The Stevie® Awards, organizers of the world’s premier business awards programs, today announced the Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie winners in The 15th Annual American Business Awards.

All organizations operating in the U.S.A. – large and small, public and private, for-profit and non-profit - are eligible to submit nominations to the ABAs in a wide range
of categories, honoring achievement in every aspect of work life, from customer service and management to public relations and product development. More than 3,600 nominations were reviewed in the judging process this year by more than 190 professionals, whose average scores determined the winners.

2017 Stevie winners will be celebrated and presented their awards during a gala event on Tuesday, June 20, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York. Tickets are now on sale. The presentations will be broadcast live via Livestream.

CallidusCloud (Dublin, CA) and Cisco Systems (San Jose, CA) are the leaders among Stevie Award winners, with wins in a wide range of categories, including 14 Gold Stevies. CallidusCloud and Cisco Systems are sure to be among the winners of the Grand Stevie Award trophies, the top overall winners in this year’s ABAs, who will be announced next week.

Among the other top winners of Gold Stevies are Momentum Worldwide (New York, NY) with eight, Cirkled (Redmond, WA) with five, Aflac (Columbus, GA) and Signifyd (San Jose, CA) with four, and BlueWheel Media (Troy, MI), Creative Lodging Solutions (Lexington, KY) and GTT Communications (McLean, VA) with three each.

Among all winners of Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevies, leading winners of multiple awards include Accenture (New York, NY), Amobee (Foster City, CA), BMO Capital Markets (Chicago, IL), FIS (St. Petersburg, FL), Jeunesse Global (Orlando, FL), John Hancock Financial Services (Boston, MA), LABOV Marketing Communications and Training (Fort Wayne, IN), Makovsky & Co (New York, NY), Merkle (Columbia, MD), Mitsubishi Electric Cooling & Heating (Suwanee, GA), Navicor, LLC (Westerville, OH), New American Funding (Tustin, CA), Rimini Street (Las Vegas, NV), Scout Exchange (Chicago, IL), SoftPro (Raleigh, NC) and TopSpot Internet Marketing (Houston, TX), among others.

For a complete list of the Stevie Award winners announced today, visit http://www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.

Every new product or service nominated in The 2017 American Business Awards is included in voting for the People's Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite New Products, a worldwide public vote. Voting is now open at http://peopleschoice.stevieawards.com and will conclude on June 2. People’s Choice Stevie winners will be announced the week of June 5, and will be honored during the June 20 presentations.

“Entries to the ABAs grew substantially this year in both quantity and quality.  We thank the judges for their time and interest in determining the winners, and we look forward to celebrating the winners during our gala event in New York on June 20,” said Michael Gallagher, founder and president of the Stevie Awards.

The Stevie® Awards have announced the twelve executives who will chair the specialized judging committees for the The 2017 (15th Annual) American Business Awards, the premier business awards competition in the U.S.A.

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 2017 awards  honor achievements since the beginning of 2016  Entry details are available at http://www.StevieAwards.com/ABA. The extended final entry deadline is Friday, April 7.

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT HERE.

Here are this year's judging committee chairs.

ANNUAL REPORTS & PUBLICATIONS:

Renee Mallonee, Director, Marketing
MONI Smart Security (formerly Monitronics), Farmers Branch, Texas, USA

Renee Mallonee has been with MONI Smart Security (formerly Monitronics) for nearly 10 years, starting as a Marketing Coordinator and working her way up to Director of Marketing. During her tenure, she has helped move the company from a B2B organization that operated primarily behind the scenes to one of the largest smart home technology and residential security providers in North America.  Under Mallonee, the company underwent a complete rebrand, shifting to a more direct-to-consumer focus with national TV, print and radio advertising campaigns, new strategic partnerships, and a fresh take on communicating with consumers. She was awarded a spot on the Security Systems News 20 Under 40 list, and is widely recognized throughout the industry as a leader in marketing, branding, and communications. Mallonee is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, where she studied marketing and advertising.

On being appointed Chair of the Annual Reports & Publications Judging Committee, Renee told us: “The Stevie Awards provide an excellent platform for companies to showcase their outstanding achievements. Each new year of submissions generates a new benchmark for creativity and innovation. As a past winner, MONI knows how steep the competition can be, and we look forward to seeing what this year’s applicants will deliver.”

COMPANY/ORGANIZATION:

George Gallate, Chief Marketing Officer & Executive Vice President
Merkle, Columbia, Maryland, USA

George is Merkle’s CMO and is also responsible for global development. He has 30+ years' experience in building and leading high-performing networks and teams globally. He has worked across all media, including seven years leading the global advertising, digital, and marketing services of Intel.

George joined Merkle in July 2014 following Merkle’s acquisition of RKG where he was CEO. Prior to RKG, George spent 27 years at Havas/Euro RSCG. He was the Global Chairman, and before that Global CEO, of Havas Digital, a network he had formed and led since 1997. Under George’s leadership, Adweek ranked Euro RSCG 4D (now Havas Digital) as the largest digital network globally for five years in a row.

From 2005 through 2008, George was Havas’ Regional CEO for Asia Pacific, India, and the Middle East with responsibility for 28 offices and more than 1,800 staff. He was based in Shanghai.

George has worked in most categories and has deep tech and B-to-B experience. He's led and worked on Intel and IBM globally, as well as Dell across Asia Pacific. George also has experience in B2C, having worked on Hershey’s, Volvo, Jaguar, National Australia Bank, Novartis, JetBlue, Hyatt, Sheraton, and 1-800-Flowers.

