Helping leading global companies turn strategy into results takes careful consideration and extensive experience. However, making that process fun, powerful, and lasting, to make an impact on the people and their careers can be one of the most challenging hurdles to overcome. BTS is a global professional services firm headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden with 500 professionals in 33 offices on six continents, inspiring new ways of thinking, building critical capabilities, and unleashing business success. Jessica Parisi, President & CEO of BTS USA, has been named the winner of a Bronze Stevie Award The 2017 International Business Awards for the Woman of the Year category.

The Industry Gold Standard

As a management consulting company, BTS always strives to focus on working with leaders at all levels to help them make better decisions, convert those decisions to actions, and deliver results. Hannah Reeve, the Associate Marketing Manager at BTS, comments on the recent attention BTS has received due to their history of success.

“BTS has had a record year, with tremendous growth and significant improvements to the bottom-line, and continues to set the industry gold standard in terms of innovative, scalable, impactful client work. This expertise and impact is widely recognized, with BTS USA being named both a 2017 Top 20 Leadership Training Company and a 2017 Top 20 Sales Training Company for the first time ever, and our Changr and Pulse digital tools winning Gold and Silver Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, respectively.”

Some of the services BTS offers include:

• Assessment centers for talent selection and development
• Strategy alignment and execution
• Business acumen, leadership and sales training programs
• On-the-job business simulations and application tools.

They partner with nearly 450 organizations, including over 30 of the world’s 100 largest global corporations. Some of their major clients include: Microsoft, SAP, Chevron, Coca-Cola, Volvo Group, Citigroup, Salesforce, Tencent and Novartis.

The Best Work of Their Lives

BTS winning a Stevie Award has been a symbol of international recognition of Jessica Parisi's powerful influence and positive impact on BTS and their client organizations globally. Hannah Reeve believes it is, “an honor that does nothing but bolster the reputation of both BTS and Jessica in the public eye, and has been incredibly beneficial in getting increased attention to Jessica's achievements as a leader and insightful point of view.”

Jessica Parisi has since been interviewed by magazines such as Entrepreneur..

As a woman CEO in a male-dominated industry, Jessica Parisi has demonstrated remarkable growth, achievement, and passion for her work. Throughout her 18-year career at BTS, Parisi has pioneered turning strategy into action through the use of customized business simulations and other experiential learning techniques for leading Fortune 500 clients.

Jessica also evolved BTS USA from a female to male consultant ratio of 18% to 82% and 44% to 56%. Engaging with every individual throughout the organization on a personal level, Jessica embodies the “Multiplier” leader and sets the direction for the organization as she strives to provide all employees the opportunity to “do the best work of their lives and have fun while doing it.”

No Fear Needed to Disrupt an Industry

The learning and development space is changing tremendously, with increased emphasis on virtual learning formats, digital technology, and equipping people with the skills and mindset needed to lead through transformation.

“Clients across industries are all combating enormous change and shifts in their spaces” says Reeves, “More and more are turning to programs that will help their people learn the leadership skills, innovation capabilities, and strategic agility required to be successful moving forward.”

At their core, BTS believes people learn best by doing. For 30 years, they’ve inspired new ways of thinking, building critical capabilities and unleashing business success.

Jessica Parisi wants people to know that, "it's not scary to do something different and new – it's exciting. BTS has a history of being disruptive, and I want us to continue that. It’s so much more fun when we are the disruptor.”

Marc Wileman might be known for making slime and firing rockets before crowds of excited children. But for “Mad” Marc, as his young audience members like to call him, it’s not just about creating a spectacle. The real goal is changing the way school kids feel about science.

Since founding Sublime Science nine years ago, his Leicester-based company has become one of the most popular birthday party and event companies in England, reaching more than a million youths.

The shows are part exhibition—think smoke ring blowers and lightning experiments—and part hands-on laboratory for the kids. Participants may find themselves turning everyday ingredients into a sweet confection or learning about physics through a wild “tornado race.”

According to Wileman, a safety-first mentality in the U.K. has gone a step too far, in many cases keeping younger students from having a more personal encounter with science.

