New venue, judges and award categories await!
The 2026 Canadian HR Awards, now in their 13th year, return with a new venue, a longer nomination window, a trimmed category list and a substantially refreshed judging panel — even as the core, five-stage methodology stays put.
Topping the list of changes is the move from the Metro Toronto Convention Centre to Rebel Toronto, with the gala set for October 1, 2026. The change of venue marks the first time in several years that the program has stepped away from a convention centre locale to an exciting nightclub venue by Lake Ontario.
Nominations opened March 30 and close June 19, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. ET, giving entrants roughly 12 weeks to file. That compares with the nine-week window in 2025, when nominations ran from March 24 to May 30.
Submissions remain free of charge. HRD Canada's launch coverage emphasizes a degree of entry flexibility this cycle: nominators may submit the same nominee across multiple categories, and multiple nominators may endorse the same candidate.
Submit your nominations today!
A trimmed but more focused category slate
The 2026 program features more than 20 individual, company and team awards, down from the 24 categories run in the 2024 and 2025 cycles.
Named categories headlining the 2026 slate include Excellence in Senior HR Leadership; CEO of the Year - People-First Leadership; The ADP Canada Award for Excellence in Emerging HR Leadership; Excellence in Learning & Capability Development; The University of Waterloo Award for Excellence in Early Talent & Future Workforce Strategy; Excellence in HR Communication and Change Strategy; and Excellence in HR Service Delivery & Solutions.
The five-stage methodology — Nominations, Research, Excellence Awardees, Judging and Winners — remains unchanged. Excellence Awardees are scheduled to be revealed Aug. 3, 2026, with judges’ voting beginning the same month and winners announced at the Oct. 1 gala.
A reshaped sponsor roster
The awards are presented by HRD Canada and supported by Canadian HR Reporter — in partnership with ADP, O.C. Tanner, the University of Waterloo, PwC and Dean Davidson.
SAP SuccessFactors joins as a Silver Award Partner – Basic, and Toronto dress-rental brand The Fitzroy debuts as an Experience Sponsor, alongside Centurion Asset Management and Dean Davidson's "Gems By You" custom bracelet experience (hrawards.ca/sponsors). PwC takes on dual duties as Social Media Sponsor and Official Ballot Accountants.
AI is a dominant theme for the event this year, alongside continued emphasis on DEI, benefits personalisation, mental health and skills-based hiring.
Refreshed judging panel
The judging bench has seen the most visible turnover. Six of the 11 judges named for 2026 are new to the panel: Diane Carriere (D. Carriere & Associates); Ashlee Langlois (CEO, CPHR Saskatchewan); Dave Mammoliti (DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University); Janine Pajot (Janine Pajot Consulting); Surranna Sandy (CEO, CivicAction); and Thanuja Thananayagam (Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion). They bring backgrounds spanning Indigenous HR leadership, regional CPHR governance, executive education and DEI scholarship.
Five judges return from the 2025 panel: Sydney Elaine Butler (Accessible Creates), Tim Lang (YES – Youth Employment Services), Ayo Owodunni (City of Kitchener), Tanya Sinclair — now Deputy Chief People Officer at Save the Children, up from Vice-President, People & Culture in 2025 — and Timothy Tiryaki (Maslow Research Center).
Andrea Wynter, Vice-President People at ADP Canada, previously said that the awards offer "broad and meaningful visibility across the HR community" and serve as a benchmark-setter for the profession. "A rising tide lifts all boats," she said, framing the program as a catalyst for raising the standard of HR practice nationwide.
“The event has been great,” said Nicole Desloges, former SVP, People, LifeLabs, and board director at HRPA and Université de l’Ontario Français (UOF), during the 2025 event, when she won the O.C. Tanner Award for Lifetime Achievement in the HR Industry.
“This is wonderful to network, but also to recognize so many people that are not always at the forefront or in the news or the most known people, but all these individuals make a difference.”
Submit your nominations now!