George is an accomplished industry speaker, thought leader, and innovator. He keynoted on “Digital – Data – Integration” at the Cannes International Advertising Festival in 2001, and spoke there again in 2010. He was the Jury President of the Cannes CyberLion Jury in 2002.

On being appointed Chair of the ABA’s Company/Organization Judging Committee, George commented: “It is a privilege to be associated with the Stevie Awards. The scope and depth of the awards make them one of the best representations of leadership and innovation in American business.”

CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS/IR/PR

Jennifer L. Foster, President
Catalyst Media Factory, Detroit, Michigan

Jennifer Foster is the Founder and President of Catalyst Media Factory. Founded in 2016, the company specializes in media relations and social media for small and start-up retailers, restaurants, non-profits, and professional service companies.

Catalyst Media Factory team members become an integral part of its clients' day-to-day business operations. Team members learn the businesses’ nuances and then create a plan of action that suits clients’ needs and drives results.

As someone who has been involved with the Stevie Awards for some years, Jennifer told us: “The American Business Awards truly showcase the best that American business has to offer. The awards enable organizations of any size, and in almost any category, to be recognized on the national stage for their innovative and ambitious accomplishments. It’s an honor to Chair the Corporate Communications/IR/PR Awards Judging Committee and to be a part of this process.”

CUSTOMER SERVICE & SUPPORT:

Natasha Chitre, Senior Client Partner
Novus Global Solutions LLC, North Brunswick, New Jersey, USA

Natasha Chitre is a Senior Client Partner at Novus Global Solutions, a 21st century professional services firm that was designed from the ground up to deliver onsite consulting services at a lower TCO than offshore, and with a speed and quality that is unmatched by other consulting models.

Natasha is responsible for managing a line of business for Novus that focuses on driving technology projects. She is a Black Belt six sigma professional and is passionate about customer success.

HUMAN RESOURCES:

Stephen Childs, Vice President, Global Human Resources
Panasonic Automotive, Peachtree City, Georgia, USA

Stephen Childs serves as the Vice President of Global Human Resources & Facilities for Panasonic Automotive, which is the leader in automotive OEM infotainment systems with $2.5 billion in revenue and over 6,000 employees. Stephen has more than 20 years of human resources and leadership experience and sits on the Executive Board of Panasonic Automotive. He began his career with the company in 1998 in the Talent Acquisition area and has held progressing management positions in the years since. Before joining Panasonic, Stephen was an entrepreneur in the staffing industry.

Stephen has won numerous industry awards, including the 2013 Society for Human Resources Management Atlanta Pegasus Award for Excellence in Human Resources. His team also won three 2016 American Business Awards: two Gold Stevie Awards, for HR Department of the Year and for Team of the Year; and the Bronze Stevie Award for Human Resource Executive of the Year.

Stephen is on the Executive Board of Directors of the Fayette County Chamber. He is also on the Board of Advisors for the Metro Atlanta Chamber.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:

Greg Gomel, Founder
The Gomel Group, LLC, Plano, Texas, USA

Greg is the founder of The Gomel Group, a Veteran Owned Small Business in Plano, Texas.  Greg is both a veteran with extensive leadership successes as a Lieutenant Commander in the United States Coast Guard Reserve, and a Senior Executive expert in the design, delivery, and continuous process improvement of cost-effective, high-performance IT organizations.

LIVE EVENTS:

David Sonntag, President & CEO
Decibel Management, Alexandria, Virginia, USA

David has extensive experience creating, planning, and producing live events. David launched Decibel Management in 2007 in order to follow his passion for live events, experiential marketing, meetings, and conferences.

David manages a number of long-term clients and event properties. He has been an integral part of the National Book Festival since 2003 and for the past six years, David has served as event producer for the Festival. David was also selected as one of the producers for the 69^th Annual Horatio Alger Awards Ceremony, held in Washington, DC in 2016.  This included working with the Association on numerous events including the Induction Ceremony with Justice Clarence Thomas in the Supreme Court; the Induction Celebration at the Mellon Auditorium; lunch meetings in the Diplomatic Reception Room at the Department of State; and the main awards dinner at DAR Constitution Hall. David was tapped again in 2017 for the 70^th Annual Awards.  David has also been a US multi-year producer for the National Small Business Week Awards for the US Small Business Administration.

Prior to forming Decibel Management, David oversaw events as a Vice President at the public relations firm FleishmanHillard, where he gained valuable experience on message development and delivery. David has also managed a number of mobile tours, including the DoubleTree by Hilton Cookie CAREavan and Little Things tours; the Crystal Light WaterWay Challenge; Say Boo! to the Flu tour for Clorox; and the Voices of Civil Rights Tour for AARP. Other clients have included Vice President Dick Cheney, First Lady Laura Bush, Governor Chris Christie, AARP, Texas Education Agency and the Chocolate Manufacturers Association.  David’s events have won numerous awards, including six Silver Anvils and two PR Week Awards. The reporting during the Voices of Civil Rights bus tour won a Peabody Award.

MANAGEMENT:

Kellie Sirna, Principal & Co-Founder
Studio 11 Design, Dallas, Texas, USA

Kellie Sirna is Principal of Studio 11 Design. She has spent nearly 15 years in the hospitality design industry developing her client-focused approach, and ultimately creating a firm that is talented, nimble, and energetic. Since the founding of Studio 11 Design in 2011, Kellie’s hospitality projects can be seen around the world: from Dallas, where Studio 11 is based; to the East and West Coasts of the United States; and to international markets like Haiti and the Turks & Caicos Islands.