“Children today aren't even allowed to do their own science experiments and wind up thinking science is just theory,” says the entrepreneur, whose firm recently earned the Gold Stevie® Award in The 2017 International Business Awards for Company of the Year in the Consumer Services segment.

Humble beginnings

If anyone can appreciate the importance of an early love for science, it’s Wileman. His passion started when he read the novel George’s Marvellous Medicine by Roald Dahl in primary school. By age eight, he was performing experiments on his own.

Years later, he went on to study science at the University of Toronto and later at the University of Nottingham in the U.K., where he earned a First Class Master’s Degree in physics. Upon graduation, he found himself working for an Australian education organization, teaching kids all over New South Wales about physics from the back of a pickup truck.

Soon the recent grad, then just 22 years old, was thinking about building a similar program in his native England. However, despite his passion for science and education, he admits being short on business experience—and money.

“I founded Sublime Science on personal credit cards and a £1,750 loan from the Prince's Trust,” he says. “I had to move back to my parents' house and run the entire company, as well as storage and sleeping, out of one room.”

Those challenges aside, it became clear early on that Wileman had a winning formula. “Thankfully, the children loved the experiments and word-of-mouth began to spread,” he recalls.

In time, he obtained the capital his fledgling business needed, thanks in no small part to a pitch on the BBC show, Dragons’ Den. Through the appearance, he garnered an investment from two of the “dragons,” enabling Wileman to take the company to a new level.

A successful formula

Since then, he has put on countless birthday parties and school workshops throughout the U.K. and has grown his staff to eight employees.

“We create unforgettable experiences and sneak in the learning when the children are having too much fun to notice,” he says.

Wileman has even written a book, Don’t Eat Your Slime, that shows kids how to conduct their own experiments at home, like how to make bubbling volcanoes and create a musical instrument.

As a result of his efforts, Sublime Science has amassed a litany of plaudits, including the Queen's Award for Enterprise and a Great British Entrepreneur Award for Best Service Business. The firm even received a congratulatory letter from 10 Downing Street, home of Britain’s prime minister.

In October, the organization added the Gold Stevie Award, presented during a gala in Barcelona, Spain, to that illustrious list.

“It’s been an awesome boost for the team and a great way to spread the word about managing to reach one million kids,” Wileman says.

British television viewers may recognize her as the one-time “Muse of Marketing” on Sky News or for her appearances on BBC’s version of The Apprentice. But countless business executives know her in a more personal light – as a trusted advisor who helps refine their marketing strategy and guide their expansion into new markets.

For the past three decades, the art of bridging cultural barriers has been Allyson Stewart-Allen’s passion. As the founder and CEO of International Marketing Partners, she’s helped more than 200 businesses leverage new opportunities in the United States and internationally.

As an American-born California native who has called the United Kingdom her home for nearly 30 years, Stewart-Allen brings first-hand experience to the international business challenges her clients face. “My goal is that, by helping people bridge cultural or organizational divides, they and their organizations are happier and more able to fulfill their purpose,” she says.

In addition to her work as a consultant, Stewart-Allen has also been active as a public speaker and as mentor for the Mayor of London’s International Business Programme. In addition, she co-wrote Working With Americans, a book designed to educate foreigners on America’s business culture.

This year, she’ll don another title – Judging Committee Chair of the Marketing Awards categories in The 2017 International Business Awards. It’s a role where she can draw on her expertise to not only select winning companies, but provide input that other entrants can draw on as the move forward.

“The Stevie Awards are one of the few business competitions that are truly international, providing judges with a great opportunity to compare the achievements of businesses from a global, rather than local, perspective” she says.

An emphasis on ‘localization’

“I have always been fascinated by how businesses operate, particularly in the areas of leadership, sales and marketing,” saysStewart-Allen.

After attending the University of Southern California’s  Marshall School of Business as an undergrad in the early 1980s, she earned her MBA under the tutelage of Peter Drucker, one of the most influential business thinkers of the past half century.

She went on to work for multiple blue-chip advisory firms – PwC, PA Consulting Group and Hay Management Consultants – before establishing International Marketing Partners in 1991. There, she’s surrounded herself with a group of marketing and business development specialists who bring experience in a variety of industries.

