The real estate market is a complicated and multifaceted entity that undergoes many swings and fluctuations. One new kind of investment system—the institutional fund—is the latest change to shake up how the industry operates.

What Are Institutional Funds?

An institutional fund is a type of mutual fund, and it’s marked by two characteristics: low fees but an incredibly high minimum investment. Because of this second factor, an institutional fund is usually not feasibly available to individual investors, unless that investor has an extremely high net worth. Rather, these funds typically market themselves to entities like pension funds, hedge funds, large nonprofits, or other groups with substantial amounts of capital to invest. Using that capital, these groups are buying up foreclosed or distressed homes, refurbishing them, and reintroducing them on the rental market.

Institutional Funds and the Housing Market Collapse

With the economic collapse of 2008 and the subsequent housing market crash, homes were foreclosing at an unprecedented rate. In the wake of this event, the market saw the emergence of this new kind of real estate investor: institutional firms that possessed the foresight and means to secure tens of thousands of these properties when they were severely undervalued.

Many such institutional firms were in it for the short-term rewards, simply refurbishing the homes and selling them once property values recovered. However, more than 10 years later, some of the biggest players in this landscape are clearly in it for the long term. These firms continue to expand their base of homes for refurbishment and subsequent rental.

RESICAP, which is based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, is just one example of the kind of company that has emerged in tandem with these institutional funds and institutional investors.

“We are the leading vertically integrated solution for institutional owners of single-family residential assets in the United States,” says Greg Higgins, senior marketing manager of RESICAP. “For these institutional owners, we facilitate and service the entire life cycle, from valuation to renovation to property management to disposition.”

After the 2008 crash specifically, RESICAP capitalized by looking beyond its own borders.

“We were aware of international interest in the U.S. market that resulted from the 2008 real estate crash. Domestic investor interest in the U.S. single-family residence space was nonexistent at the time, so we began to look internationally,” says Higgins. “We sought investors who could take advantage of the deflated value of the U.S. dollar by investing in U.S. real estate while also participating in the rebound of the asset class.”

The Future of Institutional Funds Continues to Look Bright

Because institutional funds tend to surge and to flourish when the market is inundated with renters, market crashes have historically been times of growth for these funds. Just as with the 2008 crash, any prolonged and significant economic downturn hinders those looking to buy homes for the first time, and it jeopardizes the homes of those who are already locked into mortgages—both of which boost the rental market.

Foreclosures and poor economic performance, however, are no longer the most significant predictors of the success of institutional funds. In today’s climate, millennials, many of whom are saddled with student debt, are waiting longer to buy homes, or they are deciding to forego the process altogether. Many young adults view renting in a much more positive light than previous generations and have little interest in building up the necessary (and significant) down payment or taking on the ongoing expense of home ownership. If these trends continue in the demographic that would typically be buying their first homes and entering the real estate market, institutional funds only look to capitalize further on their emerging prominence.

The recent award recognition RESICAP earned is indicative of this trend. RESICAP took home the Gold Stevie® Award for Company of the Year in the Real Estate category, as well as another Gold Stevie Award for Fastest Growing Company of the Year in The 2019 American Business Awards.

“Few people have heard of us, yet we were the fastest-growing company in Georgia [United States] in 2018,” says Higgins. “Currently institutional funds only represent about two percent of the single-family real estate market, so there is tremendous potential and opportunity for them and, therefore, us as their partner. We have a unique business model in a relatively new industry—institutional-level, single-family home servicing—and we look to capitalize on that in order to continue our growth.”

Interested in winning a Stevie Award in 2020?

Grand Stevie Award winners will be presented with trophies at the Andaz Vienna am Belvedere Hotel, on 19 October.

The Stevie® Awards have announced the winners of the Best of the IBA Awards in The 2019 (16th Annual) International Business Awards®, the world’s premier business awards competition.

Nominees in the 2019 IBAs were not able to apply for the Best of the IBA Awards directly. Winners were determined by a points system based on the total number of awards won in the IBAs with a Gold Stevie win counting for three points, a Silver Stevie win for two points, and a Bronze Stevie win for 1.5 points.

This year’s Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award winners in The International Business Awards were announced on 14 August. The winners of the Best of the IBA Awards will be presented with Grand Stevie Award trophies at The 16th Annual International Business Awards banquet at the Andaz Vienna am Belvedere Hotel in Vienna, Austria on 19 October.

Winners of the 2019 Grand Stevie Awards are:

Most Honored Organization: International mail and logistics company DP DHL Group, with 86.5 award points earned by Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted by their offices and affiliates in 32 countries. This is the 11^th Grand Stevie Award won by DP DHL Group in one of the Stevie Award competitions since 2014.

