Case Study: National Association of the Remodeling Industry achieves streamlined chapter and national awards management with OpenWater

How NARI coordinates with over 200 judges across 20 categories with OpenWater

The National Association of The Remodeling Industry faced a complex awards-management challenge: coordinating over 900 submissions across chapter and national programs with roughly 200 judges and 22 judging rounds, while relying on minimal staff (one admin per chapter and a single national program manager). They turned to OpenWater, specifically OpenWater’s Application and Review platform, to give chapters autonomy while keeping national coordination intact.

OpenWater implemented a chapter-enabled workflow that lets each local group manage its own admin and entries while feeding into the national program, and it streamlined judging, scoring, and reporting. As a result, the National Association of The Remodeling Industry now handles its average 900+ submissions, 200 judges and 22 rounds more efficiently, with clearer progress tracking and reduced administrative overhead thanks to OpenWater’s platform and reporting features.

National Association of the Remodeling Industry

Cindy Foley

Program Manager