iPai Auction Co., Ltd., in Shanghai, China won a Gold Stevie® for New Consumer Service of the Year and a Silver Stevie® for New Business Service of the Year in the the 2014 Asia Pacific Stevie® Awards.

Winners in the 2015 Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards will be notified on April 22, and celebrated on June 5 in Shanghai.

Learn more about the Asia-Paific Stevie Awards..

Launched in 2012, iPai, the first wholly foreign-owned auction house in China, was designed as the first auction house to sell Chinese consumers a wider selection of goods beyond artwork. The auction house also works with businesses to sell their products at live auctions in its Shanghai showroom, at local Chinese malls, and online. In addition, the company helps with market entry for businesses that are looking to import their products into China, and assists with logistics, registering trademarks and logos, market research, and actual sales in the China market.

"Our service lets small businesses test the Chinese market and understand consumer tastes before they make a larger-scale investment to enter China," said Deb Weidenhamer, Founder and CEO of iPai Auction Co., Ltd. Deb is no stranger to the auction business. She founded the Phoenix-based American Auction Co. in 1995.

Ensuring Client Success
We asked Deb what winning a Stevie® Award has meant to her company. She was happy to elaborate. “Our company prides itself in not only being successful internally, but making sure our clients are successful. Winning this award helped showcase the progress we’ve seen from the U.S., China, and beyond, and helps our clients to see the well-rounded approach we take in selling their products through auction and how we can help them further their business goals.”

She added: “The award has also helped our team internally to truly see the vision of iPai and where it is headed.”

Furthering Credibility
Deb also talked about how winning in the Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards has helped broaden awareness of iPai in the region: “Winning this prestigious international business award has furthered our company’s credibility not only in the U.S. and in China, but also in other countries across the globe. We currently sell to people across the world and are looking at expanding physical locations in additional markets. Having the credibility of awards such as the Stevies paves the way to make this a clear reality.”

Being Willing to Learn

We asked Deb for some insight on what it has been like to start a new business in China. “I have met a few people in China who come in with grand ideas of how China should work and how they can change it,” Deb told us. “Americans might call this being visionary. In China, it’s perceived as presumptuous and insulting. In a place with thousands of years of history, you must be aware that who you are is irrelevant. You need to start fresh to build a reputation and adapt to the local culture—and be willing to learn about the people of China.”

Continued Deb: “Doing business in China isn’t something you can decide one day is a good idea. It takes research and careful planning. Most important, it takes a commitment to want to be in the market. Success rarely comes quickly anywhere, and it comes even less frequently in China. Failure to embrace the intricacies of culture and protocol will allow you to spend a lot of time getting nowhere–and leave you oblivious to your fate.”

Introducing Chinese Consumers to American Products
In 2013, iPai organized more than 100 auctions and introduced Chinese consumers to thousands of American products like California craft beer, deep fryers, cigars, and nutritional supplements. “Products many times start at $80, but can be auctioned for as much as $23,000,” Deb told us. “Watches and handbags have been particularly popular.”

"Businesses need to know that if they have a good quality product, Chinese consumers are willing to pay for it," continued Deb. "You could even end up selling at a better price and higher quantities than in the U.S."

Looking for Good Clients
iPai has a sales force that looks for interesting small businesses to take on as clients, Deb explained. It also has a review team that heavily screens the products and rejects those that don't meet their standards.

Because of this, she said, products almost always resonate at auction. Less than 10 percent go unsold, in which case they're featured at another auction or returned to the consignor and iPai doesn't get paid.

“Although iPai typically works with companies,” said Deb, “it occasionally accepts independent entrepreneurs and inventors who want to discover if a product is right for China.”

A Fulfilling Experience

The auction business has proven to be a stimulating one for Deb Weidenhamer. “Auctions are an ever-changing industry, always keeping me on my toes,” she explained. “Bringing everyman luxury goods into China through auctions is a very exciting concept and truly breathes new life into small- to medium-sized businesses, as well as larger enterprises. Giving Chinese consumers the opportunity to purchase items they wouldn’t have had access to previously and giving businesses the opportunity to enter China that may have not had that opportunity previously is a very fulfilling experience.”

