Apex Shortlisted for Four Awards at the Prolific North Tech Awards 2026

We’re delighted to share that Apex Computing has been shortlisted for four categories at the 2026 Prolific North Tech Awards, one of the North’s leading celebrations of innovation, technology and business excellence. The awards recognise the organisations, teams and individuals driving the technology sector forward across the North of England, with winners to be announced in Manchester on 15^th October.

Being shortlisted is a significant achievement in itself. The judging process is highly competitive, and this year’s awards attracted.

For us, these nominations reflect much more than business growth. They recognise the investment we’ve made in our people, our culture, our customers, and our long-term vision of becoming the leading IT solutions provider for the North.

The four awards we’re shortlisted for

High-Growth Tech Company of the Year

We’ve been nominated for the High-Growth Tech Company of the Year alongside some of the North’s most ambitious technology businesses.

This nomination recognises the significant progress we’ve made over recent years. We’ve grown from a £3.6m business in 2023 to over £5.4m in revenue by the end of 2025, while also strengthening our leadership structure, wellbeing initiatives and investing heavily in specialist technical capabilities.

However, growth at Apex has never been for growth’s sake. We’ve worked hard to create a more focused business with clear strategic direction through our five-year Orbit plan, a stronger executive team, dedicated cyber security and project delivery functions, and a sharper focus on supporting SMEs across Greater Manchester and the North West.

Being recognised in this category shows that sustainable growth is possible when you combine strong leadership, clear vision and a commitment to delivery exceptional service.

Best Culture Award

We’re also incredibly proud to be shortlisted for the Best Culture Award.

Culture has been a major focus for Apex over the last few years. As we’ve grown, we’ve been determined not to lose what makes Apex special. Our values aren’t just words on a wall; they’re embedded into recruitment, onboarding, reviews, recognition programmes, one-to-one meetings and day-to-day decision making. We celebrate colleagues who demonstrate our values through initiatives such as Employee of the Month and our annual Living the Values Awards, whilst ensuring development, wellbeing and growth opportunities are available to every member of the team.

We’ve also invested significantly in wellbeing initiatives, learning and development, Culture Club activities, charitable partnerships and creating a workplace where people feel genuinely supported and inspired. Recent employee engagement surveys showed 93% positive promoters, 92% pride in working at Apex and 93% of employees saying they would recommend Apex as a great place to work.

This shortlisting is particularly meaningful because it recognises the incredible people who make Apex what it is every day.

Tech Founder of the Year: Daniel Shone

We’re also delighted that our Managing Director, Daniel, has been shortlisted for the Tech Founder of the Year award, recognising his contribution to the North’s technology sector. Daniel has played a pivotal role in Apex’s growth journey, particularly in shaping our commercial strategy, marketing direction and long-term vision.

Tech Leader of the Year: Chris Gorman

Finally, our CEO, Chris, has also been shortlisted for an award recognising his leadership and contribution to both Apex and the wider technology community. Under Chris’s leadership, Apex has continued to evolve its strategy, strengthen its culture and build a business alongside our executive team that balances commercial growth with a genuine commitment to people and customers.

Read what Chris had to say about this recognition here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/honoured-shortlisted-prolific-norths-tech-leader-year-chris-gorman-w3zre/

What this means to the Apex team

Awards are never the reason we do what we do, but industry recognition like this matters. It provides independent validation that the investments we’re making in our team, our customers and our future are having a real impact. It also gives us an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of everyone across the business who contributes to our success.

Every project delivered, every customer supported, every improvement suggested and every Apex Value demonstrated has played a part in these nominations.

Whether we’re fortunate enough to take home a trophy on the night or not, being shortlisted in four categories is an achievement we’re enormously proud of.

We’d like to thank our customers for trusting us as their IT partner, our vendor and technology partners for their ongoing support, and most importantly, our team.

We’ll be heading to Manchester Hall on 15^th October with everything crossed and look forward to celebrating alongside the very best technology businesses the North has to offer.