In 2015, Kellie helmed the business development arm of Studio 11 and strategically launched two new services to differentiate her boutique firm from competitors: Brand Society, a brand identity component; and Lou Verne by Studio 11 Design, an in-house creative team specializing in art installations. These specializations now make Studio 11 Design an unparalleled one-stop-shop for design services. Boutique Design magazine featured Kellie in their May 2016 issue for developing a successful multidisciplinary design firm.

Kellie attended the University of North Texas, earning her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Interior Design and Merchandising in 2004. From there, she joined the global hospitality design firm DESIGN Duncan Miller Ullmann, where she managed design work, business development, marketing, and PR initiatives.  Kellie finds inspiration in mentorship—she is involved in NEWH, a not-for-profit organization of professional women in the hospitality industry; the Dallas Women in Business Enterprise; and Young Leaders in Hospitality. She is also a member of the Hospitality Design Magazine board and participated as a product design juror at the 2016 HD Awards. In her spare time, Kellie is involved with Delete Blood Cancer DKMS, the world’s largest bone marrow donor center.

MARKETING:

Allen Jernigan, Founder & CEO
My Marketing Department, Inc., Seminole, Florida, USA

In 2007, Allen Jernigan opened the flat-fee marketing company My Marketing Department, Inc. to assist business owners who do not have the time or employees to implement their own marketing plans. In 2009, Allen opened MMDprinting, MMDtradeshow and, in 2011, MMDpromo, to complement the parent company’s clients.

After leaving college, Allen spent 8 years with professional sports teams as the Assistant General Manager of Marketing & Sales for the Mobile BayBears, Double-A Affiliate of the San Diego Padres, and the Director of Promotions & Special Events for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.  Later, Allen became the Regional Director of Marketing for SunTrust Bank-Tampa Bay, overseeing 110 bank branches and 5 lines of business.  He then moved to HomeDiscovery Real Estate Services and headed their marketing and sales for Florida.  Allen is a past Chairman of the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce’s Ambassador Committee, a former Board Member of the Tampa Bay Inventors Council, and currently serves with the St Pete Mad Dogs Triathlon Club.  He is a member of USA Today’s Small Business Team, the Tampa Bay Media Advisory Panel, and of USA Triathlon and USA Masters Swimming, and an IRONMAN Finisher (Austria 2016).

Allen graduated from the University of South Alabama with a degree in Communications with minors in Public Relations and English. He is married to his college sweetheart, Pepir, and they live and train for triathlon races together in and around the Tampa Bay, Florida area.

In a break from working and training, Allen told us: “As a judge for the Stevie Awards for many years, I am continually amazed by the innovative and creative ways businesses market their companies.  Most people do not see or understand how much is involved in putting together a marketing campaign, live event, online promotion or an entire marketing team.  The Stevie Awards bring the details and those behind the scenes out in front for all of us see, celebrate, and congratulate.”

NEW PRODUCT & SERVICE:

Alec Stern, Co-Founder
Handy Cane LLC, Salem, Massachusetts, USA

Alec Stern is currently the co-founder of the recently launched Handy Cane, an award winning, patent-pending, all-in-one walking cane and reaching grabber. Concurrently, Alec is co-founder of Most Corp., which designs, manufactures, and delivers patented consumer products, precision motion products, and medical devices.

Previously, Alec was the Vice President of Strategic Innovation and Executive-in-Residence for the Small Business Innovation Program at Constant Contact. Alec is a member of Constant Contact's founding team and was one of the original three in an attic. During his tenure with the company through IPO and acquisition, he assumed a wide range of responsibilities and senior roles in strategic partnerships, channels, and business development. Alec was also responsible for the creation and development of Constant Contact’s channel partner programs and spearheaded strategic innovation, community-based entrepreneurism, and vertical industry thought leadership for the company.

Engaging with hundreds of startups and small businesses annually, Alec serves as a judge, mentor, and advisor for accelerators, schools, universities and programs such as TechStars, MassChallenge, MIT Start Smart, Lean Startup Challenge, the Stevie Awards, and the United Way Youth Venture. As an angel investor and limited partner in the G20 Venture Fund, Alec is also an investor in a number of rising companies. He has been a featured speaker for international, national, and regional small business; for startup, nonprofit, and industry conferences; and for colleges and universities. Alec is active on the Board of Directors, Board of Advisors or Executive Committees for organizations including BoardOnTrack and Nix86. He is an appointed member of the City of Boston Neighborhood Innovation District Committee, the 128 Innovation Committee, and Boston’s Small Business Advisory Council as well as a founding organizer of the CityStart Boston Civic Innovation program. Alec holds an MBA from Northeastern University and a BS from Syracuse University.

On being invited to Chair the New Product & Service Judging Committee, Alec commented: “Innovation is the lifeblood of companies of all sizes.  The ability to create new and improved products and services, and finding ways to better serve customers, are key to all companies' future growth and success.  Winning a Stevie Award would be the ultimate recognition for these great achievements.”

