OREANDA-NEWS. IDG’s CIO magazine announced Cognizant as a recipient of the 2015 CIO 100 honor at its 28th annual CIO 100 Awards. The annual awards program recognizes organizations around the world that have distinguished themselves by creating business value through the innovative use of information technology (IT). Cognizant won the honor for the fourth year in a row.

“This year’s class of CIO 100 honorees and the CIO Hall of Fame inductees represents IT leadership at its very best,” said Maryfran Johnson, Editor-in-Chief of CIO magazine and events. “They are outstanding examples of the power of IT to drive everything from revenue growth to digital transformation. This year’s honorees are an inspiration to CIOs everywhere.”

“Emerging technologies are drastically impacting the technology landscape and CIOs have been challenged to leverage these new technologies to drive business value and gain a competitive advantage for their organization. The CIO 100 winners continue to impress me with their innovative vision, thought leadership and ability to execute successfully,” said Adam Dennison, Senior Vice President and Publisher of CIO.

Recipients of this year’s CIO 100 Award were selected through a three-step process. First, companies filled out an online application form detailing their innovative IT and business initiatives. Next, a team of external judges (many of them former CIOs) reviewed the applications in depth, looking for leading-edge IT practices and measurable results. Finally, CIO editors reviewed the judges’ recommendations and selected the final 100.

Cognizant received the recognition for its “Think Outside the Cubicle” (TOC) initiative. Initially introduced across Cognizant’s development centers in India and quite unlike the traditional “work from home” model, it involves a computing environment for employees that combines a virtual desktop infrastructure with access to Cognizant’s private cloud, unified communications and “follow me home” technologies to ensure data security and availability. The program has enabled Cognizant employees to work from any location, including their homes, thus saving significant infrastructure and travel costs, increasing productivity by about 14 percent, and boosting employee engagement by around 25 percent.