About Deb Weidenhamer:

Deb Weidenhamer is Founder and CEO of iPai Auction Co., Ltd., the first wholly foreign-owned auction firm in China. After successfully launching her own U.S. auction firm, American Auction Co., an INC 500 company, nearly 20 years ago, Weidenhamer created Shanghai-based iPai to introduce China’s middle class to the concept of buying

consumer products at auction and has seen incredible results from the outset of its 2011 formation.

iPai also assists Western businesses to gain access to the ever-growing Chinese marketplace through market entry services introducing “new to China” goods directly to consumers and establishing real market data. In addition to sharing her time between the U.S. and China and running her businesses, Weidenhamer is a lecturer on entrepreneurship at several Chinese universities and assists the China Association of Auctioneers in learning best practices of Western auctions.

Recognized for her growth as a global entrepreneur and small-to-medium enterprise expert, Weidenhamer was asked to pen “Capitalizing on China” for The New York Times. She has also spoken at the Harvard Business School, INC 500, and has been featured in several U.S. and Chinese media formats including China Daily, CNBC, Fox Business, NPR, Money Watch, and Global Entrepreneur. Additionally, Weidenhamer was the principal cast member of Discovery Channel’s “Auctioneer$” reality TV show.

About iPai:
iPai (Shanghai) Auction Co., Ltd. is a Wholly Owned Foreign Enterprise (WOFE) and an affiliate of the American auction firm Auction Systems Auctioneers & Appraisers Inc. (Auction Systems), headquartered in Arizona, USA. With 18 years of history, this progressive auction firm has come to have a broad influence on the auction industry nationally and has been recognized numerous times for its high and consistent growth.

Shanghai offers many options for quality goods but large retail stores come with over-enthusiastic sales staff, lengthy queues, and demanding prices that seem to increase every day. Instead of being told what items are worth, iPai offers a broad selection of contemporary luxury items, and allows customers to decide how much to bid for their favorite items. To find out more, visit: https://www.ipaiworld.com/Home/About

The Executive Centre in Hong Kong, China, won a Gold Stevie Award for Services Company of the Year-China (including Hong Kong) in the Company Awards categories of the 2014 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards. The Executive Centre also won a Gold Stevie for Company of the Year-Business Services – Asia & Oceania in the Company Awards categories of The 2014 International Business Awards.

The final deadline for the 2015 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards is March 25. Get the entry kit here.

The 2015 International Business Awards early-bird deadline is April 15.  Get the entry kit here.

Based on a core concept of providing best-in-class service in every city it serves, The Executive Centre offers businesses an opportunity to "Work Smarter, Not Harder" and to achieve office space flexibility, cost effectiveness, and productivity.   A business looking to have a presence in Asia can benefit from The Executive Centre’s fully furnished and well-equipped serviced workplaces, virtual offices with prestigious business addresses, a regional network of meeting rooms in a professional business environment, state-of-the-art productivity and communication tools, and a variety of local business support services.

We asked Paul Salnikow, Chairman and CEO of The Executive Centre, for an overview of business trends in Asia-Pacific, what winning a Stevie Awards has meant for his business, and what makes him hit the ground running in the morning.

The Challenges of Expansion

“The Asia Pacific region has enormous potential for growing businesses,” Paul Salnikow told us. He also offered some words of caution: “Whilst expanding into a new market is a huge milestone for any company, it is also very challenging. Different legislation, customs, business practices, and workplace expectations are all important factors that a company must consider. Prior to devising strategies for business expansion or marketing penetration, it is always good to gauge the local business executives’ perceptions of current and future economic conditions on the local, regional and global level as how business peers perceive what lies ahead can be a genuine barometer of business activity and the overall business climate.”

According to a 2015 Business Outlook Survey conducted by The Executive Centre among 800 companies in Asia Pacific, the top three challenging issues for all markets are intensifying competition, pressure on prices (from raw materials,commodities, and services), and uncertain market demand. Paul’s advice: “Focus more on implementing effective business management practices, from cost control and improving working capital, to product innovation, service quality improvement, and customer retention.”