VIDEOS:

Tod Plotkin, Principal & Executive Producer
Green Buzz Agency, Alexandria, Virginia

After four years shaping one of the top video departments in the entire National Basketball Association (for the Washington Wizards), Tod Plotkin started Green Buzz Agency. As Founder and Principal, he oversees video content creation for iconic advertising campaigns including the Ad Council's #1 Campaign: Love Has No Labels. Additionally, his agency created the most viewed/shared branded video on Facebook in November 2016 for Cricket Wireless and Upworthy. 

His agency's other clients include Lockheed Martin, Hilton Worldwide, Under Armour, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Marriott International, American Red Cross, Johns Hopkins University, Quaker Oats, American Diabetes Association, the World Bank, and other large institutions.

Tod Plotkin is a leading voice in digital content. He speaks monthly at national conferences on digital video strategy for organizations like PR News, Public Relations Society of America, and the American Marketing Association. Tod is a Gold Steve Award Winner (2), Emmy winner for best short format content, and Webby Honoree in the online video category.

WEBSITES/APPS:

Eric N. Shapiro, Founder & CEO
ArcTouch Mobile & Connected Experiences, San Francisco, California, USA

Eric’s vision and entrepreneurial spirit have helped him successfully launch three startups, including ArcTouch. After working as a product manager and evangelist at Apple, he founded Zero G Software (acquired by Rovi) and later Caustic Graphics (acquired by Imagination Technologies).

A deeply knowledgeable technologist, Eric and former college roommate Adam Fingerman founded ArcTouch in 2009, shortly after the introduction of the first iPhone. Since then, the two have built a team of more than 100 product strategists, designers, and engineers. The team has served more than 150 brands and businesses–including NBC, Honeywell, Yahoo, CBS, Guess, Salesforce, and Audi–creating engaging experiences for mobile and emerging IoT platforms, from phones and tablets to chatbots, voice assistants, VR, and AR. 

Eric has an MBA from Cornell University’s Johnson School of Management, and a BS degree from Tufts University in engineering and computer science.

On being appointed Chair of the Websites/Apps Judging Committee, Eric told us: “We at ArcTouch are proud to be involved with the Stevie Awards, and my Committee is looking forward to honoring the most innovative companies in Websites & Apps.”

hargebacks911 won Gold and Silver Stevie Awards in The 2016 American Business Awards for Best Business-to-Business Product and New Product of the Year - Software Commerce Solution. 

The 2017 American Business Awards are accepting entries through April 7. Review the entry kit here. Learn more about New Product Awards.

We spoke with Gary Cardone, CEO of Chargebacks911 to learn more about the organization and what winning Stevie Awards has meant to their successes.

In a sentence or two, what does your organization do?

Chargebacks911 is dedicated to eliminating chargeback fraud (friendly fraud, family fraud, unauthorized claims and mis-coded disputes) for merchants, issuers, and acquirers. Last year, we safeguarded over 2.4 billion online transactions in 87 countries, working hand-in-hand with thousands of e-stores all over the world.  In a nutshell, we take the guess work out of chargebacks, which means reducing costs, enriching understanding, and recovering revenue. 

What is the vision behind your organization?

Our vision is simple: begin and end with a win-win scenario. When it comes to chargeback fraud, everyone is victimized: merchants pay fees and lose money to fake claims, banks devote expensive resources, and consumers end up paying higher prices and forfeiting friendly policies. 

We are passionate about identifying the true source of the problem and not just treating the symptoms.  Everything we do is backed by an ROI guarantee that is only possible due to our first-hand expertise and technology. Our vision has been built upon a mission to bring our understanding and workable results to enough merchants and banks that as an industry, we can overcome the growing chargeback problem. 

Ironically, this type of vision does not leave us without a business. Helping merchants achieve sustainability and growth is our primary goal, and understanding the best methods to use for managing chargebacks is a key component. There will always be disputes or issues to resolve between buyers and sellers. What is most relevant is the innovation undertaken to meet these growing requirements–a vision that keeps pace with evolving technology and consumer behavior...this is where we fit!

Is there a story or reasoning behind the nomination?

Our two company founders–Monica Eaton-Cardone and Gary Cardone–were jointly selling products online in 2010, when they were victims of chargeback fraud.

Chargeback fraud is an unjustified refund that’s forced upon merchants, occurring when a cardholder reports an unwarranted charge to their bank. The burden of proof is then on the merchant to defend the legitimacy of the sale, which is an extremely difficult threshold for online purchases, card-not-present transactions and shipped merchandise. Merchants lose $40 billion annually to chargebacks and the payments industry suffers even higher losses as a result.

Monica and Gary searched for a company to protect them from chargeback fraud, but to their astonishment, no such company existed. So, they studied chargebacks and became expert themselves, launching Chargebacks911 in 2011.

Roughly five years later, Chargebacks911 has 300+ global employees, thousands of clients, and corporate offices throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

How did your organization first become acquainted with the Stevies?

The Stevie Awards are internationally recognized as “The World’s Premier Business Awards,” because it’s not about politics, pay-for-play, or personal connections; it’s truly a merit-based honor that celebrates excellence in the field of business. We’ve admired the Stevie Awards for many, many years, and we’re deeply humbled to be included among such a distinguished list of trailblazing entrepreneurs, innovators and international trendsetters.

What was it like for your organization to win this award?

It validated what we believed all along: excellence deserves to be recognized, and if you “build a better mousetrap,” you’ll achieve success. It’s an honor that we share with our dedicated, passionate team-members, and they’re just as proud of this award as our cofounders are!

How has the win affected your business?

