Award Nomination Form Template (Australia)
Updated on 9 August 2026
An award nomination form is submitted by someone other than the candidate: a colleague, manager, or client puts a name forward for recognition. That's materially different from a self-submitted award application, because the nomination collects personal information about someone who may not know it's being submitted — a situation the Privacy Act 1988 addresses directly.
The common free version of this form is just a nomination text box. This template adds what the process actually needs: who is nominating, their relationship to the nominee, any conflict of interest, and a Privacy Act notice covering information collected about a third party.
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Award Nomination Form
This nomination is submitted to on for the .
Award criteria
- Judging criteria:
- Submission deadline:
Nominator
- Name:
- Role / department:
- Relationship to nominee:
Conflict-of-interest disclosure:
Nominee
- Name:
- Role / department:
Nomination narrative
Data notice
This nomination includes personal information about the nominee submitted by someone other than the nominee. will notify the nominee that this information was collected, consistent with Australian Privacy Principle 5, at the latest by the time they become a finalist. This information will be used for judging purposes and retained for .
Nominator
Date:
Record who is nominating, not just who is nominated
A nomination is only as credible as its source. Recording the nominator's name, role, and relationship to the nominee lets a judging panel weigh the nomination appropriately.
Ask about conflicts of interest directly
A manager nominating a direct report isn't automatically disqualifying, but disclosing it lets the judging panel account for it and keeps the process defensible.
Give the nominee a proper APP 5 notice
Australian Privacy Principle 5 applies whether personal information is collected directly from someone or from a third party, and specifically covers the case where the individual may not be aware their information has been collected. Where notice at the time of collection isn't practicable — which describes most nominations — APP 5 guidance calls for notifying the person as soon as practicable afterwards, covering the purpose of collection and how the information will be handled.
In practice, this usually means telling the nominee they've been nominated once they become a finalist, rather than only finding out at a public announcement, and being clear that a nomination process exists and how the resulting information is used.
Allow self-nomination as an explicit choice, not a workaround
Some programmes allow a candidate to nominate themselves through the same form; others don't. Stating the rule explicitly avoids the odd case of someone technically completing a 'nomination' about themselves when the programme never intended that route.
Judge on substance, not on volume
A candidate on a large, vocal team will naturally attract more nominations than an equally deserving candidate on a small or quiet one. Judging on the strongest nomination narrative against the published criteria keeps the process aligned with its actual purpose.
Decide how multiple nominations for the same person are handled
Popular candidates often receive more than one nomination in a cycle. Deciding upfront whether these are merged, treated as a supporting signal for the strongest narrative, or simply deduplicated avoids an inconsistent, ad hoc decision when it actually happens.
Set a retention period for unsuccessful nominations
Because a nomination form holds personal data about someone who didn't submit it, a clear retention and disposal practice matters: how long unsuccessful nominations are kept, who can access them, and when they're deleted. A stated retention period is both good data hygiene and consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles' general expectation that personal information isn't kept longer than needed for the purpose it was collected.
Section-by-section guide
- Nominator details
- Identifies who is submitting the nomination and their relationship to the nominee.
- Conflict of interest
- Asks the nominator to disclose any personal or reporting relationship that could affect impartiality.
- Nominee details
- Identifies the person being nominated.
- Nomination narrative
- The case for the nomination, matched to the published judging criteria.
- APP 5 data notice
- States when and how the nominee will be told their data was collected, consistent with the Privacy Act 1988.
Australian compliance notes
Give the nominee an APP 5 notice
Australian Privacy Principle 5 covers personal information collected from a third party, including where the individual may not be aware of the collection; notify them as soon as practicable if notice at collection isn't feasible.
OAIC — Chapter 5: APP 5 notification of collection
How to complete the nomination
- Add nominator details. Enter the nominator's name, role and relationship to the nominee.
- Disclose any conflict of interest. State any reporting or personal relationship that could affect impartiality.
- Add nominee details. Enter the name and role of the person being nominated.
- Write the nomination narrative. Explain the case for the nomination against the published judging criteria.
Frequently asked questions
Can someone nominate themselves using this form?
Only if the programme explicitly allows it. This template includes a self-nomination toggle so the rule is stated on the form rather than left ambiguous.
Do we have to tell the nominee they've been nominated?
Australian Privacy Principle 5 covers information collected about someone from a third party, including when they may not be aware of it. Where notice at the time of collection isn't practicable, notify them as soon as practicable afterwards — commonly once they become a finalist.
Does the nominator's identity have to be disclosed to the nominee?
Not necessarily — you can tell the nominee they were nominated and how the data will be used without naming the nominator, particularly if confidentiality was requested.
Does a nominator need to disclose a personal relationship with the nominee?
Yes. It doesn't disqualify the nomination, but disclosing it lets the judging panel weigh the nomination appropriately.
Should the candidate with the most nominations automatically win?
No. Judge on the substance of the strongest nomination narrative against the published criteria, not on how many nominations were submitted.
How long should we keep nomination records for candidates who don't win?
Set a stated retention period rather than letting nominations accumulate indefinitely, consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles' general expectation that personal information isn't kept longer than needed.
What if the same person is nominated multiple times?
Decide the rule in advance — whether multiple nominations are merged, counted as a signal of support, or deduplicated — rather than deciding it ad hoc once it happens.
Can the nominee object to being nominated?
Yes — being nominated doesn't obligate anyone to take part, and a nominee who would rather not be considered should be able to say so and have the nomination withdrawn without any negative consequence.
Do we need a separate nomination form for each award category?
It's usually clearer to use one form per award, since the judging criteria and eligibility rules can differ between categories, and a shared form risks a nominator applying the wrong criteria to the wrong award.
Related templates
Disclaimer
This template and guide are for general information only. They are not legal or privacy advice, and no lawyer or the OAIC has reviewed or approved them. Confirm your organisation's own Privacy Act obligations for information collected about a third party before using this form.