International Recognition

“We are delighted to be recognized on the international business stage,” Paul said about winning the Stevie Awards. “We will use this accolade as a benchmark for how we intend to continue running our business and serving our customers to the highest possible level.”

According to Paul: “At The Executive Centre, creating customer value is the fundamental foundation of our business and we put our customer’s needs and interests at the centre of everything we do. Both the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards and The International Business Awards are a testament to our continuous commitment to the delivery of premium-standard serviced office solutions, and our dedication to innovation and service excellence.”

A High Benchmark

Commenting on how winning in the 2014 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards is helping to broaden awareness of his business in the region, Paul acknowledged that the Stevie Awards were often referred to as the “Oscars” of the business world. “They honor—and generate public recognition for—the efforts, accomplishments, and positive contributions of companies and business people worldwide,” he added. “Winning these two awards undoubtedly validates The Executive Centre’s success in setting a high benchmark for premier service delivery on a global scale, and affirms its leadership in the marketplace.”

An Expanding Network

We asked Paul whether he had plans to expand his own service business into other areas of Asia-Pacific. “ Because of the continued growing demand for premium serviced office space driven by companies seeking the advantages of flexible workspace solutions, I am confident of the business growth at The Executive Centre in the coming years both in terms of capacity and revenue,” Paul told us. “We will continue to expand our network in both existing and new Asian markets, as well as look into establishing presence in emerging markets such as the Gulf States and Russia.”

Personal Mantra

According to Paul: “To be average is simple, but to be the best requires continual focus on improvement, constantly setting the bar higher and higher.” It is Paul’s opinion that there is always room for improvement. “So I improve myself in one way every day.”

About Paul Salnikow:

Paul Salnikow is the Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of The Executive Center, which he founded in 1994. As he likes to put it: “The best leader is the one who is smart enough to choose a talented team to do what he wants done, and then have the self-restraint to allow them to do it. The Executive Centre is populated by highly talented leaders who create successful teams that are given the freedom to succeed. Outstanding leaders work to boost the self-belief of their teams. When people believe in themselves, amazing things are accomplished. In 12 years we have grown the revenue of The Executive Centre from less than $500,000 annually to over $110,000,000 annually. All through the belief and accomplishment of our teams.”

About The Executive Center:

Founded in 1994, The Executive Centre is Asia Pacific's leading premium serviced office provider, with 70 centers across 21 major cities including Hong Kong, Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Macau, Taipei, Tokyo, Seoul, Singapore, Jakarta, Mumbai, Chennai, Gurgaon, Pune, Brisbane, Perth, and Sydney .

At the cutting edge of the serviced office industry, The Executive Centre provides the highest quality of on-demand serviced offices, virtual offices, meeting facilities, video conferencing and a broad range of business concierge services in the most prestigious Grade A office buildings in the central business districts of every city in which it operates. It is deciated to serving the business interests of multinational corporations, small and medium enterprises, and start-ups locally, regionally, and internationally by providing the most flexible and dynamic workplace solutions.

Beverley Thompson, Residential Sales Director at FLOW Jamaica in Kingston, Jamaica, won the Silver Stevie® Award for Sales Training or Education Leader of the Year in the Sales Awards Individual categories of the 2015 Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service.

The 2016 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service will begin accepting entries in July. See the customer service awards categories in The 2016 American Business Awards.

Since winning the Stevie® Awards last week, Beverley has been in the limelight in the corporate world in Jamaica. It’s the first time anyone representing a Jamaican company has won such an award. On Sunday, March 8, the Jamaica Observer ran a lengthy feature on Beverley’s story in recognition of International Women’s Day.

Beverley’s nomination in the Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service was submitted by ValueSelling Associates, and afterwards she commented: “I’m thankful to ValueSelling for the nomination. I believe this award validates my passion for people development, coaching, and training!”

Prestigious Award

Continued Beverley: “This is a really prestigious award. Companies from around the world participate in the Sales & Customer Service Awards. There were over 1,900 nominations from around the world in different categories, presided over by experienced judges who narrowed it down to Finalists. We were Finalists in two categories: Leader of Sales Education, where I won the Silver Stevie; and Sales Coaching Program of the Year, for which the Flow retail team won the Bronze Stevie.