The eCommerce industry is extremely technical and very nuanced; even savvy, veteran online merchants often have difficulty understanding the latest developments in chargeback fraud, banking regulations and dispute resolution.  Capturing gold and silver Stevie Awards differentiates us from the competition, and offers an invaluable third-party testimonial to our clients. 

In short, it communicates something very special: We’re the best at what we do. 

What results have been gained since this award was won? Have any documents such as case studies been created that you can share with us?  

We just opened a new location in the UK so we can expand our service levels to better support our growing European customers. This addition comes on the heels of our increased focus on the travel industry. A case study, outlining how our services have impacted the travel industry, can be found here.

Please look out for exciting news–case studies and trends are due to be released Q2 2017.  With the changes from Visa and other payment providers taking hold this year, it is due to be an exciting one for industry news. We plan to release insider tips and regulatory updates shortly.

What changes in the industry does your team find interesting and why?

Perhaps “interesting” isn’t the right word, but it’s certainly noteworthy – cyber-fraud is growing by leaps and bounds:

• The chargeback issuance rate is growing by 20 percent each year
• There’s been a 300+ percent increase in fraud attacks on digital goods
• 94 percent of websites experienced a “bot” (nonhuman) cyber-attack last year
• 6 percent of an online merchants’ total annual revenue is now spent exclusively on fraud-prevention
• Chargeback fraud has grown by 41 percent and continues to climb each quarter

It’s an extraordinarily dangerous time for online merchants. It’s becoming as inevitable as death and taxes.

That’s why you NEED to be prepared.  And that’s why Chargebacks911 is here to help.

Is there an inspirational story related to your organization that might appeal to our blog readers?

Because of our rapid growth, Chargebacks911 has hired hundreds of new employees, largely from our hometown in Tampa Bay, Florida.  Sadly, we soon realized that many young people lack the confidence that is a prerequisite for success in such a fast-paced, hi-tech environment. This led our cofounder and Chief Operating Officer Monica Eaton-Cardone to launch a non-profit program called “Get Paid for Grades.” It offers a financial incentive to struggling high schoolers, focusing on improving literacy and mastering the life-skills that so important in today’s economy—thereby, improving self-confidence. 

Chargebacks911 is a sponsor of Get Paid for Grades, and the program recently expanded to four additional schools across Florida. We hope to eventually introduce the program nationally – because every child deserves an opportunity to succeed.

Getting slimmer while your wallet grows thicker is what Isagenix believes makes them stand out from other marketing companies. Isagenix is a network marketing company that focuses on healthy lifestyles and wealth creation for “everyday people” who want nutritional support systems across the health and fitness spectrum, and in many cases, financial gains.

They took their “success through events” initiative to their highest level at their flagship Celebration event, which won them the 2016 Best Brand Experience Event Gold Stevie Award.

In The 2016 American Business Awards, Isagenix was honored with three Gold, two Silver, and four Bronze Stevie Awards.

The 2017 American Busienss Awards are still accepting nominations through April 7.

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT HERE

Tools, training and resources are offered at their events throughout the year to help customers and associates, while giving the opportunity to network with like-minded people.

“When you join Isagenix, you get much more than our amazing products. You’ll experience our culture of fun, family, success, growth, passion, and integrity that will bring out the best in you and inspire you to help bring out the best in others.”

The Numbers of Self-Improvement

In 2016, Isagenix reached nearly one billion dollars in global sales through an independent network of associates around the world.

The Celebration event also passed an attendance record, attracting more than 12,000 members and customers to new training sessions, product launches and a plethora of recognition ceremonies. Celebration showcases customer satisfaction, which helps new members see success stories, and interactive spectacles commemorating customer milestones.

Core Values Matter

Co-owners Jim and Kathy Coover say, “Winning a Stevie boosted internal employee morale and even encouraged us to top our last event by pushing creative mindsets.”

As a health and wellness company, Isagenix enjoys seeing more and more people take an active role in living their set of values to motivate, inspire and drive their associates.

Isagenix believes commemorating success encourages customers to attend their events and witness others living the company’s culture of, “fun, family, success, growth, passion and integrity.” The challenging but fun side of lifestyle changes, especially health and financial improvement, is that Isagenix believes needs the most attention.

“We hold high expectations not only for our corporate team, but also for our associates who are at the forefront of our growth, achievements, and accomplishments. We call it What Drives Us.”

HCL Technologies (HCL), a leading global IT services company, will sponsor a track of new categories in The 2017 American Business Awards, the premier business awards program in the USA.

The 21st Century Enterprise of the Year collection of categories will recognize organizations that have driven innovation by being experience-centric, outcome-based, agile and lean, service-oriented and ecosystem-driven. This is the 15^th year that The American Business Awards will recognize the achievement of organizations operating in the USA.

HCL is sponsoring all nominations for the 21st Century Enterprise of the Year Awards categories, including:

• Leader in Operational Excellence through Autonomics
• Cloud Innovator of the Year
• Digital Transformer of the Year
• Connected Enterprise of the Year
• Leader in Marketing Excellence through Technology
• Leader in driving business through Analytics
• Social Media Leader of the Year

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT HERE

The Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners in these and all other categories will be announced on May 1, and honored during a gala ceremony on Tuesday, June 20, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.

“We are very pleased that HCL Technologies have chosen The American Business Awards to showcase excellence in technology, and we welcome this opportunity to recognize more achievements in American businesses’ use of technology,” said Stevie® Awards president Michael Gallagher.

