect to your member management system out of the box.

The OpenWater Integrations Hub is a native, no-code connection with the member management system you already use. It currently supports SSO and lookups with 65+ platforms, and out-of-the-box pushback with iMIS^®, Fonteva, Nimble, and Salesforce. Pushback writes to custom panels, so your existing member records are never overwritten.

Single sign-on

Members log in with existing credentials; forms pre-fill with their data.

Lookup fields

Submitters query live member records from inside the form.

Pushback

Decisions, credentials, and payments write back automatically, giving you a single source of truth to report on.

SEAMLESSLY WORKS WITH YOUR MEMBER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND OTHER PLATFORMS

CORE FEATURES

Everything the work requires.

Smart form builder

Up to 1,500 fields with smart functionality such as conditional logic, tables, uploads, and signatures.

Built-in, secure AI

11 features for summaries, compliance checks, and quality scoring. You choose the AI model.

Digital third-party forms

Enter a name and email and OpenWater sends a password-less link to e-sign, then automatically attaches it to the application.

Magic links for reviewers

Open assigned submissions from a link with no password required. No logins, no annual training.

Configurable review templates

Weighted scoring, recusal, and custom decision types.

Category groups

One workflow serves multiple programs or registrant types.

Eligibility rules and validation

Enforce required fields, minimums, and eligibility before submission to reduce application revisions.

Automated emails

High-deliverability automated emails to submitters and reviewers at every stage, with merge fields and tracking.

TRUSTED BY NEARLY 1,000 ASSOCIATIONS,

CREDENTIALING AND ACCREDITING BODIES

Including ASAE’s own Certified Association Executive credentialing process.

Purpose-Built

Made for how your accreditation programs run

OpenWater’s platform is uniquely designed to handle every aspect of every application-based process your organization might leverage. Here is an overview of the tools you can use to streamline all of these activities.

The website builder feature of OpenWater’s application management software.

01Application Website Creation

Develop an eye-catching website that’s branded to your organization and showcases your opportunities to prospective applicants directly in OpenWater, no coding required!

The form builder feature of OpenWater’s application management software.

02Drag-and-Drop Form Builder

Customize your submission forms to capture all essential information and accept attachments of any size in multiple file formats, all within an interface that’s simple to navigate.

The review features of OpenWater’s application management software.

03Multi-Round Review

Upload standardized review rubrics to collect data in one place, then assign each submission to multiple judges so they can complete their evaluations with just a few clicks.

The progress dashboard feature of OpenWater’s application management software.

04Progress Tracking

Use comprehensive dashboards that update in real time to track the status of submissions, reviews, decisions, and next steps (e.g., funding disbursement or recognition).

The reporting and analytics features of OpenWater’s application management software.

05Reporting & Analytics

Securely store, visualize, interpret, and download data on all of your application and review processes so you can make informed decisions about improving your programs over time.

The Email Wizard feature of OpenWater’s application management software.

06Email Wizard

Create, auto-fill, and send branded message templates to keep your community informed about new application opportunities, submission instructions, deadlines, decisions, and more.

A visualization of the integrations OpenWater’s application management software offers.

07System Integrations

Connect OpenWater with more than 65 popular AMS, CRM, payment gateway, and directory platforms (including iMIS, Salesforce, and Higher Logic) to allow for seamless data transfer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can OpenWater handle multi-stage accreditation reviews? Yes. OpenWater supports sequential review rounds with automatic forwarding, configurable deadlines per stage, and different review criteria at each round, from initial eligibility screening through committee review and final decision. Custom decision types (approved, requires edits, probation, or any status you define) match your existing process rather than forcing you into new terminology.

Does OpenWater integrate with our AMS? OpenWater's no-code Integrations Hub connects with 65+ AMS and CRM platforms, including iMIS, Nimble AMS, Fonteva, Salesforce, and Higher Logic. Single sign-on, live lookup fields*, and automatic pushback* mean member data flows between systems without manual re-entry. Pushback writes to custom panels, so your existing AMS records are never overwritten. *Supported for select systems

Do applicants have to re-enter everything each renewal cycle? No. This is one of the biggest reasons organizations switch. Administrators clone an entire prior-year program with one click, and applicants can clone their previous submission and update only what changed. No annual rebuild, no data deletion, no migration.

Can applications be sent back for corrections? Yes. Admins can reopen a submission with specific notes for the applicant, and the form automatically re-locks once changes are resubmitted, with a full audit trail of what changed and when. Reviewer feedback can also be shared with submitters, who can then edit and re-submit portions of the application for subsequent additional review.

How does OpenWater reduce the manual review burden? OpenWater fully automates and streamlines the entire Accreditation workflow, while giving administrators total flexibility to manage when and however they need. Eligibility rules and validation catch incomplete or non-compliant applications before they're ever submitted, and 11 built-in AI features can summarize, compliance-check, and quality-score submissions to flag what needs human attention. AI assists but never decides. Final decisions always stay with you.

Can one system run multiple program types? Yes, OpenWater has multiple specialized features to let a single workflow serve multiple specialties, program types, or registrant classes, with forms that adjust dynamically. There are no parallel workflows to build and maintain.

Is OpenWater secure enough for a regulatory body? Yes. OpenWater is FedRAMP Authorized and has maintained its listing on the FedRAMP Marketplace since 2021, alongside GDPR compliance, PCI DSS Level 1 payment security, and WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility. It also provides a 99.9% uptime SLA, unlimited encrypted file storage, and Canadian data residency for organizations that require it.

Who uses OpenWater for accreditation and certification? Hundreds of associations, professional societies, trade organizations, and certifying and accrediting bodies run their programs on OpenWater.

Enhanced Accreditation and Certification Management

Made for how your programs run.

Connect to your member management system out of the box.

SEAMLESSLY WORKS WITH YOUR MEMBER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND OTHER PLATFORMS

Everything the work requires.

Support that earns a 99% renewal rate.

The OpenWater Accreditation Management Difference

Traditional Accreditation Management

OpenWater Accreditation Software

Stitched-Together Systems

One Connected Lifecycle

Rebuilding Every Cycle

Renewal Without the Rebuild

Review by Brute Force

Reviews That Run Themselves

Frequently Asked Questions

Learn How OpenWater’s Software Can Simplify Your Processes

1800 Diagonal Road Suite 600 Alexandria, VA 22314