Most Honored Public Relations Agency: LLYC, with a total of 69.5 award points earned by Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted on behalf of clients like BBVA, Coca-Cola, and Starbucks. The Madrid-headquartered global communications and public affairs consulting firm won a Top 10 Grand Stevie Award in 2018.

Most Honored Awards Consulting Agency: Melissa Sones Consulting, with a total of 36.5 points earned by Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted on behalf of numerous innovative clients in fields from consumer products, technology and filling board-level positions to best research paper and business book. The consulting agency is based out of New York, NY.

Most Honored Marketing Agency: Switching-Time, with a total of 20 points earned by Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted mostly on behalf of outdoor brand Columbia. The agency is based in Shanghai, China.

Most Honored Interactive Services Agency: The XD Agency, with 20.5 points earned by Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted on behalf of clients such as Porsche and Red Bull.  The Atlanta, Georgia USA-based strategic communications agency is hyper-focused on experience design. The agency also won the Grand Stevie for most honored interactive services agency in The 2019 American Business Awards®.

Top 10: These are the top Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie winners among all other organizations honored in the 2019 IBAs. They’ll also be presented with Grand Stevie Award trophies.

1. MSL, worldwide (66.5 points)
2. IBM, worldwide (65)
3. ASDA’A BCW, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (59.5)
4. The Audacious Agency, Coombabah, QLD Australia (37)
5. PT Petrokimia Gresik, Gresik, Indonesia (35.5
6. (tie) Dell Technologies, worldwide (30)
Ooredoo, worldwide (30)
8. Dan Lok Education Inc., Vancouver, BC, Canada (29)
9. (tie) Jeunesse Global, Lake Mary, FL, USA (24.5)
Thai Life Insurance Plc., Bangkok, Thailand (24.5)

“Of all the outstanding organizations and achievements that were recognized among this year’s record-breaking number of IBA nominations, these 15 organizations stand out as the ones with the widest breadth of achievement,” said Michael Gallagher, president and founder of the Stevie Awards. “The Best of the IBA Awards are intended to honor organizations that show an especially strong dedication to honoring the work of their employees, commitment to their clients, and a sense of innovation, and we look forward to celebrating these firms with Grand Stevie Award trophies at our gala event in Vienna on 19 October.”

The International Business Awards feature a wide variety of categories to recognize achievement in every facet of work life, including management awards, new product awards, marketing awards, PR awards, customer service awards, website awards, and more.
Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award placements in the 2019 IBAs were determined by the average scores of more than 250 professionals worldwide in the three-month judging process.

For more information about The International Business Awards, including a complete list of all Stevie Award winners in the 2019 competition, visit http://www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

Interested in winning a Stevie Award in 2020?

Like everyone concerned about equitable compensation in her home country, businesswoman Henrike von Platen eagerly awaited the first German Equal Pay Day in 2008. In some ways, the event—now held annually—delivered on its outsized expectations.

“The campaign ensured a great deal of attention was focused on the difference in income between women and men in Germany,” she says. “It wasn’t long before the causes of the pay gap had been well researched.”

Soon, however, that sense of optimism turned to frustration.

“Despite all the talk, almost nothing happened,” says von Platen. “In the meantime, the pay gap of 21 percent has narrowed by just two percentage points since then—far too slowly.”

Given that lack of tangible results, the finance and IT executive launched the Fair Pay Innovation Lab, or FPI, in 2017. Its goal: to assist companies and organizations in the practical implementation of pay equity, to create a space for dialogue, and to provide suggestions for the labor market.

Though FPI is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, the disparity in pay among the sexes is very much an international issue, especially in the West. Throughout the European Union, women make 16 percent less than men, and in the United States, women take in 15 percent less than their male peers, according to the Pew Research Center.

Von Platen insists there’s widespread consensus to even the economic scales. She points to the Berlin Declaration, signed in 2007 to mark the 50th anniversary of the European Economic Community, as an example. The landmark document called for equality on pay slips, and it received widespread support in politics and in the private sector.

“Everyone wants pay equity,” says von Platen, who serves as the chief executive of FPI. “At the present pace, though, it will take a long, long time to reach that point—around 170 years.”

Developing Sustainable Policies

In order to reach the goal faster, the FPI Fair Pay Innovation Lab has offered companies concrete solutions about how to make salaries more equitable since 2017. Every day, it helps clients figure out how to develop sustainable compensation policies and to prepare for laws dealing with salary transparency.

“Despite many firms having had very good experiences with open salary structures, transparency still represents a daring venture for most people,” says von Platen, whose organization earned a Bronze Stevie® Award last year for Organization of the Year in the government and nonprofit category. “Among employees, too, the subject of salary is often a bigger taboo than sexual orientation.”

In addition to implementing best practices in the field, FPI also hosts “fair pay management circles” that encourage leaders to exchange ideas in a private, invitation-only setting.