Stewart-Allen and her team have counseled dozens of businesses, including the likes of Burberry, HSBC, NBC Universal and SAB Miller. Her firm provides market analysis as well as insights into foreign business cultures that companies can leverage to attain better returns on their marketing investment.

“I am a hands-on CEO, so I define what my clients require and work with the Board and their operational teams to meet the agreed objectives, which could mean running a workshop one day, talking to a CEO about the strategy for international growth, running leadership courses or undertaking market research,” she explains.

An improved understanding of overseas markets helps ensure that clients avoid a one-size-fits-all strategy that may not work in every corner of the globe. “As a result of more local approaches and effectiveness, my clients achieve increased brand loyalty, employee loyalty and stakeholder engagement,” Stewart-Allen notes.

In the age of social media, she says, the stakes are even higher when organizations step outside their comfort zone. “It can bring a company’s mistakes to the consumer’s attention within minutes and thereby detrimentally affect the company’s brand, reputation and ability to bounce back.”

Leading the panel of judges for the marketing awards is another avenue for Stewart-Allen to help companies get it right. “My goal is to help businesses operate profitably in an increasingly global environment, at a time when the future is hard to predict,” she says.

The 14th Annual International Business Awards, the world's top honors for achievement in the workplace, will be presented on Saturday, October 21 at the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain.  More than 420 executives from organizations in over 30 nations will attend to celebrate the 2017 Grand, Gold, Silver, Bronze and People's Choice Stevie® Award winners.  The event is sold out.

Download a copy of the program book that will be distributed at the event.

Here's a list of the organizations that will be represented in Barcelona.

AHL Park Shopping Center
Albert
Aliseda Inmobiliaria
Anadolu Gayrimenkul
Arkas Holding
Arvato
ASDA'A Burson Marsteller
Australian Innovative Systems Pty Ltd (AIS) Company
Bayer Türk
Bell Helicopter
Bon Choix Couture
Borusan Holding
CallidusCloud
Capgemini
Carbonite  Inc.
Carrefour Icerenkoy Shopping Center
CEFIC
Cisco Systems
Contempo Property Holdings Inc.
CSS Corp
davero dialog GmbH  
Deutsche Telekom Services Europe GmbH
DHL Express  
Diligent Corporation
Dogus Holding A.S.
Dogus Otomotiv Servis ve Ticaret A.S.
Domino's Pizza
DRD Fleet Leasing
Dubai Electricity & Water Authority
Dubai Smart Government Establishment (SDG)
Eff Creative Group
Enerjisa
FEEDBACK FIRST by Huibert Evekink with Steven Becker
Festival Walk
Financial Voyages LLC
FIS Payments
FTI Consulting
Gangnam District Office
Garden of Words
Gebze Centre Shopping Mall
Generali Global Assistance  
Gina Din Group
Güven Varlik Yönetim A.S.
HANAROADCOM
HansaWorld Ltd.
HOMAG Group AG
Hotel Soulhada
Iconic Digital
Ideal H+K Strategies
IDO
IETT General Directorate
IGA Havalimani Isletmesi A.S.
ING Bank
intelliAd Media GmbH
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality
J2 Global  - two orders
KEPCO KDN
KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Company (KNF)
KoRail
Korea Airports Corporation (KAC)
Korea Sports Promotion Foundation Cycle and Motorboat Racing Association
KOSHA
K-water
Lansons
Laservision Mega Media
LLORENTE & CUENCA
M800 Limited
Magnet20
Malatyapark Shopping Centre
Manatee Holdings Ltd.
Manila Electric Company (MERALCO)
Manisa Industrial Park
MATRIXX Software
Medical Electronic Systems
Megazone
MicroHealth  LLC
Ming Yung Enterprise Co. Ltd
mobile.de GmbH
MOL Media
Natal Joint Municipal Pension Funds/KwaZulu Natal Joint Municipal Provident Funds
National Institute of Ecology
NetRefer
NICE
NMC Healthcare
NNG
Noguchi Porter Novelli
Odea Bank A.S.
Ooredoo Group
OPET
Palladium Atasehir Shopping Centre
Palm City Mersin Shopping Center.
PAN AMERICAN ENERGY
PGi
Pontica Solutions
Prime Development
Pronet
Property Exchange Australia Ltd
PSP Pharma Ltd  
PT Bank Ganesha Tbk
PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (Persero) Tbk
PT Petrokimia Gresik
Q5 Partners LLP
RAK SME
RapidValue Solutions
Reklam5 Digital Agency
Resolute Forest Products
Rheinbrucke Consulting
SABC Pension Fund
sahibinden.com
Seoul Institute of the Arts
Seoul Metropolitan Government
Shine Bid Services
SOOHYUN Inc.
Spartan Value Investors
Sports 1 Marketing
Strategic Public Relations Group
Sublime Science
Switching-Time  
Syncron
Tata Consultacy Services (TCS)
Telkom Indonesia
Tezgahçilar
UAE Exchange
Union National Bank
University of Limerick
VakifBank
Vestel
Viettel Group
Visteon Corporation
Vitamin Marketing Services
WardrobeTrendsFashion
Weber Shandwick
WP Engine
Yerra Solutions
Ziehm Imaging GmbH
Ziraat Bank
ZOOM International