The final entry deadline for The 2017 American Business Awards has been extended through April 7.  Complete entry details are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.  

About HCL Technologies (HCL)
HCL Technologies (hcltech.com) is a leading global IT services company that helps global enterprises re imagine and transform their businesses through Digital technology transformation. HCL operates out of 32 countries and has consolidated revenues of US$ 6.7 billion, for 12 months ended 31st December, 2016. HCL focuses on providing an integrated portfolio of services underlined by its Mode 1 2 3 growth strategy. Mode 1 encompasses the core services in the areas of Applications, Infrastructure, BPO and Engineering & R&D services, leveraging DRYiCE™ Autonomics to transform clients' business and IT landscape, making them 'lean' and 'agile'. Mode 2 focuses on experience centric and outcome oriented services such as Digital and Analytics Services (BEYONDigital™), IoT WorKS™, Cloud and Security, utilizing DRYiCE™ Orchestration to drive business outcomes and enable enterprise digitalization. Mode 3 strategy is ecosystem driven, creating innovative IP partnerships to build products and platforms business.

HCL leverages its global network of integrated co-innovation labs, and global delivery capabilities to provide holistic multi service delivery in key industry verticals including Financial Services, Manufacturing, Telecommunications, Media, Publishing, Entertainment, Retail CPG, Life Sciences Healthcare, Oil & Gas, Energy & Utilities, Travel, Transportation & Logistics and Government. With 111,092 professionals from diverse nationalities, HCL focuses on creating real value for customers by taking 'Relationships Beyond the Contract'.

No Additional Late Fees for Top Business Honors

The Stevie® Awards, organizer of The American Business Awards, announced today that the final entry deadline for the 15^th annual ABA competition has been extended to April 7. No additional late fees will be charged.  Entries submitted through April 7 will not be penalized in any way in the judging process.

“We’ve received so many requests for individual deadline extensions that we’ve decided to extend the deadline for everyone,” said Stevie Awards president Michael Gallagher. The original final deadline was March 15.

GET THE ENTRY KIT HERE.

The American Business Awards are widely considered to be the premier business awards program in the U.S.A. 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 2017 awards will honor achievements since the beginning of 2016.  Entry details are available at http://www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.

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

Close to 150 executives worldwide will determine the Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners.  The judging process has begun.

Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie winners will be announced on May 1, and the awards presented at a gala banquet on June 20 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. Attendance is not required to win.

The list of past Stevie Award winners in The American Business Awards reads like a who’s who of innovation and business success in the U.S.A.  Explore the lists of past Stevie winners here.

About the Stevie Awards
The Stevie Awards are conferred in seven programs: The American Business Awards, the German Stevie Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards and the Stevie Awards for Great Employers. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com, and follow the Stevie Awards on Twitter @TheStevieAwards.

The 15th annual American Business Awards, the premier business awards competition in the U.S.A. which attracts more than 3,000 nominations from organizations nationwide each year, is accepting nominations for the 2017 program. 

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT

The American Business Awards recognize achievement in every facet of the workplace. Full entry details are available at http://www.stevieawards.com/aba. The final entry deadline is Wednesday, March 15. 

There are nine Live Event Awards categories in The 2017 American Business Awards.

These categories recognize excellence in live events staged since January 1 2016.

Information to be submitted online for entries in these categories for the 2017 ABAs will include

a. An essay of up to 525 words describing the event: its genesis, goals, development, and results. You may include detailed production notes, audience demographics, etc

b. Any number of supporting files and web addresses that you may upload to our server to support your entry and provide more background information to the judges. These may include video clips, photographs, press reviews, news articles, and so on

c. Optionally, you may list creative and production credits for your event - a list of the people and organizations that contributed to its development

G01. Best Brand Experience Event
G02. Best Consumer Event (e.g. auto show, boat show, health & fitness expo, etc.)
G03. Best Exhibition Display, Stand or Feature
G04. Best Tradeshow or Convention
G05. Best Association Event or Meeting
G06. Best Corporate Image Event
G07. Best New Product Introduction Event
G08. Best Internal Recognition/Motivational Event
G09. Best Public Relations Event

Winners of Live Event Awards in The 2016 American Business Awards include:

Best Brand Experience Event - Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations and Business Services
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Momentum Worldwide, New York, NY: FACEBOOK IQ LIVE

Best Brand Experience Event - All Other Industries
GOLD STEVIE WINNERS:
Isagenix, Chandler, AZ: Celebration 2015

GuideWell Connect, Jacksonville, FL: Florida Classic

Best Consumer Event
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
George P. Johnson, Auburn Hills, MI: FCA Gears Experience at the North American International Auto Show

Best Exhibition Display, Stand or Feature
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
George P. Johnson, Auburn Hills, MI: Honda Your Dreams Are Our Dreams

Best Tradeshow or Convention
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Isagenix, Chandler, AZ: Celebration 2015

Best Corporate Image Event
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
HubSpot, Cambridge, MA: INBOUND 2015

Best New Product Introduction Event
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Isagenix, Chandler, AZ: Celebration 2015

Best Internal Recognition/Motivational Event
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Merkle, Columbia, MD: Merkle’s Annual Awards Program

What started with The American Business Awards in 2002, the Stevie Awards are now the world's premier business awards and offer seven programs each year with various awards categories. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at www.StevieAwards.com.