“The retail team trained with Value Selling, which nominated us, and as far as I am aware, no other Jamaican individual or company has ever won or been nominated for the Stevie Awards.”

Commenting on the awards ceremony, held in Las Vegas on February 27, Beverley had this to say: “In one room you have over 500 people from all over the world, including India, Australia, Dubai, Turkey—and some of the biggest companies in the world, like Marriott, DHL, Lennox, Wyndham. Winning these awards means a lot for my own organization.”

Service-based Sales Culture

When sales veteran Beverley Thompson assumed the role of leading FLOW Jamaica’s retail sales team in 2010, the company’s focus was to transform it’s thirteen retail stores from being primarily service outlets to revenue-generating centers for its triple-play services. The company was keen to leverage its service skills to create what Thompson describes as a “service-based sales culture.”

To effect this culture change, Beverley knew she first had to start with equipping the retail team with new skills. No stranger to leading skills development, she took on the task of creating and delivering a “Sales 101” curriculum relevant to her team’s environment. She did this while maintaining her own responsibilities for a team of over 100 persons and delivering her sales targets.

ValueSelling’s Retail Program

Beverley’s next area of focus was to enhance the team’s skills to create value for every customer interaction. The objective was to have retail customers leaving the store feeling they had received more than they expected. By doing so, the customer would be inclined to retain FLOW’s services, increase their spend, or recommend FLOW to someone else.

Beverley brought in ValueSelling Associates to work with her to create a common retail sales approach built around a conversational framework that would be used by each retail representative.

Beverley liked ValueSelling’s B2B sales process and tasked the company with adapting it to fit a retail environment. She was very clear that any sales process implemented should also include the tools and reinforcement framework to enable her team to embed it post workshop-delivery.

ValueSelling Associates created the ValueSelling Framework for Retail, built around a five-step approach for engaging the retail customer. It was designed to move the FLOW team from pitching products and promotions to engaging the customer to uncover what value meant to them–and then delivering it.  

Core Team

Beverley created a core team within the organization who were tasked with becoming experts in the ValueSelling Framework. The aim was to ensure that the process was adopted and yielded results in several areas of tracking, including:

-   a reduction in disconnections;

-     an increase in ‘add-on’ services; and

-     qualitative metrics such as customer feedback on the overall quality of the interaction with FLOW’s retail representatives.

The team used creative techniques to ensure the Retail representatives were properly utilizing ValueSelling. These included incentives such as gift cards for the winners of quizzes on the sales methodology; team meetings with presentations on key aspects of the ValueSelling Framework; and an essay contest describing the retail representative’s best ValueSelling experience with a customer and the results it yielded.

In addition to wallet cards provided to retail representatives to remind them of the ValueSelling Framework process, the back office of each store was equipped with a poster-size version to provide visual reinforcement. Actively involved in the process of embedding the program, Beverley traveled with her core team to each retail outlet to ‘mystery shop’ and do spot observations on the team’s use of the retail sales approach.

Embracing the Process

FLOW’s retail team responded to the efforts of Beverley and her core team by embracing the ValueSelling process. Their commitment was not only evidenced in their willingness to attend workshops on Sundays, but also with the enthusiasm and competitive spirit which they displayed in showcasing each store’s use of ValueSelling and the impact on the metrics being tracked.

The results followed: Within six months of adopting the ValueSelling Framework for Retail, FLOW saw a significant decrease in disconnections and a 10% increase in ‘add-on’ services. The FLOW team recognizes that because of the value of the techniques and its reinforcement, the ValueSelling Retail Approach is used in every conversation. In Beverley’s words: “The core concept of value became part of our DNA–because value isn’t just about sales, it involves the entire customer experience.”

About Beverley Thompson:

Beverley Thompson is the Director of Consumer Sales and Retail Services at FLOW Jamaica. She was the Sales Director at FLOW Jamaica for two and half years, primarily focusing on field sales operations, before leaving to work for the Royal Mail in England in 2008. She rejoined FLOW in October 2010. Beverley’s experience spans the strategic level, as well as the creation and management of multi-channel sales operations across retail, enterprise, and SME. She has had a career steeped in playing key roles in startups, the launch of new technology, and business units.