“We invite experts and decision makers from the fields of industry and commerce, science, and politics to share their views in order to trigger new debates, including controversial ones.”

The organization isn’t just in the business of preaching pay equity, however; it’s also quite literally a laboratory for the ideas it champions. In order to provide a work-life balance, its employees all work from different places and have leeway to create their own schedules. Full-time positions at FPI are only 32 hours per week, so half-time work is 16 hours per week, and 40 hours per week would be a 125 percent post.

Plus, FPI provides employees with one of the tools it offers to clients: a wage calculator where staffers can look up the salary for virtually any job in the organization, even before applying. To determine the pay scale, FPI relies on an objective set of criteria, including relevant professional experience, project experience, and how much responsibility the person takes on.

“We advocate for openness, transparency, and fairness,” says von Platen. “We strive for these values in our own organization and personally test every instrument we promote.”

While closing the pay gap is an uphill battle, the CEO insists it’s one worth fighting.

“Fair pay is imperative to ensuring gender equality,” she says. “Without solving the money question, gender equality will not be reached.”

FPI Fair Pay Innovation Lab is a Bronze Stevie Award winner for Organization of the Year - Non-Profit in the 2018 Stevie Awards for Women in Business. 

Interested in winning a Stevie Award for Women in Business?

Stevie® Award Winners to Be Revealed at Event in New York on September 20

Finalists in the fourth annual Stevie® Awards for Great Employers, an international competition, were announced today. The awards recognize the world’s best employers and the human resources professionals, teams, achievements, and HR-related products and suppliers who help to create and drive great places to work.

Among the organizations with the most Finalist nominations are IBM Corporation, worldwide (23), Advisor Group, USA (16), ej4, USA (12), QNB Finansbank, Turkey (eight), Everise, Singapore (six), Cisco, worldwide (five), TOFAS Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi AS, Turkey (five), and KocDigital A.S., Turkey (five).

For a full list of finalists by category, visit www.StevieAwards.com/HR.   

All finalists will ultimately be named Gold, Silver, or Bronze Stevie Award winners. The placements will be revealed during a gala event on Friday, September 20 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. Tickets are now on sale. The presentations will be broadcast live via Livestream.

More than 600 nominations from organizations from 24 nations were evaluated in this year’s competition. Winners were determined by the average scores of more than 60 professionals worldwide, acting as judges. The Stevie Awards for Great Employers recognize achievement in many facets of the workplace. Categories include:

•    Employer of the Year
•    HR Achievements
•    HR Individual Awards
•    HR Team Categories
•    Solution Provider Awards
•    More than 50 New Product & Service Categories

Stevie Award placements in the 35 Employer of the Year categories will be determined by a unique blending of the ratings of professionals and the votes of the general public. More than 29,000 votes were cast by members of the public for their favorite employer this year.

The awards are presented by the Stevie Awards, which organizes several of the world’s leading business awards shows including the prestigious International Business Awards® and The American Business Awards®.

Brands, businesses, and consumers are all becoming increasingly distrustful of big advertising agencies, and with so many scandals, data leaks, and privacy violations, it doesn't really come as a surprise. What’s interesting, though, is how that distrust is pushing even the biggest brands to work with smaller agencies. Additionally, it puts the pressure on all agencies to maintain honest work practices and complete transparency.

Hawke Media, a full-service marketing agency, prefers off-line opportunities to settle these potential client concerns, and they believe they know how this new need for transparency will push their industry.

In-Person Networking Still Matters

Hawke Media is set up to be more than just a marketing agency; the company also wants face-to-face interaction with its community. To that end, they expanded beyond Los Angeles, California, United States, to host a series of events that focus on talent, resources, and marketing.

"After seeing exponential growth for the past five years, we decided it was time for Hawke Media to spread its wings and to expand, and what better place to start that expansion than New York City?" says Erik Huberman, CEO and founder of Hawke Media. "We're incredibly excited to make our mark on the New York scene, and we look forward to becoming a part of the East Coast e-commerce community."

Hawke Media builds physical communities around its business. If your organization is looking to gather feedback and ideas in your community, Huberman has four tips for interested parties:

1. Valuable Information. Follow up with like-minded professionals you meet along the way to continuously incorporate feedback.
2. User-Generated Content. Attendees who share photos of your events can help boost your exposure.
3. Networking. Stay involved with your community through old-fashioned networking events.
4. Awareness, Nurture, and Trust. Trust is crucial in a consumer-brand relationship. Always uphold clear lines of communication in all interactions with your clients.

These strategies create a track record of your events and provide more to future clients who are tired of just receiving emails and attending webinars.

Despite their passion for face-to-face networking, Hawke Media understands data-driven marketing solutions need to back up any style of networking.

