Broughshane software developer wins Young IT Professional of the Year at prestigious Belfast ceremony

Cranmore’s James Galbraith pictured with Cranmore’s two awards for Young IT Professional of the Year and Mobile App of the Year.

A software developer from Broughshane has secured one of Northern Ireland’s top technology honours after being named Young IT Professional of the Year during the 2025 Belfast Telegraph IT Awards.

James Galbraith, aged 25, took home the coveted award at the high-profile ceremony held in The MAC, Belfast, on Friday 14 November.

The Cranmore developer impressed judges not only through his professional achievements, but also for earning international recognition earlier this year when his Master’s dissertation was published and presented at a major technology conference in Portugal.

His research focused on detecting duplicated user contributions on GitHub, a platform used daily by millions of programmers around the world to collaborate, share project issues, and develop software collectively.

In April, James travelled to Porto to present his work at the ENASE 2025 conference – a remarkable feat for a researcher not undertaking a PhD – where he stood among some of the world’s most respected software engineering experts.

It was this combination of academic accomplishment and high-quality development work at Cranmore for public sector clients that ultimately convinced judges he was the standout candidate for the award.

“To find out I’d been shortlisted was a great honour I really hadn’t expected,” said James.

“So, to win and be presented with the award in front of titans of the NI software industry was an immense privilege.

“Many thanks to Dr Des Greer for his help getting my Master’s dissertation published back in April.

“I must also thank Cranmore’s managing director Chris, operations director Heather, and everyone at Cranmore for their support.

“I’ve been at Cranmore three years now and loved my time here. I look forward to the future as the brave new world of agentic coding tools begins to impose itself upon the industry.”

Cranmore Celebrates Double Victory

It was a successful night overall for Cranmore, which also picked up the Mobile App of the Year award for its work on the Navigator App, developed in partnership with London North Eastern Rail (LNER).

The application supports LNER’s 3,400 staff by simplifying complex shift patterns, payroll processes, and overtime management, and is already credited with saving frontline workers tens of thousands of hours. The system provides real-time data at scale and has been widely praised by its users.

Cranmore’s operations director Heather McCook welcomed the recognition, saying:

“It’s amazing to see the Navigator App winning Mobile App of the Year at the Belfast Telegraph IT Awards. This was a hugely complex development project that provides real time data to London North Eastern Rail colleagues at considerable scale.

“The app is saving frontline staff tens of thousands of hours and has won wide praise among its users.

“We’re hugely proud of what it has achieved.

“I also have to congratulate James Galbraith on winning Young IT Professional of the Year. James has been with us for three years and has already achieved so much.

“We’re hugely proud of all our award-winning staff.”

About Cranmore

Cranmore specialises in AI-enabled innovation, digital managed services, and consultancy for public sector clients across the UK and Republic of Ireland. The company has built a strong reputation for delivering award-winning digital solutions across sectors such as health, transport, utilities, and both local and central government.

With its growing portfolio and award-winning team, the company continues to strengthen its position within the UK’s rapidly evolving technology landscape.