The former member of Youth Opportunities Unlimited plans to focus on assisting the schools which laid the foundation for her rise–Unity Primary, and Oberlin High–a quest that is being assisted by the supporting hand of her husband. The main life lesson for this lover of football, one-day cricket, and track & field, is: "knowing what you want, sticking to it ... and not being derailed by distractions or bumps along the way."

Beverley has an MBA from the Mona School of Business & Management in Jamaica. She and her husband live in Kingston, and she enjoys traveling, spending time with friends and family, and watching television.

About FLOW Jamaica:

Columbus Communications Jamaica Ltd. is wholly owned by Columbus. It markets its broadband triple play (cable‚ internet, and telephony) under the brand name FLOW. FLOW is the only company in Jamaica providing true broadband triple-play. FLOW's technology is cutting-edge and its people are experts in the field. FLOW aims to revolutionize the way Jamaicans watch, talk, and click.

Stevie Awards to Be Presented This Fall in Toronto

The Stevie® Awards today issued the call for entries for The 12th Annual International Business Awards, the world's premier business awards competition, which attracts nominations from organizations in more than 50 nations and territories each year.

All individuals and organizations worldwide -- public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small -- may submit nominations to The International Business Awards. The early-bird entry deadline, with reduced entry fees, is 15 April. The final entry deadline is 13 May and late entries will be accepted through 10 June with payment of a late fee. Entry details are available at www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

An international judging panel of more than 200 executives will determine the Stevie Award winners. Results will be announced in mid-August. Stevie Award winners will be presented their awards at a gala banquet in Toronto, Canada on 16 October.

The International Business Awards recognize achievement in every facet of the workplace. Categories include:

• Management Awards
• Company of the Year Awards
• Customer Service Awards
• Human Resources Awards
• Information Technology Awards
• Marketing Awards
• New Product Awards
• Public Relations Awards
• Web Site Awards, Smartphone and Tablet App, and other media awards

A variety of new categories are introduced for the 2015 competition including Woman of the Year, Startup of the Year, Energy Industry Innovation of the Year, Best Email Newsletter, Best Use of Instagram, and more. Several of the new categories have no entry fee.

Stevie Award winners in the 2015 IBAs included Accenture (USA), Advanced Bionics (USA), AECOM (USA), Akbank (Turkey), ASDA'A Burson-Marsteller (United Arab Emirates), AT&T (USA), CallidusCloud (USA), DHL Express (worldwide), Globe Telecom (Philippines), Jack Morton Worldwide, Kanyon (Turkey), LLORENTE Y CUENCA (Spain), Maras Group (Australia), MSLGROUP worldwide, MWW Group (USA), Odea Bank (Turkey), Oxford City Football Club (USA), Plasenta Conversation Agency (Turkey), PS Communication (Denmark), Quality Systems, Inc. (USA), and StarHub Ltd (Singapore), and Weber Shandwick (worldwide), among others.

Winners in the ninth annual Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service, recognized as the world's top customer service awards and sales awards, were unveiled on Friday night at a gala ceremony in Las Vegas, Nevada attended by more than 520 executives from around the world.

The complete list of Stevie winners by category is available at http://www.StevieAwards.com/Sales.

DP DHL, with Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award wins for operations in Bolivia, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa, Thailand, the U.S.A., and other nations, won the Grand Stevie Award as the winningest organization in the competition for the second year in a row. Other organizations recognized with Grand Stevies for the overall quality of their nominations and the total number of awards won include Delta Air Lines, DenizBank A.S., Fareportal, GuideWell Connect, John Hancock Signature Services, Lennox Industries, Marriott Vacation Club, Visualize, and VIZIO Inc.

