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IBM Rising Champions

Start your journey from learner to leader

IBM Rising Champions IBM Rising Champions

An extension of the IBM Champions program, IBM Rising Champions is a year-round, tiered badging program designed to support and amplify the voices of IBM technology advocates among our clients and business partners. Earning your Rising Champion status is a step towards accelerating your career and unlocking a pathway to becoming a Champion.

A refreshed approach to advocacy recognition

As the community of advocates has grown, so has the IBM Rising Champions program, which has evolved to better reflect how advocacy naturally develops, how impact is created, and how meaningful contributions take shape over time.

We recognize that advocacy looks different for everyone, and that meaningful impact goes beyond simple counts and checklists.

Turn your passion into impact

You are building a career in a rapidly evolving tech world, and it is your dedication to learning and leading that will set you apart. The Rising Champions program helps you transform your passion for technology into recognition. Join a network of driven professionals committed to continuous growth, sharing knowledge, and making an impact.

Turn your passion into impact

Our Approach to Advocacy Recognition

Rising Champions recognizes that advocacy grows over time. While participants begin with minimum activity expectations, progression is guided by intent, consistency, and impact, not volume alone.

As advocates advance from Contributor to Advocate to Influencer, the focus shifts from participation to leadership, depth, and sustained ecosystem value. Here's what you need to know:

  • Minimum activity counts apply for evaluation at each badge level.
  • Advocacy is evaluated with context, credibility, and consistency in mind.
  • Badges are earned through review, not automatically awarded.
  • Contributions must extend beyond job responsibilities or business promotion.

IBM Rising Champion badges include the following levels. To review detailed requirements, visit these pages:


Important note on IBM Z and LinuxONE advocacy: If your activity is primarily related to IBM Z and LinuxONE, you may want to begin with the Z and LinuxONE Advocacy Hub. Please note that activities used for earning the IBM Z and LinuxONE community badges will not be double-counted for badges in the IBM Rising Champions Advocacy program; however, you may earn the Rising Champions advocacy badges for activity that is not used in earning the IBM Z and LinuxONE badges. If you are evaluated for IBM Champion status, the selection committee may review all advocacy activity and consider any badges earned across each program.

Curious about how to best advocate for IBM products?

There are plenty of advocacy activities for everyone! Check out the kind of advocacy that fits you best, and get ready to start your journey! Here are a few examples:

  • Represent the voice of the customer by writing product reviews
    G2 Software

    G2 Software
    Gartner Peer Insights

    Gartner Peer Insights
    TrustRadius

    TrustRadius

    • One of the fastest and easiest ways for you to earn a Rising Champions badge is by providing product feedback. It only takes two product reviews to earn your IBM Contributor 2025 badge! Simply create an account on any of the Gartner Peer Insights, G2, or TrustRadius review platforms, and share your thoughts on IBM products.
  • Post and engage on the IBM Community
    • Create original technical content on the IBM Community in the form of a blog, a forum comment or answer, or documentation (must be a minimum of 150 words).
  • Support and engage with other relevant technical communities
    • Answer questions, build community discourse, or moderate a forum across social or community properties such as LinkedIn, Discord, or StackOverflow, etc.
  • Create and publish digital content across multiple platforms
    • Create (or translate) and publish content about IBM solutions (e.g., blog posts, articles, videos, podcasts, case studies, white papers, and books).
  • Start, volunteer for, or manage an IBM User Group or meetup
    • Lead, volunteer for, or manage user groups or meetups that focus on IBM technologies.
  • Present and co-present at conferences and user group events
    • Present a session on IBM solutions at user groups, webinars, podcasts, or industry events such as IBM THINK, User Groups, or other industry events.
  • Bring your great product enhancement to ideas.ibm.com
    • Submit your suggestions to ideas.ibm.com to help improve IBM products and shape future updates and features.
  • Provide feedback and product ideas through councils, sponsor-user opportunities, and boards
  • Act as an experienced user for sales, press, and analyst support
    • Provide quotes, testimonials, and references to support sales and marketing.
  • Mentor or coach other technology professionals
    • Support others by mentoring or coaching in the tech community. Share your knowledge and help others grow.
  • Contribute your code or other technical contributions
    • Contribute code to or provide other support to an IBM-related open-source projects, such as Hyperledger Fabric, Open Mainframe, or a Call for Code project.
    • Support hackathons by mentoring or judging contributions.
    • Create and teach an IBM technology-related course or participate in an academic research project about an IBM solution.
    • Act as a subject matter expert to create IBM certification exams.

Are you doing an activity that you believe should be considered advocacy? Just reach out to our team to discuss at ibmchampions@ibm.com, as this list is not exhaustive.

Learn more about the IBM Rising Champions Program

Read our detailed introduction to understand the IBM Rising Champions program, how evaluation works, and what success can look like at each level.

Participate and report your advocacy activities

If you are new to the IBM Rising Champions, get started by completing the Candidate Application. Once you've applied, you (along with other Rising Champions and Champions) will report advocacy activities using the Activity Reporting Form. The committee requires credible evidence and context for thoughtful evaluation across all program levels. For more information and guidance about what to report and what we evaluate, please visit the Understanding Activities article.

Get to know the Champions and other advocates

Join the Champions and advocates community.

  1. Join now

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