If you've ever been confused about which categories in each awards program are best suited for your organization, sign up for the new Stevie Awards Alerts.

By signing up for Stevie Awards alerts, we'll send you periodic emails about opportunities to win awards in the category group(s) of your choosing and reminders of upcoming entry deadlines. Sign up to recieve one category alert or sign up for them all. 

Stevie Awards Alerts include:

• Web Awards Alerts
  
  
• Sales Awards Alerts
  
  
• Customer Service Awards Alerts
  
  
• PR Awards Alerts
  
  
• New Product Awards Alerts
  
  
• Marketing Awards Alerts
  
  
• HR Awards Alerts
  
  
• Creative Awards Alerts
  
  
• Technology Awards Alerts
  
  

Follow each link to get started with Stevie Awards Alerts.

 

The 15th annual American Business Awards are the premier business awards competition in the U.S.A. They attract more than 3,000 nominations from organizations nationwide each year.

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT

The American Business Awards recognize achievement in every facet of the workplace. Full entry details are available at http://www.stevieawards.com/aba. 

The entry deadline is Thursday, February 16 but late entries will be accepted through Wednesday, March 15.

There are more than 30 categories for Mobile Site Awards & App Awards, and many of them are new for the 2017 competition. These categories are simple to enter because your mobile website or app is what is being judged -- a long submission essay is not required.

Information to be submitted online for entries in these categories for the 2017 ABAs will include:

a. An essay of up to 200 words describing the mobile site’s or app's purpose and results to date.

b. The mobile site or app itself, in the form of a demonstration video of up to three (3) minutes in length. You must attach the video to your entry through our attachment/link uploading tool. 

c.. Optional: list the people and organizations who contributed to your site or app, whether it was creative, production or development services.

Mobile Site Awards & App Awards:

Note the new categories for 2017 are highlighted in red.

F55. Business/Government
F56. Education & Reference
F57. Entertainment
F58. Events
F59. Experimental & Innovation
F60. Family & Kids (new category for 2017)
F61. Fashion & Beauty (new category for 2017)
F62. Financial Services / Banking (new category for 2017)
F63. Fitness & Recreation (new category for 2017)
F64. Food & Drink (new category for 2017)
F65. Games
F66. Guides/Ratings/Reviews
F67. Health (new category for 2017)
F68. Integrated Mobile Experience
F69. Lifestyle
F70. Magazine / Editorial (new category for 2017)
F71. Marketing
F72. Messaging (new category for 2017)
F73. Music
F74. News
F75. Productivity (new category for 2017)
F76. Professional Education
F77. Professional Services (new category for 2017)
F78. Public Service & Activism (new category for 2017)
F79. Real Estate (new category for 2017)
F80. School / University (new category for 2017)
F81. Shopping
F82. Social
F83. Sports
F84. Training
F85. Travel
F86. Utilities & Services

App Award winners in The 2016 American Business Awards include:

Business/Government – Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations and Business Services Industries
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
EffectiveUI, Denver, CO: City and County of Denver’s PocketGov Web App Allows Citizens to Interact with Government from Anywhere

Business/Government – All Other Industries
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Applied Systems, University Park, IL: Applied Mobile

Education & Reference
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Neocate, Rockville, MD: Neocate Footsteps App

Events
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
BMO Capital Markets, Chicago, IL: Global Metals and Mining Conference App

Experimental & Innovation
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
Sharecare.com, Atlanta, GA: Sharecare Voice App

Integrated Mobile Experience
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
LogMeIn, Boston, MA: join.me

LifeStyle
GOLD STEVIE WINNER:
ACTIVE Network, Dallas, TX: Couch to 5K: Running App, Training Coach and GPS Tracker

The 15th annual American Business Awards, the premier business awards competition in the U.S.A. which attracts more than 3,000 nominations from organizations nationwide each year, is accepting nominations for the 2017 program. 

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT

The American Business Awards recognize achievement in every facet of the workplace. Full entry details are available at http://www.stevieawards.com/aba. The entry deadline is Thursday, February 16 but late entries will be accepted through Wednesday, March 15.

There are more than 100 categories for New Products & Services.

These include all product management, product development, product engineering and manufacturing functions. New products and services released in the U.S.A. since January 1, 2016 are eligible to be nominated. Both brand-new and new-version products are eligible.

An added bonus in entering the New Product Awards categories is that you are automatically included in the People's Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite New Products. Every new product or service nominated in The American Business Awards will automatically be included in voting. Voting will be conducted by the general public from May 2 through June 2, and the winners will be honored at the ABA awards banquet on June 20. In early May, entrants in the Best New Product or Service categories will receive instructions on how to promote People's Choice voting to their own customers, fans, and followers. 

The New Product Award category groups are:
Product & Service Categories
Software Categories
Content Categories
Education Categories 
Product Management Categories

Note the new categories for 2017 are highlighted in red and the categories with no entry fee are highlighted in blue.