“Hawke Media was founded on the idea that every modern business needs a CMO-level expert to lead digital marketing efforts,” says Huberman. “By shifting the agency paradigm and linking its success to its clients', Hawke Media is changing the marketing game and allowing brands of all sizes, revenue models, and industries to afford customized, data-driven marketing solutions.”

Another contributing component to its success is that Hawke Media is made of entrepreneurs. The company is full of hungry go-getters who understand the importance of dreams. Hawke Media enables entrepreneurs at any stage of the journey to create thriving, growing, successful businesses.

Because the company is siloed, Hawke Media employees can truly focus on craft rather than having to be jacks-of-all-trades. This unique business model might just be the future of outsourced marketing.

Hawke Media earned a Gold Stevie® Award in the category of Company of the Year in the 2017 American Business Awards. Kate Aurell, Vice President of Operations at Hawke Media, and Melissa Portillo, Director of Creative Development, each took home a Bronze Stevie® Award for Female Executive of the Year in the Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations category of the 2018 Stevie Awards for Women in Business.

Business Awards Program to Celebrate Excellence Worldwide at Vienna Event

High-achieving organizations and executives around the world have been recognized as Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie® Award winners in The 16th Annual International Business Awards®, the world's only international, all-encompassing business awards program.

Nicknamed the Stevies from the Greek word for "crowned," the awards will be presented at a gala event on Saturday, 19 October at the Andaz Vienna am Belvedere Hotel in Vienna, Austria. Tickets for the event are on sale now at www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie winners were selected from more than 4,000 nominations received from organizations and individuals in 74 nations. All organizations worldwide are eligible to compete in The International Business Awards, and can submit entries in a wide range of categories, including management awards, company of the year awards, marketing awards, public relations awards, customer service awards, human resources awards, new product awards, IT awards, web site awards, and more. 

More than 250 executives worldwide participated on 12 juries this year to determine the Stevie winners.

LLYC, a global communications and public affairs consulting firm headquartered in Madrid, Spain won 17 Gold Stevie Awards, more than any organization has ever won in a single edition of the IBAs.

Among the other top winners of Gold Stevie Awards are MSLGROUP, USA with 10; IBM, USA (nine), ASDA’A BCW, United Arab Emirates (seven); Ooredoo, Qatar (six); Thai Life Insurance Plc., Thailand (six), Dan Lok Education, Canada (five); Jeunesse Global, USA (five), PT Petrokimia Gresik, Indonesia (five); The Audacious Agency, Australia (four), Makers Nutrition, USA (four), The XD Agency, USA (four), and Zeep Medical, Australia (four).

Deutsche Post DHL, with nominations submitted by affiliates worldwide, won eight Gold Stevies and 45 Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevies in total.

Other organizations with eight or more Stevie wins include Dell Technologies Ltd., worldwide; KocSistem Bilgi ve Iletisim Hizm. A.S., Turkey; PJ Lhuillier, Inc (PJLI), Philippines; SM Supermalls, Philippines; Strategic Public Relations Group, China; Switching-Time, China; Ulled Asociados C.R.P. S.A., Spain; Viettel Group, Vietnam; WNS Holdings (P) Ltd., India; and Yapi Kredi Bank, Turkey. The five nations that have the most winning nominations are the United States, Turkey, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the Philippines.

A complete list of all 2019 Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners by category is available at www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

During the week of 19 August the winners of the Best of the IBA Awards, five best-of-competition prizes, will be announced.  Winners will be determined by a tally of the total number of Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevies won by organizations, and will be presented with Grand Stevie Award trophies in Vienna.

For high-resolution photos of the Stevie Award trophy or International Business Awards logo, visit http://stevieawards.com/iba/photos-and-logos. Other information and resources for press are available at http://stevieawards.com/iba/media-inquiries-news-service-list

The seven judging committee chairs for the 2019 Stevie Awards for Women in Business have been announced. Judging will take place from August 26 - September 30. 

Nominations are still being accepted through August 21 and late entries will be accepted through September 18.

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT HERE.

Natasha Bansgopaul is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of the FinTech Platform, DarcMatter. She is a part of the founding team of both DarcMatter and Konstellation, and co-founded and launched Konstellation, DarcMatter’s blockchain consulting and development division, to leverage blockchain technology to continue to accelerate further efficiencies in the asset management marketplace. Natasha was recognized as Female Entrepreneur of the Year and Female Executive of the Year-Business Service up to 2,500 Employees in the 2018 Stevie Awards for Women in Business. In addition to her various awards and accolades, she is also a distinguished international keynote speaker, presenting at financial services, FinTech, and blockchain conferences throughout Asia and the United States.