Among the winners of Gold Stevie Awards, Turkey’s DenizBank was the top individual winner, with six Gold wins, while various DP DHL locations worldwide won a total of seven. Lennox Industries, Marriott Vacation Club and VIZIO won three each. Winners of two Gold Stevies include Blinds.com, Cisco Systems, Competence Call Center, Delta Air Lines, Fareportal, FedEx TechConnect, HomeAway.com, HomeServe USA, iHeartMedia, Invenio Solutions, Kohl’s Department Stores, Trupanion, United Credit Consultants, Wells Fargo, Xactly Corporation, and Zions First National Bank.

Winners in the sixth annual People’s Choice Stevie® Awards for Favorite Customer Service, as determined by a worldwide public vote, were also awarded at the event to organizations including AllClear ID, CubeSmart, Rackspace, and Turkey’s Avea Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S., among others.

The presentations will be broadcast by the Biz TalkRadio Network (http://www.BizTalkRadio.com) at 7:00 pm ET on Monday, March 9.

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

More than 1,900 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were evaluated in this year’s competition, an increase of 27% over 2014. Finalists were determined by the average scores of 139 professionals worldwide, acting as preliminary judges. Entries were considered in 54 categories for customer service and contact center achievements, including Contact Center of the Year, Award for Innovation in Customer Service, and Customer Service Department of the Year; 50 categories for sales and business development achievements, ranging from Senior Sales Executive of the Year to Business Development Achievement of the Year; and categories to recognize new products and services and solution providers. The Business Development categories were new for 2015.

Members of seven specialized judging committees determined the Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award placements from among the Finalists during final judging that took place January 26 - February 4.

Sponsors and supporters of the 9^th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service include Biz TalkRadio and ValueSelling Associates.

First Winners in Business Awards Program to Be Honored in Berlin on 27 March

Winners in the new German Stevie® Awards, a business awards program created to recognize achievement in the workplace throughout Germany, were announced today. The complete list of Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners is available at www.StevieAwards.com/Deutschland.

The Stevie Awards are widely considered to be the world's premier business awards, conferring recognition for achievement in the workplace over the past 13 years in programs such as The International Business Awards and the Stevie Awards for Women in Business. The new German Stevie Awards are only the second national Stevie Awards program, after the 13-year-old American Business Awards. Stevie winners will be celebrated and presented their awards at a gala banquet at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Berlin on Friday, 27 March. Tickets for the event are now on sale.

Stevie Award winners include, among others:

• CYREN GmbH, Berlin
• JUNIQE (Kollwitz Internet GmbH), Berlin
• SATTLER, Göppingen, Baden-Württemberg
• Sky Deutschland, Unterföhring, Bayern

All organizations operating in Germany were eligible to submit entries. Nominations of more than 200 organizations were considered for the awards this year.

Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners were selected by more than 50 executives who participated in judging the week of 16 February. A second round of judging will determine a very few Grand Stevie winners from among all winners. The Grand Stevie winners will be announced at the 27 May banquet in Berlin.

The Stevie Award trophy, made by the company that makes the Oscar and other major international awards, is among the world's most coveted prizes.

For more information about the German Stevie Awards, visit www.StevieAwards.com/Deutschland.

   Business Awards to Honor Best Organizations, Individuals, and Teams in the U.S.A.

The Stevie® Awards today issued the call for entries for The 13th Annual American Business Awards, the premier business awards competition in the U.S.A, which last year attracted more than 3,000 nominations from organizations nationwide.

All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations -- public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. The entry deadline is March 25 and late entries will be accepted through April 22 with payment of a late fee. The 2015 awards will honor achievements since the beginning of 2014. Entry details are available at http://www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.

Stevie Award winners will be selected through two stages of judging by more than 200 professionals worldwide. Finalists will be announced in mid-May, and the awards presented at two gala events: on June 22 at the Fairmont Hotel in Chicago, and on September 11 at San Francisco’s Julia Morgan Ballroom. Stevie Awards will be conferred at three levels of distinction: Gold, Silver and Bronze. Several Grand Stevie Awards also will be conferred as best-of-competition prizes. Stevie Award trophies are among the world's most coveted prizes.