Entries for the 2018 edition of the IBAs will open in early February.

The Stevie® Awards have announced the winners of the Best of the IBA Awards in The 2017 (14^th annual) International Business Awards, the world’s premier business awards competition.

Nominees in the 2017 IBAs were not able to apply for the Best of the IBA Awards directly. Winners were determined by a points system based on the total number of awards won in the IBAs with a Gold Stevie win counting for three points, a Silver Stevie for two points and a Bronze Stevie win for one-and-a-half points. 

This year’s Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners in The International Business Awards were announced on 10 August. The winners of the Best of the IBA Awards will be presented with Grand Stevie Award trophies at The 14^th Annual International Business Awards banquet at the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain on 21 October. 

Winners of the 2017 Grand Stevie Awards are:

Most Honored Organization: With 120 award points earned by Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted by affiliated agencies and offices around the world, the global communications consultancy MSLGROUP is the winner of the Grand Stevie Award trophy for Most Honored Organization of the year. MSLGROUP earned Stevies for the work done by offices from Canada, China, India, Japan, the USA and other nations, for clients as diverse as home improvement retailer Home Depot, Chinese electronics giant Huawei, and Indian consumer goods manufacturer Marico Ltd., among others.

Most Honored Public Relations Agency: With a total of 77 points earned by Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie-winning entries submitted by their agencies and offices in Latin America, Spain and the USA, communications consultants LLORENTE & CUENCA is the winner of the Grand Stevie Award trophy for Most Honored Public Relations Agency of the year.

Most Honored Marketing Agency: With a total of 38.5 points earned by Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie-winning entries on behalf of clients, South Korean marketing agency HANAROADCOM is the winner of the Grand Stevie Award trophy for Most Honored Marketing Agency of the year.

Most Honored Interactive Services Agency: With 23.5 points for Stevies won on behalf of clients including L’OCCITANE, Sino Hotels and Watsons Water, Hong Kong-based PRIZM is the winner of the Grand Stevie Award trophy for Most Honored Interactive Services Agency of the year for the second year in a row.

Top 10: These are the top Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie winners among all other organizations honored in the 2017 IBAs. They’ll also be presented with Grand Stevie Award trophies.

1. CallidusCloud—Dublin, CA, USA (84 points)
2. Telkom Indonesia—Jakarta (72.5)
3. Cisco Systems—worldwide (67)
4. ASDA'A Burson-Marsteller—Dubai, United Arab Emirates (56.5)
5. Deutsche Post DHL—worldwide (55.5)
6. Weber Shandwick—worldwide (53)
7. PT Petrokimia Gresik—Gresik, Indonesia (42.5)
8. PJ Lhullier Group of Companies—Makati City, Philippines (35)
9. Odea Bank A.S. —Istanbul, Turkey (31)
10. Ooredoo—worldwide (30 points)

“Of all the outstanding organizations and achievements that were recognized among this year’s record-breaking number of IBA nominations, these 14 organizations stand out as the ones with the widest breadth of achievement,” said Michael Gallagher, president and founder of the Stevie Awards. “The Best of the IBA Awards are intended to honor organizations that show an especially strong dedication to honoring the work of their employees, the commitment of their clients, and a sense of innovation, and we look forward to celebrating these firms with Grand Stevie Award trophies at our gala event in Barcelona on 21 October.”