Individual/Executive Categories:

Lori VanDyke, Director Client Engagement  

Access One, Chicago, IL

 

Lori has been in the customer service industry for over 20 years, with an emphasis in telecommunications and technology-based industry for the past 14 years. She worked
at US Cellular for eight years and during that time worked within various departments, including the Quality Assurance department, which monitored the interactions with customers to coaching and leading the front line customer service and technical support teams.
 
Lori has worked at Access One for the past six years and currently focuses on overseeing the front line for Access One. Additional duties are creating the onboarding plans for new employees and consistent training for career development for team members. In addition, she assists with training customers with Access One’s call center application service and to go on site to assist with onboarding.

 

Company/Organization Categories:

Angela Hughes, CEO

The Welsh Air Ambulance Charitable Trust, Llanelli, Wales, United Kingdom

 

Angela Hughes was the first employee of the Wales Air Ambulance Charity (WAAC) in 2002. She was previously Finance Director and then European HR and Quality
Manager in the construction and technology industry. As a cancer survivor, at the age of 34, Angela embarked on a new career in fundraising using the transferable business
skills of finance, quality and HR. There was no business plan, no office, no staff, and limited funds. In 2019 WAAC now has 4 offices, 4 airbases, 18 shops, a café, and a heliport. This busy heliport in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, was a pioneering opportunity for WAAC to take on a new venture to generate funds for the lifesaving cause.

 

WAAC is the largest air ambulance charity in the UK. Through a creative, community-
focused strategy, Angela has led the charity in raising more than £101 million to keep
the 4 air ambulances flying for Wales. This has transformed pre-hospital care in Wales.
’The Welsh Model’ is becoming a familiar term as organisations worldwide engage with
WAAC to replicate its model, including the USA, New Zealand and Ireland. Angela has
been recognised nationally and internationally through winning 17 awards, including 2
lifetime achievements, 4 Silver, and a Gold Stevie Award. Angela states “Although I do
not normally seek recognition for my role, these awards have been poignant moments
to reflect on how far we’ve come and they drive me to be the best I can, serving Wales,
saving lives.”

Angela’s recommendation for applicants to this year’s Women in Business Awards is as
follows: “The Stevie Awards have several categories applicable across the world to all
organisations. By selecting the category carefully you can create a niche and generate
good news stories that make you stand out from your competitors. If you exploit the
short-term and long-term benefits of winning a Stevie Award, then all the credibility of
your accomplishments can contribute to improved competitiveness or increased support for non-profits such as ours.”

 

New Product and Service Categories:

Natalia Michael, Founder

No Nasties Kids & Roar Success, Peregian Springs, QLD, Australia

 

Natalia Michael is a multi-award-winning Australian entrepreneur. She is the owner of No Nasties Kids and SLiCK KiDS natural children's brands, and the co-owner of Roar Success, a platform for women in business. No Nasties Kids and SLiCK KiDS products are sold across the globe with distribution and licensee partners in nine countries and growing.

Communications & Marketing Categories:

Hai Yen Le, General Director

Newday Media JSC, Hanoi, Vietnam

 

Hai Yen Le, General Director of Newday Media JSC, is the Leader of Hanoi Young
Women Entrepreneurs Club (HYWE), Vice-chairwoman of Vietnam Media &Tourism Club, and Vice-chairwoman of Hanoi Network of Women Entrepreneurs. After 4 years working in PR at FPT, the largest corporation in technology & science in Vietnam, she started her own business in event management at the age of 27. Within 8 years, from a small business with only 1 employee and $1,000 of operating capital, Newday Media JSC has grown to become an expert in the field with 37 full-time employees and a turnover of over $1 million per annum. The company has a healthy growth rate of 20% every year and has created and directed many successful national festivals working with a number of established businesses and organisations.

Newday Media JSC under Hai Yen’s direction has received multiple certificates and
accolades from local governments and clients and the business goes from strength to
strength. In addition to running her own company Hai Yen believes it’s important to
share her knowledge and experience and is now a senior member of Business Network
International.

Hai Yen was born and raised in Hanoi. Finishing her studies at Hanoi College of Art,
she obtained a degree in Music & Culture Management from the University of Culture Studies.

Media Categories:

Natalie Runyon, Director, Enterprise Content

Thomson Reuters, New York, New York, United States

 

Natalie Runyon has over 20 years of experience working and volunteering for multinational corporations, non profits, and the US Government–Thomson Reuters, Goldman Sachs, and the Central Intelligence Agency.

 

Currently, she is the director of enterprise content for talent, inclusion, and culture within the brand marketing function of Thomson Reuters. Before her current role, she ran the strategy and operations team supporting key account programs within the Legal business. Before that, she ran global security in the Americas for 3 years. As a volunteer leader, she has led strategic leadership and change initiatives on the global and local levels for business resource groups at Thomson Reuters.

