INDUSTRY AWARDS | TALENT ACQUISITION
Movember, Culture Amp and Australia Post also picked up honours as Melbourne’s Plaza Ballroom hosted talent acquisition’s night of nights.
Melbourne
The Internal Talent Awards (ITAs) returned to Melbourne’s Plaza Ballroom on Thursday, 3 September 2026, recognising the people, teams and organisations shaping in-house talent acquisition across Australia and New Zealand. Energy company Ampol was the night’s biggest winner, according to results released to HireNote by event organiser TaPod, taking home three of the sixteen awards on offer: Enterprise Talent Team of the Year, Best Contingent Workforce Program, and Enterprise Talent Leader of the Year, awarded to Emma Cassidy.
Enterprise and corporate categories
- Enterprise Talent Team of the Year, sponsored by SmartRecruiters: Ampol
- Enterprise Talent Leader of the Year, sponsored by TQSolutions: Emma Cassidy, Ampol
- Enterprise Talent Professional of the Year, sponsored by Avature: Annalise Neal, Culture Amp
- Corporate Talent Team of the Year, sponsored by SDP Solutions: Movember
- Corporate Talent Leader of the Year, sponsored by Oncore: Edan Haddock, Movember
- Corporate Talent Professional of the Year, sponsored by Checkmate: Natalie Badaway, Andromeda Robotics
Excellence categories
- Excellence in Candidate Experience, sponsored by Havas People: Each
- Excellence in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, sponsored by Workday: Australia Post
- Excellence in Employer Branding, sponsored by VideoMy: Coles Group
- Excellence in Onboarding, sponsored by Enboarder: Story House Early Learning
- Excellence in Innovation, sponsored by WorkPro: Probe CX
- Social Consciousness Award, sponsored by Indeed: Melbourne Talent Meet Up
Technology and vendor honours
- Best Tech Stack, sponsored by Talent Tech Solutions: InstantScripts
- Best Contingent Workforce Program, sponsored by The Human Collaborative: Ampol
- Best Careers Website, sponsored by PageUp: Endeavour Group
- Best Vendor Solution, sponsored by TaPod: CheckWorkRights & Delaware North
An industry celebrating its own
TaPod co-host and ITAs co-creator Lauren Sharp said the awards had become a highlight of the industry calendar.
“What makes the ITAs so special is the community behind them. Every year, we get to shine a light on the people and teams doing exceptional work, often behind the scenes, to create better experiences for candidates, employees and organisations. The calibre of this year’s finalists and winners has been incredible, and it’s a privilege to bring the industry together to celebrate what they’ve achieved,” she said.