The International Business Awards feature a wide variety of categories to recognize achievement in every facet of work life, including management awards, new product awards, marketing awards, PR awards, customer service awards, website awards and more.

Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award placements in the 2017 IBAs were determined by the average scores of more than 200 professionals worldwide in the three-month judging process.

For more information about The International Business Awards, including a complete list of all Stevie Award winners in the 2017 competition, visit www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

Business Awards Program to Celebrate Excellence Worldwide at Barcelona Event

High-achieving organizations and executives around the world have been recognized as Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie® Award winners in The 14th Annual International Business Awards, the world's only international, all-encompassing business awards program.

Nicknamed the Stevies from the Greek word "crowned," the awards will be presented at a gala event on Saturday, 21 October at the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain. Tickets for the event are on sale now at www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

See the full list of Stevie Award winners here.

Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie winners were selected from more than 3,900 nominations received from organizations and individuals in 60 nations. All organizations worldwide are eligible to compete in The International Business Awards, and can submit entries in a wide range of categories, including management awards, company of the year awards, marketing awards, public relations awards, customer service awards, human resources awards, new product awards, IT awards, web site awards and more. 

More than 200 executives worldwide participated on 12 juries this year to determine the Stevie winners.

Among the top winners of Gold Stevie Awards are MSLGROUP, worldwide, with 13; Cisco Systems, worldwide (10); Weber Shandwick, worldwide (nine); CallidusCloud, Dublin, California USA (eight); Telkom Indonesia (eight); LLORENTE & CUENCA, Madrid, Spain (seven); and Deutsche Post DHL, worldwide, with six.  Winners of five Gold Stevies include PJ Lhuillier Group of Companies, Makati City, Philippines; Property Exchange Australia Ltd, Melbourne, Australia; PT Petrokimia Gresik, Gresik, Indonesia; Thai Life Insurance, Bangkok, Thailand; and Yapi Kredi Bank, Istanbul, Turkey.

Other organizations with 10 or more Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie wins include, among others, ASDA'A Burson Marsteller, Dubai, United Arab Emirates; FIS, St. Petersburg, Florida USA; Jeunesse Global, Lake Mary, Florida USA; Marico Ltd, Mumbai, India; Odea Bank A.S., Istanbul, Turkey; Ooredoo Group, worldwide; and PRIZM, Hong Kong. 

“We received a record number of nominations in the IBAs this year, and the judges were astounded by the inspiring stories of workplace success from all over the world,” said Stevie Awards founder and president Michael Gallagher.  “We look forward to honoring the Stevie winners who join us in Barcelona on 21 October, and to sharing their stories with the world throughout the coming year on the Stevie Awards social media channels."

During the week of 21 August the winners of the Best of the IBA Awards, five best-of-competition prizes, will be announced.  Winners will be determined by a tally of the total number of Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevies won by organizations, and will be presented with Grand Stevie Award trophies in Barcelona.

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

The Stevie® Awards, organizer of The International Business Awards, announced today that the final entry deadline for the 14th annual IBAs has been extended to Wednesday, July 12. Recognized as the world’s premier business awards program, The IBAs attract nominations from organizations in more than 50 nations and territories each year.

 “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 June 14. Gallagher emphasizes that no additional late fees will be charged for entries submitted through July 12, and late entries will not be penalized in any way in the judging process. All organizations now have an additional four weeks to prepare and submit their entries.

Review the entry kit here.

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 2017 awards will honor achievements since the beginning of 2016.  Entry details are available at http://www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

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
• Website Awards, Smartphone and Tablet Apps, and other Media Awards

A variety of new categories were introduced for the 2017 competition including Mobile Site & App Awards in recognition of the many organizations that deploy specially-designed mobile websites in lieu of apps. New website categories include Best User Experience and Best User Interface. Executive of the Year has been expanded to include Apparel, Beauty & Fashion and Consumer Services.