Products & Services
P01. Business-to-Business Products
P02. Business-to-Business Services   
P03. Consumer Electronics
P04. Consumer Products
P05. Consumer Services
P06. Financial Services 
P07. Hardware - Computer
P08. Hardware - Networking
P09. Hardware - Peripheral
P10. Hardware - Semiconductor or Other Electronic Component
P11. Hardware - Storage
P12. Hardware - Other
P13. Health & Pharmaceuticals - Product
P14. Health & Pharmaceutical - Service
P15. Industrial Products & Services 
P16. Media & Entertainment - Product
P17. Media & Entertainment - Service
P18. Telecommunications - Product
P19. Telecommunications - Service
P20. Transportation

Software
P21. Software - Application Programming Interface (API) Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P22. Software - Asset Management Solution
P23. Software - Big Data Solution 
P24. Software - Business or Competitive Intelligence Solution
P25. Software - Cloud Application/Service
P26. Software - Cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Solution (new category for 2017)
P27. Software - Cloud Infrastructure
P28. Software - Cloud Platform
P29. Software - Cloud Storage & Backup Solution 
P30. Software - Collaboration/Social Networking Solution
P31. Software - Content Management Solution
P32. Software - Corporate Learning/Workforce Development Solution
P33. Software - Data Visualization Technology (new category for 2017)
P34. Software - Electronic Commerce Solution
P35. Software - Endpoint Security Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P36. Software - Event Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P37. Software - Financial Management Solution
P38. Software - FinTech Solution (new category for 2017)
P39. Software - Governance, Risk & Compliance Solution
P40. Software - Healthcare Technology Solution (new category for 2017)
P41. Software - Human Capital Management Solution
P42. Software - Identity & Access Security Solution (new category for 2017)
P43. Software - Infrastructure as a Service (new category for 2017)
P44. Software - Integration Solution
P45. Software - International Data Protection Solution
P46. Software - IoT Analytics Solution (new category for 2017)
P47. Software - IT Operations Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P48. Software - IT Service Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P49. Software - Lead Generation Solution 
P50. Software - Marketing/Public Relations Solution
P51. Software - Migration as a Service (new category for 2017)
P52. Software - Mobile Development Solution 
P53. Software - Mobile On-Demand Application
P54. Software - Mobile Operations Management Solution
P55. Software - Network Security Solution (new category for 2017)
P56. Software - News Monitoring Solution (new category for 2017)
P57. Software - Payments Solution (new category for 2017)
P58. Software - Platform as a Service (new category for 2017)
P59. Software - Project Management Solution
P60. Software - Real Estate or Construction Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P61. Software - Relationship Management Solution
P62. Software - SaaS Enablement as a Service (new category for 2017)
P63. Software - Social Business Solution
P64. Software - Software Development Solution
P65. Software - Supply Chain Management Solution
P66. Software - Systems Management Solution
P67. Software - Web Services Solution
P68. Software - Other

Content
These categories recognize products, technology and services created by, or for, media, publishers and information services providers.

P70. Content - Advertising or Campaign Management Platform
P71. Content - Aggregation Platform
P72. Content - Business Directory
P73. Content - Business Information Solution
P74. Content - Content Analytics Solution
P75. Content - Content Marketing Solution
P76. Content - Content Rights and Delivery Solution
P77. Content - Crowd Sourced Information Solution
P78. Content - eCommerce & Billing Platform
P79. Content - Financial & Market Data Information Solution
P80. Content - General Reference Service
P81. Content - Health & Medical Information Solution
P82. Content - Information Service Delivered as Mobile App or Platform
P83. Content - Legal Information Solution
P84. Content - Media & Information Monitoring Solution
P85. Content - Multichannel Publishing Technology (new category for 2017)
P86. Content - Sales & Marketing Intelligence Solution
P87. Content - Scholarly Publishing Information Solution
P88. Content - Science and Technology Information Solution
P89. Content - Search Technology Solution
P90. Content - Semantic Technology Platform, Tools and Applications
P91. Content - Service Using Aggregated Content
P92. Content - Solution for Integrating Content into the Workflow
P93. Content - Subscription Management Solution (new category for 2017)
P94. Content - Video Platform for Media & Publishers

Education
These categories recognize applications, products and services from developers of educational software, digital content, online learning services and related technologies across the K-20 sector.

S01. Education - Arts & Creativity Solution
S02. Education - Career and Workforce Readiness Solution
S03. Education - Classroom Management Solution
S04. Education - Collaborative Social Media Solution for Educators
S05. Education - Cross-Curricular Solution
S06. Education - Education Cloud-Based Solution
S07. Education - ELL/World Language Acquisition Instructional Solution
S08. Education - Game-Based Curriculum Solution
S09. Education - Instructional Solution in Other Curriculum Areas
S10. Education - K-12 Course or Learning Management Solution
S11. Education - K-12 Enterprise Solution
S12. Education - Learning Capacity-Building Solution
S13. Education - Learning Relationship Management Solution (new category for 2017)
S14. Education - Mathematics Instructional Solution
S15. Education - PK-12 Personalized Learning Solution
S16. Education - Pre-K / Early Childhood Learning Solution (new category for 2017)
S17. Education - Postsecondary Enterprise Solution
S18. Education - Postsecondary Learning Management Solution
S19. Education - Postsecondary Learning Solution
S20. Education - Postsecondary Personalized Learning Solution
S21. Education - Professional Learning Solution for Education
S22. Education - Reading/English/Language Arts Instructional Solution
S23. Education - Science Instructional Solution
S24. Education - Social Sciences or Social Studies Instructional Solution
S25. Education - Solution for Special Needs Students
S26. Education - Source for Reference or Education Resources
S27. Education - Student Assessment Solution
S28. Education - Virtual Learning Solution

Product Management
P96. Product Development/Management Department or Team of the Year 
P97. Product Development/Management Executive of the Year
P98. Product Developer of the Year: recognizing all non-executive product development or management professionals. There is no entry fee for this category.