The American Business Awards recognize achievement in every facet of the workplace. Categories include:

• Management Awards
• Company of the Year Awards
• Customer Service Awards
• Human Resources Awards
• Information Technology Awards
• Marketing Awards
• New Product Awards
• Public Relations Awards
• Website Awards, Smartphone and Tablet Apps, and other Media Awards

There are many new categories in the ABAs this year, including Woman of the Year (in the Management categories), Branded Content Campaign of the Year (in the Marketing categories), and Best Business Book (in the Publication categories).   There are also several new Company/Organization categories that don’t require entry fees, including five Startup of the Year categories and Energy Industry Innovation of the Year, a category that will recognize singular innovations in energy-related technology, production, conservation, storage or delivery.

The New Product & Service categories have been greatly expanded for 2015, with entirely new sets of categories to recognize Content- and Education-related products and services.

Every new product or service nominated in The 2015 American Business Awards will automatically be included in voting for the People's Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite New Products a worldwide public vote Voting will open to the general public in July, and the winners will be honored at The American Business Awards' new product & technology awards banquet in San Francisco on September 11.

Top Stevie winners last year included Accenture, AMD, Angel MedFlight Worldwide Air Ambulance, AT&T, BDS Marketing, CapitalOne ShareBuilder, Engility, Home Instead Senior Care, Makovsky, MedTech College, MWW, NASCAR, Pacific Life, Quality Systems, Renters Warehouse, SCRA, Slack and Company, and Univision Communications. 2014 results are summarized at http://www.stevieawards.com/pubs/awards/403_2183_24911.cfm.

The Stevie® Awards have announced the seven executives who are chairing the specialized final judging committees for the 9th Annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, the world's top sales awards and customer service awards program.

Final judging began last week and will continue through February 4.  Finalists in the competition were announced last week.  Final judging committees are reviewing and rating the Finalists, and their average scores will determine the Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award placements that will be announced during a gala event at the Bellagio in Las Vegas on February 27.

The seven committee chairs have worked with the Stevie Awards to recruit and brief the members of the final judging committees, who will be named in a separate article next week.

So let's meet our seven final judging committee chairs.

SALES INDIVIDUAL/BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CHAIR
Ric Riddle, VP, Demand Generation
SalesStaff LLC, Stafford, Texas, USA

Ric Riddle serves as the vice president of Demand Generation at SalesStaff. He is responsible for global demand for the fast-growing SalesStaff revenue acceleration platform. He leads a team that integrates a variety of functions and has a material influence on the strategy and performance of the company. Ric oversees demand generation, market response, content marketing, social outreach, product marketing, and sales enablement.

Ric brings more than twenty years of experience and energy in driving demand and stewarding customer success. He is a recognized thought leader and has served as a senior executive at some of the most well-known enterprise brands, bringing a dynamic blend of creativity, ground level execution, and scalable best practices. Ric’s integrated approach to engaging target audiences, shaping brand attitudes, and generating qualified pipeline for sales teams makes him a valuable contributor to the SalesStaff executive team.

Ric lives in Austin, Texas yet remains passionate about the University of Houston and his beloved Astros. His favorite activities are those spent with his wife and three children.

SALES DEPARTMENT/SOLUTION PROVIDER CHAIR
Cigdem Wondergem, Global Head of Sales Training 
DHL Global Forwarding, Global Head Office, Bonn, Germany

Cigdem Wondergem has worked for the past 18 years at DP DHL Group in different business units, and has held roles within marketing and sales for regional and global teams. She loves working in a multinational environment with colleagues from different cultures. Her personal motto is: “Dream, act, and enjoy!.”

Cigdem was born in Istanbul, Turkey. After graduating from the Sankt George College in Istanbul, she went to study in Austria, and after leaving university completed her studies with an MBA in International Management from UBI Brussels. While studying in Austria, Cigdem worked actively for the international student organization AIESEC, both as Local Committee President of Innsbruck and as National Committee President of Austria.

Now based in Bonn, Germany, Cigdem is married with a young son and daughter. Her family is multilingual and can communicate in four languages.

SALES TEAM/SALES ACHIEVEMENT CHAIR
Todd E. Quarfot, EVP, Chief Sales Officer
PrimePay, West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA

Todd Quarfot joined PrimePay in 2001 as vice president, Sales and Marketing. As the Chief Sales Officer, he is currently responsible for all sales groups and regions across the U.S. In addition, he leads a corporate team with responsibility for sales training, sales operations and enablement, and product group management.