Stevie Award winners will be selected during the judging process by more than 150 professionals worldwide. Winners will be announced on August 10, and the awards will be presented at a gala awards ceremony at the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain on October 21. 

The early-bird entry deadline in The 2017 International Business Awards, with discounted entry fees, for the 14th annual IBAs is today- Wednesday, April 12.

The IBAs are the world's leading business awards program. All organizations and individuals worldwide may submit nominations: large and small, for-profit and non-profit, public and private.

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT HERE

The entry kit contains all of the information you'll need to be able to prepare and submit entries to the 2017 awards.

If you miss the early-bird deadline, note that the final deadline is May 10, but late entries will be accepted through June 14 with payment of a late fee.

Today we will recognize a variety of new Mobile Website and App Awards categories for the 2017 competition. New categories are highlighted in red.

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

a. An essay of up to 200 words describing the mobile site 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. Optionally, you may list creative and production credits for your site or app - a list of the people and organizations that contribute to its development

P60. Auction (new category for 2017)
P61. Business/Government
P62. Education & Reference
P63. Entertainment
P64. Events
P65. Experimental & Innovation
P66. Family & Kids (new category for 2017)
P67. Fashion & Beauty (new category for 2017)
P68. Financial Services / Banking (new category for 2017)
P69. Fitness & Recreation (new category for 2017)
P70. Food & Drink (new category for 2017)
P71. Games
P72. Guides/Ratings/Reviews
P73. Health (new category for 2017)
P74. Integrated Mobile Experience
P75. Lifestyle
P76. Magazine / Editorial (new category for 2017)
P77. Marketing
P78. Messaging (new category for 2017)
P79. Music
P80. News
P81. Productivity (new category for 2017)
P82. Professional Education
P83. Professional Services (new category for 2017)
P84. Public Service & Activism (new category for 2017)
P85. Real Estate (new category for 2017)
P86. School / University (new category for 2017)
P87. Shopping
P88. Social
P89. Sports
P90. Training
P91. Travel
P92. Utilities & Services

The Stevie® Awards have issued the call for entries for The 14th Annual International Business Awards, the world's premier business awards competition, which attracts nominations from organizations in more than 60 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 12 April. The final entry deadline is 10 May, and late entries will be accepted through 14 June with payment of a late fee. Entry details are available at www.StevieAwards.com/IBA.

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT HERE

An international judging panel of more than 150 executives will determine the Stevie Award winners. Results will be announced 10 August. Stevie Award winners will be presented their awards at a gala banquet at the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain on 21 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

Stevie Award winners in the 2016 IBAs included ABS-CBN Corporation (Philippines), BSES Yamuna Power Limited (India), Clickky (Ukraine), Dogus Group (Turkey), Dubai Statistics Center (United Arab Emirates), Forter (USA), Foundation Telefónica  (Spain), Freelancer.com (Australia), Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A.  (Brazil), KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Company (South Korea), Mondelez International (United Kingdom), Ooredoo (Qatar), PJSC Aeroflot - Russian Airlines  (Russia), Polystar  (Sweden), PRIZM (Hong Kong), QLess, Inc. (USA), RheinBrücke IT Consulting (Germany), Roshan (Afghanistan), SABC Pension Fund (South Africa), SUNNY SIDE UP, Inc. (Japan), Telkom Indonesia (Indonesia) and TELUS International (Canada), among many others.

Freelancer is the world's largest freelancing and crowdsourcing marketplace by number of users and projects.  The company recently won two People’s Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite Companies in the 13th Annual International Business Awards. We got a chance to talk to Sebastián Siseles, the International Director of Freelancer about how the group connected with the Stevie Awards years ago and how they’ve seen the value of winning .

The 2017 International Business Awards opens for nominations on February 1. Request your entry kit here and it will be emailed to you as soon as it's available.

