South African Team WorkMode has won the Student category of the 2014 Ericsson Application Awards. The app helps workers collaborate by allowing them to see the real-time work context and tasks of colleagues.
Jacques Marais of Team WorkMode says: ”This award will help us to build our business and allow us to develop not only this app but also some ideas we have around education in South Africa. It will also enable us to purchase hardware so we can expand to different platforms. It’s a real boost.”
“We felt that Team WorkMode showed a strong business potential, and their focus on design and usability helped them when it came to innovation and addressing the theme of apps for working life,” said the jury.
The Company category was won by Team SOP from Nigeria with an app that analyses the availability of electricity in a given area.
The jury supported the choice of SOP based on the strong use of technology by the group as well as the presentation, value and the investability.
“They cleverly combined consumer, society and business benefits around lifting transparency of power delivery in a well-designed package,” they said.
Toks Ogun of Team SOP says: “This award means we can continue to expand and develop our app, which monitors electricity supplies. We can see a market in parts of North America, in South America and in India and we will continue to develop our idea.”
The RSSA Technology for Good Award also went to Africa, with Sowertech’s Afta Robot app receiving the award for their smart solution for public transportation.
“Every day 15-million people in Africa face long walks and sometimes longer waits as they make their daily journeys by taxi. Sowertech has helped connect taxis and their customers by providing information on location and much more through their Afta Robot mobile app,” said the Jury
The winners were chosen from over 300 registered teams representing 63 countries from all over the globe. The company category attracted 158 entries, with 142 teams entering the student competition.