Natalie is a conference speaker and an author of articles for the Legal Executive
Institute , The Glass Hammer , Security magazine , and CSO Online . Natalie was
named one of top 20 under 40 in Security Director News in 2013. She also serves on
the board of She Should Run , a non partisan nonprofit focused on building the pipeline
of women to run for elected public office in the US; and the board of Middle Church , a
faith institution in the East Village dedicated to nurturing souls, advocating for social
justice, and standing up for those within marginalized communities.

She earned her MBA from The George Washington University and her BS Degree in
International Trade and Finance from Louisiana State University. She completed an
Organization Development & Leadership certificate from NYU in April 2016 and is a Certified Leadership Coach and Certified Protection Professional. She currently resides in New York City with her husband and two sons.

Achievement Categories:

Vicky Marrack,  Co-Founder & CFO

Tangible Words, Ottawa, Canada  

 

Vicky is Co-Founder and Chief Financial Officer of Tangible Words, a Sales & Marketing Growth Agency. Under Vicky's leadership, the company has grown into a 10-person agency. Tangible Words helps organizations who need to grow their revenue by $1 million or more by increasing customer lifetime value, getting net new profitable leads, and building repeatable, predictable sales processes.  

Vicky's determination to help her staff achieve greatness for their clients while living their best life led to Tangible Words winning the Gold Stevie Award for Achievement in Promoting Work-Life Balance in 2018. In the same year, and in recognition of the results Tangible Words gets for their clients, Tangible Words also won The Hubspot Integrations Innovation Award and a Gold Quill Award of Merit for Communication Management.

On being asked to Chair this year’s Achievement Awards Committee, Vicky told us:
“These Awards are an important recognition for women all over the world. It was a
highlight of our company’s year winning a Gold Stevie Award for Achievement in the
2018 Women in Business Awards. I am very happy to contribute in 2019 as a participant in recognizing the achievements of other women in business.”

Während die Bewerbungsphase der 16. Stevie® Awards for Women in Business auf Hochtouren läuft, geben die Stevie Awards nun das hochkarätige Programm für die zweitägige 2. Women|Future Conference bekannt.

Wer sich frühzeitig registriert, dem winken spezielle Rabatte und eine ganz besondere Verlosung.

Das zweitägige Event für berufstätige Frauen adressiert die drängendsten geschäftlichen Themen von morgen. Von Robotik und Cybersicherheit über die Zukunft von Arbeit bis hin zu künstlicher Intelligenz bietet die Veranstaltung Informationen aus der Perspektive von Frauen aus diesen Bereichen und wie sie die Karrieren berufstätiger Frauen in allen Branchen und Unternehmen beeinflussen werden.

Die Konferenz findet vom 14. bis 15. November 2019 im Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City anlässlich der Preisverleihung der 16. Stevie Awards for Women in Business statt.

Das Programm mit zahlreichen Top-Rednerinnen steht bereits fest. Den ersten Tag der Konferenz wird Sheryl Connelly, Corporate Futurist bei der Ford Motor Company, mit ihrer Keynote „Bekenntnisse eines Corporate Futurist: Kommende Trends, die Ihr Geschäft revolutionieren werden“ eröffnen. Connelly war Rednerin bei TED Global auf CBS Today Morning, CNBCs Fast Money und NPR’s All Things Considered with Robert Siegel.

Eine schnelle Buchung fürs Event lohnt sich. Denn bis zum 13. September 2019 gibt es spezielle Frühbucherrabatte. Außerdem werden aus den ersten 100 bezahlten Registrierungen 20 Teilnehmerinnen ausgelost, die am Donnerstagmorgen an einem exklusiven privaten Frühstück mit Sheryl Connelly teilnehmen dürfen.

Ein weiteres Highlight ist die Keynote von Selena Rezvani von Be Leaderly mit dem Titel „Die Zukunft der Arbeit ist weiblich“. Selena Rezvani ist Autorin einer preisgekrönten Kolumne in der Washington Post und eine beliebte Kolumnistin zum Thema Frauen und Arbeit bei Forbes. Sie spricht jedes Jahr zu Tausenden berufstätiger Frauen und wurde in der LA Times, Oprah.com, Todayshow.com und NPR vorgestellt.

Neben den Keynotes finden Podiumsdiskussionen und Breakout-Sessions zu verschiedenen Branchen und Themen statt, die am Arbeitsplatz relevant sind. Außerdem können die Teilnehmerinnen an verschiedenen Networking-Sessions teilnehmen, die sich ganz unterschiedlichen Themen widmen. Mehrere Finalistinnen der diesjährigen Stevie Awards for Women in Business präsentieren zudem ihre Fallstudien.