Sebastián remembers when they, “became acquainted with the Stevies back in 2012, when a well-known media outlet announced the winners of the IBAs. We were convinced right away of its importance as it recognizes the achievements of the world's most important organizations and its leaders. The following year, in 2013, we decided we were ready to apply to the awards as Freelancer.com had grown to be an outstanding company. That same year we were honored with our first Stevie Award.”

Freelancer.com has become a staple in connecting employers and freelancers to do work together 24/7 across the globe. Sebastián relayed that, “Freelancer.com is the world's largest freelancing and crowdsourcing marketplace by number of users and projects. We connect over 23 million employers and freelancers globally from over 247 countries, regions and territories. Through our marketplace, employers can hire freelancers to do work in over 900 areas such as software development, writing, data entry and design right through to engineering, the sciences, sales and marketing, accounting and legal services.

Sebastián stressed the importance of their vision, which is providing jobs and changing the lives of at least one billion people all over the world. For example, in the Philippines, Freelancer.com partnered with the government's Department of Science and Technology to extend online freelancing opportunities to Filipinos in rural areas with limited employment options.

Sebastián continues that they also have, “an ongoing partnership with the Malaysian government’s Multimedia Development Corporation, which provides education for Malaysia’s B40 communities.”

Recently, the company concluded its first round of the Train-the-Trainers program, which educated fifty (50) trainers who will be deployed across Malaysia to help underprivileged Malaysians find online work.

Freelancer.com has been a global success, Sebastián reflects on their first nomination:

“At the time of the nomination, Freelancer.com hit the 15 million users milestone and we wanted to acknowledge our community by putting together an e-book: https://issuu.com/freelancercom/docs/15mm_ebook

Sebastián also notes the significance of winning a Stevie:

“Receiving an award is always an honour for Freelancer.com. It also serves as recognition for the team for all the hard work. We always try to be part of the amazing Stevies Gala and the chance of networking while being there is just awesome.”

“Our community celebrates with us whenever we share the news with them and this seems to further boost their trust on the marketplace. They are always deeply informed about the nominations and always eager to cast their votes for us,” Sebastián adds.

Sebastián highlights the results from winning a Stevie:

“Freelancer.com has gained a lot of exposure due to the awards that we were honored with in the past three  years which led to an increase in user acquisition. With each award, we have reinforced our leadership in the freelancing market, especially with the People´s Choice Awards.”

"Here are links to press releases on our Stevie Awards since 2015":

• http://press.freelancer.com.s3.amazonaws.com/FreelancerWins9Awardsat12thAnnualInternationalBusinessAwards.pdf
• http://press.freelancer.com.s3.amazonaws.com/FreelancerStevieAwards2016.pdf
• http://press.freelancer.com.s3.amazonaws.com/Freelancer.com2016GrandStevieAwards.pdf
• http://press.freelancer.com.s3.amazonaws.com/SteviesPeoplesChoiceAwards2016.pdf

Freelance work is growing exponentially. Sebastián reports their findings in this growing sector:

“Expanding opportunities for entrepreneurship and jobseekers’ preferences are driving changes in the online freelancing and crowdsourcing industry. And as seen in our growing number of users from around the world (currently at 23 million), more and more businesses and entrepreneurs are hiring freelancers online and a growing number of skilled professionals are providing services in their fields of expertise.

Sebastián details their industry highlights in, “seeing more employers from small businesses to major companies now collaborating with freelancers through crowdsourcing. An example of this  is  NASA’s partnership with Freelancer. Not only are they crowdsourcing the best ideas through a contest on Freelancer.com, they are putting together a virtual team of freelancers from around the world through remote collaboration. For example, they will hire a graphic designer from Latin America, a web developer from Asia, and  an internet marketer from North America.  These freelancers are working together as a team despite their locations. This is why we are continuously looking for ways to equip our community based on how their needs are evolving.”

Lastly, we asked if there is an inspirational story related to Freelancer.com that might appeal to our blog readers. Sebastian shared their 15 million users e-book that contains stories of how Freelancer.com helped change the lives of our users: https://issuu.com/freelancercom/docs/15mm_ebook

Here are recent stories from Freelancer in the Philippines:

• Freelancer Ian Fosgate
• Freelancer Sonny Aldave