Before joining PrimePay, Todd spent about seven years with Gartner, Inc., based in Stamford, Connecticut. While at Gartner, he served in several leadership positions in sales and marketing that culminated in the role of vice president, Sales Process, focused on worldwide sales technology adoption and sales management process.

Prior to joining Gartner, Todd spent more than 12 years with the Eastman Kodak Company. Todd graduated from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, in 1982.

CUSTOMER SERVICE/CONTACT CENTER INDIVIDUAL CHAIR
Peggy Heafey, Director of Intermediary Partner Care,
Marriott International, Omaha, Nebraska, USA

Peggy Heafey has been with Marriott International for 26 years. Her background includes experience in Reservation and Group Sales, Training and Development, and Customer Care. Under her leadership, the department has grown from providing primary services for travel agents, to 8 desks and functions supporting all travel, group, wholesale, and OTA intermediary partners and over 4,000 Marriott properties globally.

CUSTOMER SERVICE/CONTACT CENTER TEAM CHAIR
David Graffia, Vice President, Sales
dinCloud, Gardena, California, USA

David Graffia has over 20 years of channel experience in the area of IT sales and consulting.  He has expertise in cloud services, infrastructure and asset management, electronic procurement, software licensing, and services (both managed and professional). As vice president, Sales for dinCloud, David has established relationships and built partnerships with some of the industry’s largest global aggregators and Value Added Resellers including Ingram Micro, En Pointe Technologies, CDW, Insight Enterprises, and Tech Data.

Prior to joining dinCloud, David spent nearly a decade at En Pointe Technologies, one of the largest Microsoft Licensing Solution Providers, where he served as vice president of Sales. In addition to sales and marketing, his responsibilities included managing the corporate strategy and the development of emerging technologies. David has also worked in executive management at PC Mall and Hartford Computer Group.

David has served on numerous advisory councils and is currently a member of the Technology Executives Club, IT Leaders Circle, and IT Marketing Institute. He enjoys building partnerships and broader business relationships, and is always willing to provide guidance and support.

CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT & NEW PRODUCT/SERVICE CHAIR
Rosa M. Moreno, SVP, Treasury Services Manager
Wells Fargo & Co,Treasury Management Client Delivery, El Monte, California, USA

As senior manager for the Technical Services and Research teams, Rosa Moreno oversees second-level support to treasury management clients who use the
Commercial Electronic Office® portal, and supports the customer service officers (CSOs) on complex research transactions. Rosa’s teams are located in three sites: Los Angeles, California; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Jacksonville, Florida.

Previously, Rosa managed the Los Angeles Treasury Management Customer Service (TMCS) team, responsible for CSOs supporting Wholesale clients, and spent time as a product implementation manager. Prior to joining TMCS, Rosa worked with retail banking as a customer service manager, where she gained a keen understanding of customer needs and expectations.

In 2014, Rosa received the Bronze Stevie® for Women in Business in the Category of Female Executive of the Year/Accounting and Financial Services. Rosa’s training includes Managing for Excellence, Achieving Extraordinary Customer Service, and Frontline Leadership.

CUSTOMER SERVICE/CONTACT CENTER ACHIEVEMENT CHAIR
Tim Taylor, Chief Client Success Officer
Telogis, Aliso Viejo, California, USA

Tim Taylor has extensive experience in senior leadership positions with start-up and fast-growth companies on an international scale. As founder and CEO of Tycom Corporation (now Kyocera Tycom Corp.), CEO of Tycom Dental Inc. (now SybronEndo Corporation, a division of Sybron Dental Specialties), and CEO of Tulon Inc., Tim has a track record of successful product development and company leadership in a variety of markets. Prior to joining the team at Telogis, he had been the director of Liquidmetal Saga Italy, a technology start-up company in the Veneto region of Italy aimed at the European luxury goods market.

Tim earned a Bachelor of Arts in Russian Language and a Bachelor of Science in business administration from the University of Southern California.