Bestätigte Rednerinnen sind unter anderem:

• Ashley Brundage, Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, PNC
• Alessia Falsarone, Managing Director, SASB FSA,PineBridge Investments
• Catherine Gacad, SVP, Partnerships,Wells Fargo
• Jagathi Gururajan, Global Technology Executive
• Heather Kernahan, President, North America, Hotwire
• Gwen Murphy, Executive Director, Business Technology Services,KPMG 
• Kris Pugsley,Director Global Communications, ON Semiconductor
• Ajeta Sinha, Senior Vice President, Sales and Services,Net2Source
• Michelle Strier, Chief Strategy Officer,Spectrum

Das komplette Programm und die Übersicht über alle Rednerinnen finden Sie unter www.WomenFutureConference.com.

Alle Informationen zur Teilnahme an den 16. Stevie Awards for Women in Business finden Sie unter www.StevieAwards.com/Women.

Full program for two-day November conference in New York announced

The second annual Women|Future Conference is a two-day event for professional women that will address the most pressing business issues of tomorrow. From robotics and cybersecurity, to the future of work and artificial intelligence, the conference will provide information on these topics from the perspectives of women in those fields on how they will affect professional women in all industries – their careers and businesses.

The conference will be presented by the Stevie® Awards in conjunction with the 16^th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business on November 14-15, 2019 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. 

See the full agenda and list of speakers at www.WomenFutureConference.com.

Sheryl Connelly, corporate futurist with the Ford Motor Company, will open the first day of the conference with her keynote entitled “Confessions of a Corporate Futurist: Coming Trends That Will Revolutionize Your Business.” Connelly has been a featured speaker at TED Global, appeared on CBS This Morning , CNBC’s Fast Money, and NPR’s All Things Considered with Robert Siegel.

Special early-bird registration rates are available now through September 13. The first 100 paid registrants will be eligible for a drawing from which 20 will be selected at random for an exclusive private breakfast with Sheryl Connelly before her Thursday-morning keynote.

Selena Rezvani of Be Leaderly will present the Friday-morning keynote, called “The Future of Work is Female.” Selena addresses thousands of professional women each year and has been featured in The LA Times, Oprah.com, Todayshow.com, and NPR. She wrote an award-winning column for The Washington Post, and today serves as a popular columnist on women and the workplace for Forbes.

Morning keynote addresses will be followed by panel discussions and breakout sessions on workplace and industry topics, structured networking based on topics of interest, and case studies presented by Stevie Awards for Women in Business finalists.  Each attendee’s experience at the Women|Future Conference will be unique.

There are 12 breakout sessions to select from, looking at how to grow your business online and off, the power of influence, international trade, and more.

Panel sessions featuring 20 industry experts over the two days will explore how artificial intelligence is transforming industries, how to navigate careers through challenging times, diversity and inclusion, and more.

The structured networking sessions are designed to group attendees at tables of like-minded women to discuss issues on the front burner of today – and tomorrow. Attendees will select their topics of interest during the registration process to be paired with a networking leader.

Confirmed conference speakers include, among others:

• Ashley Brundage, Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, PNC
• Alessia Falsarone, Managing Director, SASB FSA,PineBridge Investments
• Catherine Gacad, SVP, Partnerships, Wells Fargo
• Jagathi Gururajan, Global Technology Executive
• Heather Kernahan, President, North America, Hotwire
• Gwen Murphy, Executive Director, Business Technology Services,KPMG 
• Kris Pugsley,Director Global Communications, ON Semiconductor
• Ajeta Sinha, Senior Vice President, Sales and Services, Net2Source
• Michelle Strier, Chief Strategy Officer, Spectrum

See the full list of speakers here, and the full conference agenda here.

Enterprising Women is the Media Sponsor of the Women|Future Conference. Enterprising Women magazine is the voice of women entrepreneurs---reaching more than one million readers in 185 countries.  Published quarterly, the print magazine is available by subscription at www.enterprisingwomen.com or download the digital edition in the Apple Store or at Google Play free. 

As the travel industry continuously works to meet travelers’ demands, this sector’s technological aspect is becoming increasingly important. When it comes to understanding what a diverse set of travelers are looking for when getting from point A to Z, data is truly king. Gone are the days of customers simply being mesmerized by how quickly they can arrive at the other side of the world; now it’s all about how great their experiences were getting there.

FCM Travel Solutions believes its staff can circumvent any of these new industry obstacles by providing its team members with the best tools available. This means supporting them, either online or off-line, at all times. The company’s expertise, supplier relations, unrivaled negotiating strength, and innovative technology solutions position FCM as a leading business travel partner for large national, multinational, and global corporations. It also gives them the resources necessary to confront these new industry trends.

New Days, New Challenges

Global business travel is expected to bring in $1.4 trillion by 2020, with “bleisure” (business and leisure) projected to be a big chunk of sky activity. FCM attributes strong corporate values to its ability to adapt to this kind of change, as well as any other emerging customer trends.

