The Pandemic Pivot of the Year (Institutions and Large Enterprises) award recognizes tech employers who responded in remarkable ways to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As we continue to navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic, we can’t help but think how far we’ve all come. While there have been many days where it’s felt like the weight of the world is too much to bear, it’s remarkable to see how many showed up and thrived anyway—particularly in the world of tech.

The tech industry is known for its creativity and adaptability when faced with problems or opportunities—and let’s just say the pandemic presented its fair share of problems and opportunities. The Pandemic Pivot of the Year award recognizes tech employers who responded in remarkable ways to:

  1. Serve societal or customer pandemic-induced needs.
  2. Seize market opportunities created by pandemic-induced market demand shifts.
  3. Survive amidst complex pandemic-induced challenges.

While unknown rules and changes dictated 2020, the landscape of many Indiana tech companies began to quickly and drastically change shape. Most importantly, everyone knew that change was going to be necessary—but to what extent and for how long was unknown. Our 2021 nominees for Pandemic Pivot of the Year (Institutions and Large Enterprises) went all-in and adapted in order to be successful. In proving their capability to quickly adapt while also predicting their audiences’ new needs, many tech companies experienced tremendous growth in a time that could have easily caused a permanent shut-down.  

It’s now been over a year since the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a global pandemic. While many tech sectors struggled significantly in the wake of this global health crisis, large Indiana tech companies persevered. Not only does our great city outpace the competition when it comes to quality of life, lower costs, talent, as well as leaders and funders, but we also have a hub of dedicated tech-gurus using their talents to survive and thrive through all the disruption and uncertainty.

This year’s nominees include:

  • Aria Diagnostics (Indianapolis, Ind.) — Aria Diagnostics is a leader in the laboratory industry. They are a trusted local business offering critical services to its community.
  • Eli Lilly and Company (Indianapolis, Ind.) — Lilly re-directed its scientific and medical expertise to assist Indy’s public health efforts. This helped in accelerating diagnostic testing for Covid-19, including launching a drive-thru testing facility.
  • Franklin College (Franklin, Ind.) — Franklin College embraced change in the face of adversity caused by the pandemic by making a collective effort to become more digitally fluent in support of students and faculty.
  • Genesys (Indianapolis, Ind.) — Genesys is a global leader in cloud customer experience and contact center solutions. Their technology enables personalized, empathetic interactions to foster customer trust and loyalty.
  • University Information Technology Services – Indiana University (Bloomington, Ind.) — UITS impacted the operations of every facet of Indiana University, from the student experience to faculty redesign of coursework and learning technologies, as well as operations for COVID-19 testing.
  • KAR Global (Carmel, Ind.) — KAR Global powers the world’s greatest digital marketplaces for used vehicles. Their end-to-end platform makes remarketing easy so their clients can be more successful.
  • Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana Health Information Exchange (Indianapolis, Ind.) —Regenstrief and IHIE leverage expertise in data and data sharing to enhance healthcare interoperability, research, and delivery—leading to improved health for all.
  • Republic Airways (Indianapolis, Ind.) — Republic Airways approached 2020 turbulence with unwavering resolution and commitment to safety despite the ever-changing airline environment.
  • Zotec Partners (Carmel, Ind.) — Zotec Partners delivers tech-enabled financial and patient experience solutions to healthcare providers. They transform business relationships and simplify some of the most complex healthcare processes.

The 2021 Mira Award winners will be announced live during a special broadcast of the 22nd annual gala on Thursday, April 22, with presenting sponsor Salesforce.