“We pride ourselves on being both global and locally connected,” says Jaime Kuek, the corporate communication manager for FCM. “Deep in our DNA is the local connection. For example, in China, 100 percent of our staff is Chinese. There is, therefore, a strong culture and connection with the local ecosystem in the local industry, which is important when serving our customers.”

Kuek goes on to say that, even in the field of artificial intelligence or machine learning, it’s imperative to streamline and to categorize useful data to anticipate the needs of a diverse set of customers.

For example, a growing trend among travelers is the ability to leave wallets and boarding passes at home since people can now use their smartphones to check in. This introduces new protocols and privacy issues that travel management teams are still debating and testing. These companies want smooth transitions into new policies so they can have more time to anticipate additional changes on the horizon.

If you’re looking to design leadership habits and work culture values in your organization, take a look at how FCM recognizes its employees:

• Fostering open communication during question-and-answer panel sessions
• Offering regular business updates and daily updates from operations leaders
• Holding quarterly buzz night recognitions for top performers and operations
• Recognizing unsung heroes
• Delivering excellence service awards that recognize things like a customer’s complimentary email or letter to his or her travel consultant and operations team
• Implementing health and well-being initiatives
• Celebrating diversity

FCM is committed to upholding these values in order to keep its staff educated about new trends and to support its customers. If your organization deals with constant changes in an ever-expanding field, consistently review your team members’ needs to ensure you’re providing them with the best tools available. This approach is what helped FCM win the Gold Stevie® Award for Innovative Use of Technology in the Customer Service category of the 2019 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards.

Are you interested in winning a Stevie Award in 2020?

Startschuss für die Stevie® Awards for Sales and Customer Service 2020  

Zum 14. Mal rufen die Stevie® Awards zu dem jährlich ausgelobten Wirtschaftspreis für Kundenservice und Vertrieb auf. Ab sofort können Abteilungen, Teams und Fachkräfte aus den Bereichen Kundenservice, Kontaktzentrum, Unternehmens-entwicklung und Vertrieb weltweit ihre Nominierungen einreichen. Auch externe Lösungsanbieter dürfen sich mit ihren Produkten und Dienstleistungen bewerben.

Den Teilnehmern stehen über 150 Kategorien für Awards im Bereich Verkauf, Kundenservice, Unternehmensentwicklung, Produkte und Lösungsanbieter zur Verfügung und sie können beliebig viele Nominierungen in beliebig vielen Kategorien einreichen.

Neu in diesem Jahr sind

• drei Kategorien im Bereich Sales Achievement: Sales Enablement Program of the Year, Sales Incentive Program of the Year undWhite Paper or Research Report of the Year,
• eine Kategorie im Bereich Customer Service & Contact Center Individual: Customer Service Training Professional of the Year,
• zwei neue Kategorien im Bereich Customer Service & Contact Center Team: Customer Service Training Team of the Year - External undCustomer Service Training Team of the Year – Internal,
• und zwei neue Kategorien im Bereich Customer Service & Contact Center Achievement: Best Customer Engagement Initiative undCustomer Service Training or Coaching Program of the Year.

Die größte Neuerung in diesem Jahr ist, dass anstelle des Essays zur Beschreibung der erbrachten Leistung auch ein bis zu fünf Minuten langes Video eingereicht werden kann. Dabei gilt, dass die nominierten Leistungen seit dem 1. Juli 2018 erbracht worden sein müssen.

Für die Awards gibt es drei Teilnahmefristen. Teilnehmer, die ihre Nominierungen bis zum 16. Oktober 2019 einreichen, profitieren dabei von reduzierten Teilnahmegebühren. Die reguläre Teilnahmefrist endet am 13. November 2019, verspätete Anmeldungen werden jedoch noch bis zum 9. Januar 2020 mit einer Nachgebühr entgegengenommen.

Die Finalisten werden Mitte Januar bekanntgegeben. Die Gold, Silber und Bronze Stevie Award Platzierungen erfahren die Preisträger im Rahmen eines Galadinners am 28. Februar 2020 im Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

Im vergangenen Jahr waren über 2.700 Nominierungen von Unternehmen aus 45 Nationen und jeder Branche und Größe bei den Stevie Awards for Sales and Customer Service eingegangen. Aus Deutschland hatten der Software-Riese SAP SE aus Walldorf und der Berliner Chauffeur & Limousinen Service Blacklane die international besetzte Jury überzeugt. Deutsche Post DHL gewann zahlreiche Gold, Silver und Bronze Stevie Awards für seine internationalen Aktivitäten und gewann das sechste Jahr in Folge den Grand Stevie Award als die meist geschätzte Organisation des Jahres.

Mehr über die Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service 2020 erfahren Sie im Videointerview mit Michael Gallagher: