MAC Presents of New York, New York USA won the Gold Stevie® Award for Small-Budget Marketing Campaign of the Year in the communications and marketing awards categories of the 2012 Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the world's top honors for women entrepreneurs, executives, and the organizations they run.  (Another MAC Presents campaign also won a Gold Stevie for Small-Budget Marketing Campaign of the Year in The 2013 American Business Awards.) The entry deadline for the 2013 Stevie Awards for Women in Business is August 28 - get the entry kit here.)

Here we look at the highly successful AT&T/Samsung sponsorship that MAC Presents put together with the New York fashion label rag & bone.

For the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Note, AT&T and Samsung wanted to target the creative, fashion-forward mobile consumer, who would not only want the latest in advanced technology but would also view the device as a fashion accessory.

A custom promotion solution was needed that would establish a Galaxy Note social community within the fashion world during New York’s Fashion Week. Ideally, this social platform would integrate the phone into the daily life both of a fashion designer partner and of respected fashion bloggers.

The Ideal Collaboration

MAC Presents worked with AT&T and Samsung's marketing teams to select the ideal designers for them to collaborate with, and to create the unique marketing that would effectively reach the Galaxy Note's target audience.

MAC Presents developed a custom program that enabled AT&T/Samsung to partner with rag & bone, one of today's leading fashion brands based in New York City. To help reach the Galaxy Note’s influential target audience, MAC Presents worked with rag & bone to create an exclusive case for the Galaxy Note device.

The Galaxy Note was integrated into rag & bone’s 2012 fashion show during New York Fashion Week with signage and an exclusive, branded VIP area backstage. Additionally, influential fashion bloggers such as Bryan Boy, Leandra Medine, and Susie Bubble were given Galaxy Note devices to use for posting to their blogs and tweets during New York Fashion Week.

Comprehensive Media Plan
MAC Presents developed a comprehensive media plan that included print, outdoor, and online advertising as well as social media and public relations outreach. Bus shelter advertising was utilized to promote the partnership in key locations around New York City.

All creative featured the still photography of New York-based photographer Danny Clinch. Danny also shot a :30 commercial for the Galaxy Note featuring rag & bone's designers Marcus Wainwright and David Neville. The pair also hosted a private Galaxy Note launch party in New York City that included a performance from Band of Horses. With many celebrities in attendance, the event attracted millions of press impressions.

MAC Presents’ combined media outreach efforts garnered over 114,000,000 million consumer impressions.

Online Campaign

An extensive online campaign was implemented to increase awareness of the collaboration between AT&T/Samsung and rag & bone. MAC Presents partnered with fashion publications Front Row Daily and WWD to create rich, online advertising opportunities. Additionally, MAC Presents partnered with Billboard.com to reach the fashion, music oriented consumer.

Facebook Advertising

A daily Facebook advertising plan was put into effect to launch the campaign and build awareness of the Samsung Galaxy Note.

In total, over 4 billion consumer impressions were garnered through online efforts.

The Value of Social Media

Marcie Allen, president of MAC Presents, comments: “Social media has opened up brand involvement beyond tour sponsorships.” Allen points to MAC Presents' launching of Nokia Music with AT&T through a sponsorship with Green Day that has garnered more than 165 million social media impressions, as well as a Gold Stevie in the 2013 American Business Awards. “All the programs we put together in 2012 were heavily based in social media,” she says. “There has to be value. You have to be able to measure and track sales. You can do that with social media.”

Inspiring Women

“As a woman in the music industry, recognition in the Stevie Awards has proved an effective tool for me to encourage more women to enter this industry,” continued Allen. “As someone who has been in the music industry for 18 years, I want to inspire women and show them that anything is possible.  All power to the Stevie Awards for Women on its 10^th Anniversary!”

About Marcie Allen
Marcie Allen is President of New York City-based sponsorship and fulfillment agency MAC Presents. Allen leverages her eighteen years of music industry experience to negotiate high profile sponsorships between the world’s leading brands and artists. Allen has executed partnerships on behalf of brands including Jeep, Microsoft, Samsung, CITI, AT&T, and Nokia.  She is a seven-time nominee and two-time winner of Billboard Magazine's Concert Marketing and Promotion Award. Allen was named to Billboard’s Women in Music in 2010, 2011, and 2012 and Billboard’s 40 under 40 in 2013.

In April 2013, The White House honored Allen as one of their Hurricane Sandy "Champions of Change." The event highlighted people and organizations directly involved in response and recovery efforts following Hurricane Sandy. Allen directed a documentary short, “Beach 119,” about her efforts in Rockaways, New York, after the storm.

Prior to starting MAC, Allen owned and operated MAD Booking & Events, which booked and produced music festivals across the country including On the Bricks in Atlanta, GA. Allen is on the board of directors for Musicians on Call and the TJ Martell Foundation.

About MAC Presents
MAC Presents is an award-winning sponsorship and fulfillment agency based in New York City that executes partnerships between the world’s leading brands and artists. With expertise in the music industry, MAC creates authentic brand connections that produce unique experiences and ignite consumer passion.

Kara Goldin, CEO of HINT Inc., in San Francisco, California, USA, was named Female Entrepreneur of the Year for Business Products in the 2012 Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, the world's premier business awards for women executives, entrepreneurs, and the organizations they run. (Entries are now being accepted for the 2020 Stevie Awards for Women in Business. If you haven't yet done so, you can request an entry kit here and it will be emailed to you right away.) Here we look at how a successful businesswoman—and, more important, a mother of four--became a business award- winning pioneer in the beverage industry.

Kara Goldin is an innovator who is changing the habits of the beverage-drinking consumer. Kara started HINT because her family, like so many others across America, needed a healthy, yet flavorful, alternative to sugary sodas and juices.

On receiving her Stevie Award in November 2012, Kara commented: “Winning the award for Best Female Entrepreneur is AWESOME!  All the hard work is finally starting to pay off. The Stevie Awards are a great recognition and I am really honored and grateful!”

Calorie Counting
In 2004, Kara was determined that her family should switch to a healthier lifestyle when she realized how many calories they was consuming from juice, soda, and other beverages. 

Kara laid down the law and banned everything except plain water and milk in her house. That worked for her (at least for a little while), but the other members of her family were not happy.  She realized that she had to find something more interesting than plain water, so she studied the labels of every beverage she could find, but each drink she picked up contained either loads of calories or questionable diet sweeteners.

The Aha! Moment
Finally, out of desperation, Kara started slicing fruit into water to provide a little bit of flavor without adding a lot of calories. Surprisingly, this simple solution was a hit with her family. One day, she received a call from a friend whose child had been over at her house several times: “You have to tell me where you got the raspberry water my daughter keeps talking about.”

Kara laughed and explained that it wasn’t actually a product you buy. That 2004 conversation was Kara’s Aha! moment: she realized then that someone should make a simple, unsweetened, fruit-flavored water as a substitute for all the calorie-laden or artificially sweetened beverages on the market.

A Woman’s Intuition
Despite her inexperience in the beverage industry, the tough economic climate, and having to compete with the likes of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, Kara followed her intuition that this was a product that would sell, and created HINT Water.

In just six years, her perseverance, determination, and innovation brought HINT Water to the shelves of nationwide retailers like Whole Foods, Starbucks, Stop&Shop, The Fresh Market, and many other stores nationwide.

Adding Sparkle
With the success of HINT secured, Kara was ready to take on the soda category.  In January 2012, Kara launched HINT Fizz, a sparkling version of HINT that is available in four flavors. Staying true to Kara’s vision, HINT Fizz offered a refreshing alternative to consumers trying to break the soda habit.

Consumers loved it. HINT Fizz won Better Homes and Gardens Best New Beverage of 2012.

A Simple Mission
With one simple mission of providing a delicious and healthy beverage, Kara has been able to turn HINT into a multi-million dollar company offering a product that consumers trust and enjoy. The biggest lesson she has learned to date is if you make a product that you believe in and stay true to your message, your loyal consumers will become your best advocates and help spread the word.

HINT is a brand that’s been built around an important message: Drink Water, Not Sugar®, and Kara firmly believes in her message.

About Kara Goldin:
Since 2005, Kara Goldin has served as the Founder and CEO of HINT, Inc., maker of the HINT all-natural, no-calorie essence waters. Kara has built HINT's reputation as one of the leading health-driven beverages through its message: “Drink Water, Not Sugar”. This has resonated with the increasingly health-conscious consumer, and has attracted the endorsement of celebrity investor and 9-time Grammy winner John Legend.

Prior to conceptualizing HINT, Goldin built her career as Vice President of Electronic Commerce and Shopping at AOL, helping to turn its online shopping business into a billion-dollar entity in the 1990s.In 2011 Goldin was selected as one of Fortune Magazine’s Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs. Goldin continues to expand HINT, most recently by introducing HINT Fizz, a carbonated version, in 2012.

About Hint, Inc.:
HINT Inc. is the maker of the no-calorie, unsweetened essence waters HINT and HINT Fizz. Founded in 2005 by mother-of-four Kara Goldin, HINT and HINT Fizz have doubled revenues year over year and become the preferred alternative to sugary beverages. For more information, go to www.drinkhint.com or www.facebook.com/drinkhint.

We are pleased to share that video clips from the 2012 (9th annual) Stevie® Awards for Women in Business awards dinner are now available to view on YouTube. Recognized as the world's premier business awards for women executives, entrepreneurs, and the organizations they run, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business were celebrated on November 9 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.

Watch the 2012 Stevie Awards for Women in Business awards presentations here.

More than 345 entrepreneurs, executives, and their guests from around the world attended the November 9th gala. Our Stevie Awards for Women in Business video clips from November 9 showcase business award acceptance speeches made by individuals and organizations from around the world, including:

Leverage a Lawyer LLC, Winner of a 2012 Gold Stevie® Award for New Company of the Year
Founder and CEO, Jessica Eaves Mathews, gracefully accepts the award and starts the evening off by reminding the audience about the powerful impact of women owned businesses.

Deborah Mitchell of Heaven by Deborah Mitchell, Winner of a 2012 Gold Stevie® Award for Female Entrepreneur of the Year in Europe, The Middle East & Africa
All the way from Shifnal, Shropshire, United Kingdom, Deborah thanks the Stevie Awards and her American suppliers for contributing to her success.

MAC Presents, Winner of a 2012 Gold Stevie® Award for Small Budget Marketing Campaign of the Year
MAC Presents of New York, NY, USA, humbly accepts the Gold Stevie Award and expresses gratitude for their strong partnerships.

Christiane Schulz of Ketchum Pleon, Winner of a 2012 Gold Stevie® Award for Maverick of the Year - Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations
Christiane thanks her company and family for supporting her throughout her business endeavors.

Kim Petersen of DHL Global Forwarding, Winner of a 2012 Gold Stevie® Award for Female Employee of the Year – All Other Industries
Giving the final speech of the night, Kim thanks her company, her team, and her family for all of their support.

Want more resources from the Stevie Awards for Women in Business celebration? Watch all acceptance speeches, listen to the live recording, view photos from the event, and download the awards dinner program book.

Chris Robinson, Managing Director of Boost Marketing, a UK-based international business awards entry consultancy, uses research to argue that simply entering the Stevie® Awards, the world's premier business awards program, can provide such substantial benefits that literally everyone who goes to the trouble of putting together a well-researched award submission is a winner. Here Chris discusses his findings.

If I were to ask you: “Who benefits the most from entering the Stevie Awards?” you would be justified in answering: “The winners, of course.” You might even think it a ridiculous question.

Is it a ridiculous question, though?  In my job at Boost Marketing, I help companies enter awards, and I often hear the line: “I only want to enter if I’m going to win.” I find this a frustrating sentiment, because it is based on a flawed assumption: that the only people who benefit from The Stevie Awards are the winners.

Crafting a strong award submission requires a substantial amount of research, evidence gathering, and writing. Furthermore, attending an awards presentation consumes even more time and budget. So how can you possibly justify all this when there is a significant likelihood you may not actually win?

An obvious answer is that even a small chance of winning a prestigious award is a chance worth taking. But this again assumes that only winners benefit. So are there other benefits—benefits you can enjoy even if you fail to win?

To answer this question, my company surveyed some awards finalists before the winners were announced (to ensure people were still open-minded). We were delighted that, when prompted, 70% of them could name specific benefits that they experienced by simply entering the awards.

The benefits people listed were extremely varied, but three of them were clear winners in terms of popularity:

1. The submission process improved evaluation (the measuring of a company or organization’s success to provide evidence in its award entry);
2. It demonstrated the company or organization’s commitment to excellence; and
3. It motivated employees.

Improved Evaluation
The most popular benefit, that of improved evaluation, might seem odd to those who have not recently taken a shot at winning an award. To help illustrate this, I would like to share a story.

One recent Stevie Award winner, whose business had been established for over a decade, had always resisted running a customer survey because she feared the customers would use it as a stick to beat her. Eventually, she ran a survey in order to prove to the awards judges just how customer-focused her business was. When she finally saw the scores and comments, she became quite emotional: The survey showed that her customers had an extraordinary affection for her and her business.

Without that quick and inexpensive survey, the business owner would never have known just how much her customers appreciated her business, nor would her business have won the award without the confirmed approval ratings. In other words, she was a winner before she actually won the Stevie Award.

The simple process of putting your business and its achievements under the microscope for an award submission can be extremely beneficial. Measuring a company’s outstanding achievements can give employees pride in their work, increase internal credibility, and boost confidence and morale. Employees can discover whether their perception of what they do, day in and day out, bears up under scrutiny.

This process requires courage, but it can be worthwhile if used properly. Lessons learned can lead businesses to raise the bar and make further improvements.

Commitment to Excellence
CEOs will often use awards as key performance indicators. I have seen this in a broad range of industries including automotive, banking, insurance, and training.  Is this just an exercise in Public Relations? Well, maybe a little, but the main reason why CEOs tout these awards is because they want their businesses—and the departments in them—to aim for more than just best practice.  They want their employees to focus on being the best.

These days there is a big difference between simply achieving best practice and being the best in an industry.  It’s the difference between being the leader, and being in the pack trying to catch up. CEOs know that a credible award like a Stevie is a true measure of success.

The Positive Effect of Competition
When one department wins an award, other departments see the attention and praise heaped upon their colleagues and want similar recognition. This has an extremely positive effect. 

People also soon realize that you cannot win an award simply by writing a great entry. Judges are too smart for this. It is not good enough just to sound outstanding.  Awards are for those who actually are outstanding. A badly written, badly evidenced award submission prevents the judges from learning just how good a company really is.

Awards are rather like Olympic medals in that they discourage people from settling for best practice and encourage them to raise their game and to leave their competition in the dust.

Motivation
Motivation goes to the very heart of why The Stevie Awards are so important. Look more closely at the crystal pyramid held aloft by the 16” tall, 24-karat gold-plated Stevie Award trophy and you will discover another reason to enter these awards: The pyramid represents the Hierarchy of Needs, developed in the 1960s by psychologist Abraham Maslow, who observed that after basic needs are met, human beings seek the esteem of their peers.

Maslow was referring to individuals, but the principle applies just as well to teams, departments, and whole businesses. This is why The Stevie Awards recognize all of these categories in their business competitions.

Do you need to win an award to gain recognition from your peers? Of course not.  But to have a peer tell you or your team: “I am so impressed by you that I want to enter you into an international awards program,” and to follow that up by writing a glowing award submission, will have a positive effect on the self esteem and motivation of your employees, win or lose.

Conclusion
Whether you are confident about entering one of The Stevie Awards competitions or not, understand that while winning one of these handsome trophies is enormously beneficial, so too is the process that you have to go through just to put together an entry. It will focus and sharpen the awareness of what you are doing right; it will provide a catalyst for continuing improvement and motivation; and it will help satisfy that basic business and human need: appreciation and respect.

The Stevie Awards are now conferring Silver and Bronze Awards in addition to the main Gold Stevie Award, meaning that you are three times more likely to be a winner.

About Chris Robinson:
Chris Robinson is Managing Director of Boost Marketing, the world’s first award-entry consultancy, which now has a team of 15 award-entry consultants based around the world. Since the company was founded in 2006, Boost Marketing consultants have helped over 200 businesses win over 400 awards.

New York, NY – November 12, 2012 – Shining a spotlight on women executives, entrepreneurs, and organizations run by women, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business announced the results of its 2012 competition on Friday, November 9.

The Stevie Awards for Women in Business is an international competition produced by the creators of the prestigious International Business Awards and American Business Awards. The Stevie is widely considered to be the world’s premier business award.

With more than 340 businesswomen and their guests in attendance, the awards were announced at a gala dinner at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.  Nations represented at the event include Australia, Canada, Ecuador, Germany, Hungary, India, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Nigeria, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.A.  The presentations were broadcast live across the U.S.A. by the Business TalkRadio Network.

More than 1,200 nominations from organizations and individuals in 17 nations were submitted to the awards this year for consideration in categories including Entrepreneur of the Year, Executive of the Year, Most Innovative Company of the Year, and Best New Company of the Year, among others.  More than 250 professionals around the world participated in the judging process to determine the Finalists and then the Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award placements.

Notable Gold Stevie Award winners from this year’s competition include:

- Kanchan Naikawadi, Director of Indus Health Plus Pvt. Ltd., Maharashtra, India - Female Entrepreneur of the Year – Consumer Services – Up to 2,500 Employees

- Dr. Akudo Anyanwu Ikemba, Founder and CEO of Friends of the Global Fund Africa, Lagos, Nigeria - Female Innovator of the Year – Government or Non-Profit – 10 or Less Employees

- Brooke Denihan Barrett, co-CEO of Denihan Hospitality Group, New York, NY - Female Executive of the Year – Business Products – 11 to 2,500 Employees

- Bethany Mayer, Senior VP and General Manager of HP Networking, HP, Palo Alto, CA - Female Executive of the Year – Business Products – More Than 2,500 Employees

- Emer Timmons, President of BT Global Services UK, BT, London, United Kingdom - Female Executive of the Year – Business Services – More Than 2,500 Employees

- Linda Clement-Holmes, Senior Vice President of The Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, OH - Female Executive of the Year– Consumer Products – More Than 2,500 Employees

- Christiane Schulz, Member of the German Executive Board, Global Partner, MD of Ketchum Pleon, Berlin, Germany - Maverick of the Year - Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations

- Mitchell Baker, Chairperson of the Mozilla Foundation and Mozilla Corporation, Mozilla, Mountain View, CA - Lifetime Achievement

- Weili Dai, Co-Founder, Vice President and General Manager of Communications and Consumer Business of Marvell Technology Group Ltd, San Francisco, CA - Technology Innovator of the Year

- LittlePINKBook.com, Atlanta, GA - Website of the Year

- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, Inc., El Segundo, CA - Communications or PR Campaign of the Year - Social Media Focused

- Vodafone Istanbul, Turkey - Communications or PR Campaign of the Year - Marketing – Consumer Services

The 2012 Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners reflect a diverse group of large and small organizations from around the globe. Organizations that won more than one Gold Stevie Award include Accenture, Creative Catapult, LLC, eCycle LLC, Friends of the Global Fund Africa, Oncology Rehab Partners, Sentis Pty Ltd, Susan Davis International, and Vaco Los Angeles.

For a complete list of Stevie Award winners and more information, visit www.StevieAwards.com/Women.

Entries for the 2013 edition of the awards will open next May.

About the Stevie Awards
Stevie Awards are conferred in four programs: The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.  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.

The Stevie® Awards have just published the full PDF of the 2012 (9th annual) Stevie Awards for Women in Business awards dinner program online, at http://www.stevieawards.com/uploads/file/SAWIB12Program.pdf.

Recognized as the world's premier business awards for women executives, entrepreneurs, and the organizations they run, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business will be celebrated on November 9 at the Marriott Marquis in New York City. (Click here to order tickets.)

The program will be distributed to all attendees of the November 9 awards dinner, and to an additional 10,000+ executives over the coming year as a download from the awards' web site. 

Can't make the awards dinner? Download the full program here and listen live to the 9th annual awards presentations on November 9th from 7:30PM EST on Business Talk Radio Network.

The following professionals participated on the five final judging committees of the 2012 (9th annual) Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, the world's premier business awards for women executives, entrepreneurs, and the organizations they run. Their average scores determined the 2012 Stevie Awards winners. We thank them for their time, insights, and support. For a complete list of Finalists by category, visit www.StevieAwards.com/Women. (2012 winners will be announced at an awards dinner on November 9 at the Marriott Marquis in New York. Click here to order tickets.)

2012 Communications & Marketing Awards Categories Final Judging Committee

Committee Chair:
Martha Saunders, Distinguished Professor of Communication, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS, USA     

Mona A. Amodeo, Ph.D, President, idgroupUSA, Pensacola, FL, USA      
Liza Cirlot Looser, CEO, The Cirlot Agency, Jackson, MS, USA       
Tena Clark, Founder & CEO, DMI Music & Media Solutions, Los Angeles, CA, USA             
Teresa Dos Santos, Director, Business Interiors, Pensacola, FL, USA         
Julia Forsyth, Senior Global Marketing Manager, GSMA, Atlanta, GA, USA           
Ann F. Guice, SVP/Trust, The Peoples Bank, Biloxi, MS, USA       
Jennifer Hrycyszyn, Vice President, Greenough Communications, Boston, MA, USA       
Louise W. Johns, VP/Trust, The Peoples Bank, Biloxi, MS, USA   
Sharon A. Jones, FAHP, CFRE, VP Development, Chapters Health System, Temple Terrace, FL, USA         
Patty Klein, APR, Senior PR Specialist, Chapters Health System, Temple Terrace, FL, USA               
Sara Kuhl, Director, University Marketing & Media Relations, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Whitewater, WI, USA               
Mary Anne Lanier, Trustee, Ray C. Anderson Foundation, Marietta, GA, USA     
Joanne Meredith, Senior Associate Director, Direct Response Marketing, Office of Annual Giving, Johns Hopkins Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA             
Danny Mitchell, Chairman, GodwinGroup, Jackson, MS, USA      
Jill Mosteller, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Portland State University, Portland, OR, USA     
Julie Sheppard, General Counsel, Florida Institute for Human & Machine Cognition (IHMC), Pensacola, FL, USA 
Ann Wead Kimbrough, Dean, School of Journalism & Graphic Communication, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL, USA               
Sheldon Wolf, CEO & President, Spellex Corporation, Tampa, FL, USA    
Brenda J. Wrigley, APR, Associate Professor, Department of Public Relations, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA     

Committee Chair:
Kimberly Webb, Founder, Rockin’ Green, LLC, San Antonio, TX, USA

Stacey Clover, CEO, iCreative Media, Jackson, MO, USA
Tereson Dupuy, Founder, FuzziBunz Diapers, Lafayette, LA, USA              
Jill Farrand, Director of Public Relations, QuiBids, Oklahoma City, OK, USA            
Donna Hinkelman, VP Corporate Communications, Harland Clarke, San Antonio, TX, USA             
Nancy Justice, Global Director Customer Service, Braiform, Asheville, NC, USA  
Maria Mattsson, Manager, Guest Services, Royal Caribbean International & Azamara Club Cruises, Miami, FL, USA          
Hannah Montroy, Enterprise BPI Manager, Shamrock Foods Company, Commerce City, CO, USA             
Karen Osper, Owner, The Nautical Dog, Andover, MA, USA        
Bernice Maria Paolozzi, International Consultant, Dublin, Ireland              
Lesley Rotole, CEO, Great Lakes Promotions, Lake Orion, MI, USA           
Lisa Versaci, Cofounder, Emergent Order LLC, Austin, TX, USA   

Committee Chair:
Sandra Richardson, Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer, Métier, Ltd., Healdsburg, CA, USA

Susan Barnes, CEO, Barnes & Company, Dixon, CA, USA               
Patricia Boggs, President and General Manager, Harmony Social Services, Reston, VA, USA         
Delinda Fitzgerald, IS Project Management Office Director, Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA              
Vicki Ann Frawley, Director, Operations & Client Excellence, Blackbaud, Inc., Melrose, MA, USA
Victoria Gallegos, Owner, Save the Planet Pets, Albuquerque, NM, USA               
Yolanda Gallegos, Owner/Principal, Gallegos Legal Group, Albuquerque, NM, USA          
Ellen Ginsberg, Vice President, Nuclear Energy Institute, Washington, DC, USA 
Barb Girson, President, My Sales Tactics, New Albany, OH, USA
Julie N. Jakopic, President/CEO, iLead Strategies, Alexandria, VA, USA   
Kimberly Kaselionis, Chairman/CEO, Circle Bank, Novato, CA, USA           
Janet LeBlanc, Owner, Janet LeBlanc & Associates, Toronto, Canada       
Julie Lenzer Kirk, Executive Director, Maryland Center for Entrepreneurship, Columbia, MD, USA             
Mary MacPherson, President, M2Works LLC, Reston, VA, USA  
Brad McManus, Senior Consultant & Executive Coach, Integral Development, Perth, Western Australia, Australia            
Elaine Metlin, Senior Partner, Dickstein Shapiro, Washington, DC, USA  
Sharyn Morris, VP, Relationship Manager, Eagle Investment Systems, LLC, Wellesley, MA, USA 
Cynthia Murray, President & CEO, North Bay Leadership Council, Petaluna, CA, USA       
Dotti Patton, Project Management Office Director, Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA              
April Young, Managing Director, Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Mclean, VA, USA   

Committee Chair:
Julia Zamorska, VP of Corporate Communications, iolo technologies, LLC, Los Angeles, CA, USA 

Anurag Abinashi*, Consultant, Strategy and Decision Sciences, PA Consulting Group, Amersham, UK        
Eline Altenburgh-van den Bruek, Executive Director, Quid Novi Foundation, Atlanta, GA, USA    
Neda Azarfar, Senior Director, Communications & Strategy, MySpace, Irvine, CA, USA   
Malika Bounaira-Siraji, Cofounder, Access International, Inc., Los Angeles, CA, USA         
Joanna Gorska, Trainee Solicitor, Latham & Watkins LLP, London, UK      
Kim Haley Small, General Manager, Pepsico, Purchase, NY, USA               
Laura Howe, Productions Supervisor, DreamWorks Animation, Los Angeles, CA, USA     
Peter Justen, CEO, Five Plus, Middleburg, VA, USA         
Vanessa Montes Gubin, VP, Digital and Marketing Strategy, The Madison Square Garden Company, Brooklyn, NY, USA
Chris Moschovitis, CEO, iTMG, New York, NY, USA           
Adrian Pollner, Counsel, O’Melveny and Myers, Los Angeles, CA, USA   
Mustafizur Rahman, Director, S.S. Shipping and Chartering Ltd, London, UK        
Colin Smith, Founder & Director, Trade Chase, Oxford, OX, UK  
Brandon Wells, Marketing Manager, Microsoft, Sammamish, WA, USA 

Committee Chair:
Anna Murray, President, emedia, llc, New York, NY, USA   

Kirsten Bischoff, Cofounder, HatchedIt, LLC, Springfield, NJ, USA             
Megan Brown, Founding Partner, HATCHEDit.com, LLC, Westfield, NJ, USA         
John W. Cary, Director of Digital Products, The Nation, New York, NY, USA           
Camilla Colegrave, Consultant, New York, NY, USA          
Lindsay Frucci, Principal, Lindsay Frucci Consulting, Brooklyn, NY, USA    
Kristina Garcia Rivera, Digital Ad Product Director, Hearst Digital Media, Bronx, NY, USA 
Regina Glick, Director of Marketing, Summit Business Media, New York, NY, USA             
Keith Goggin, Partner, Integral Derivatives LLC, New York, NY, USA         
Hannah Howard, Director of Copywriting and Product Marketing, Fairway Market, New York, NY, USA  
Sheryl Jones, Managing Director, Ozuro Fine Jewelry, New York, NY, USA            
Nicole Meola, VP Sports Digital Content and Strategy, Showtime Networks, New York, NY, USA
Denise Olding, Creative Director, Ingrid Design, Louisville, KY, USA           
Colette Sartor, Professor, UCLA Writers Extension Program, Los Angeles, CA, USA           
Lisanne Sartor, Writer/Director, Gemelle Films, Los Angeles, CA, USA    
Annie Shields, Community Editor, The Nation, New York, NY, USA           
Cynthia Stillwell, Executive Director, The International Women's Writing Guild, New York, NY, USA          
Charlene Weisler, CEO, Weisler Media, LLC, New York, NY, USA
Marci Weisler, COO, Eachscape, New York, NY, USA       
Samantha Wolfe, Consultant, SGWB Consulting, New York, NY, USA       

*Statements and decisions by Judges are not made on behalf of PA Consulting and do not reflect any representations or endorsements by PA Consulting.

The following professionals participated in the preliminary judging of the 2012 (9th annual) Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, the world's premier business awards for women executives, entrepreneurs, and the organizations they run. Their average scores determined the 2012 Finalists, which were announced on October 11. We thank them for their time, insights, and support. (For a complete list of Finalists by category, visit www.StevieAwards.com/Women. 2012 winners will be announced at an awards dinner on November 9 at the Marriott Marquis in New York. Click here to order tickets.)

Husam Mahmoud Abdallah, Sr. Specialist Strategy & Business Excellence, Dubai Airport Free Zone, Dubai, United Arab Emirates             
Laurie Albo, Asset Manager, H & R Retail, Inc., a ChainLinks Company, Baltimore, MD, United States               
Ahmed Alhai, BRM Specialist, ADCO, Dubai, United Arab Emirates           
Kerry Allen, Principal, Santa Barbara Studio, Santa Barbara, CA, United States     
Amal Al-Najjar, Human Resources Manager, Fluor Corporation - Kuwait, Ahmadi, Kuwait               
Kausar Asif, Sr. Manager Marketing Services, Cupola Pakistan Limited, Karachi, Pakistan               
Ani Atanasova, CEO, Pixelhunters, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Maria Bailey, CEO, Blue Suit Mom Media, Pompano Beach, FL, United States               
Charlotte Ball, Program Director, The PUSH Academy, Norwich, United Kingdom               
Mona Baset, Senior VP - Digital Sales & Marketing, Bank of America, Charlotte, NC, United States               
Nevena Batselova, Marketing and strategic planning manager, BNP Paribas, Sofia, Bulgaria               
Heather Bayfield, President, Life Management Advisors, Jacksonville Beach, FL, United States               
Janet Beale, Manager, Platform Investment Implementation, MLC Limited, East Lindfield, NSW, Australia               
Denise Bentele, President & CEO, Common Ground Public Relations, Chesterfield, MO, United States               
Tya Bolton, CEO, Exceptional Business Solutions, LLC, Waldorf, MD, United States               
Erin Bolton, VP Strategic Services, Pivot Communications, Salt Lake City, UT, United States               
Vanessa Borg, Director, Consultancy & Training Acumen Centre Ltd., Gudja, Malta          
Fran Bosecker, Account Director, Vantage Communications, Thiells, NY, United States   
Margo Boster, CEO, ImpaQ Solutions, LLC, Scottsdale, AZ, United States               
Marcia  Brand, President, Creative Marketing Concepts, Inc., Alexandria, VA, United States               
Tina Brooks, VP Marketing, Brooks Pepperfire Foods, Rigaud, Canada    
Crystal Brown-Tatum, CEO/President, Crystal Clear Communications, Shreveport, LA, United States               
Jane Bryant, Director, Spire Communications, Potomac Falls, VA, United States               
Julie Calzone, CEO, Calzone & Associates, Lafayette, LA, United States  
Diana Carrico, Director, Liderplas, Sobreda, Portugal, Portugal    
Denise Clancey, President, Teledirect Partners, Boston, MA, United States               
Pamela  Clark, Founder/Director, New Heights Educational Group, Inc, Defiance, OH, United States               
David Clarke, Managing Partner, BGT Partners, Miami, FL, United States               
Marla Coffin, President & CEO, MARDA Management Inc., Windsor, Canada      
Etta Cohen, Founder, Forward Ladies, Leeds, United Kingdom  
Kimberly Cooley, Communications Director, Henderson Hutcherson & McCullough, Chattanooga, TN, United States               
Irene Corpuz, Senior Analyst, Change Masters International, Abu Dhabi, UAE, United Arab Emirates               
Kate Darcy Hohenthal, Founder, The Birthday Club, Manchester, CT, United States         
Susan Davis, President, Susan Davis International, Washington, DC, United States           
Robyn Davis, Owner, When I Need Help, Columbus, OH, United States  
Danielle Di-Masi, Business Etiquette Expert, Click! Training & Consulting, Sydney, Australia               
Rochelle Ekanayake, Managing Director, MrPierce Studios International Asia (pvt) LTD, Colombo, Sri Lanka               
Lori Ericson, Product Planning and Development, Epicor Software, Denver, CO, United States    
Jennifer Finke, CEO, Red Jeweled Media, Denver, CO, United States      
Silke Fleischer, CEO, ATIV Software, San Francisco, CA, United States     
Julia Forsyth, Senior Global Marketing Manager, GSMA, Atlanta, GA, United States        
Lisa Frank, Product Manager, NFPA, Quincy, MA, United States
Lorretta Gasper, Owner/Principal, Wind Rose Communications, Atlanta, GA, United States               
Barb Girson, President, My Sales Tactics, New Albany, OH, United States             
Marina Go, Publisher, Private Media, Alexandria, NSW, Australia             
Karen Greco, Director, Business Optimization, Unified, Sewell, NJ, United States               
Sheila Green, Founder and CEO, Green Productivity Solutions, Jacksonville Beach, FL, United States       
Linda Groarke, Digital Project Manager, Morgan Stanley, New York, NY, United States               
Marcia Hall, President & CEO, Marcia Hall & Associates, LLC, Severna Park, MD, United States               
Renda Hawwa, Corporate Communications, IntelligentMDx, Boston, MA, United States               
Qetesha Haynes, Marketing Professional, HQCI, Chicago, IL, United States          
Charity Herb, Online Content Administrator, American Greetings, Cleveland, OH, United States               
Ronford Howell, CEO, Bottle Service, New York, NY, United States          
Idelle Howitt, Managing Director, Howitt & Associates, New York, NY, United States               
Sumaiya Hussain, Asst. Manager, Compensation & Benefits, Dubai Electricity & Water Authority, Dubai, United Arab Emirates   
Clara HY Wang, Founder & President, KAI Communication (China) Co., Ltd., Beijing, China               
Anne Jefferies, GVM Scorecard and Business Reporting, AT&T Global Vendor Management, Biggar, United Kingdom               
Keum Jin Woo, Professor, Department Chair, Division of Design, Kosin University, Busan 606-701, South Korea               
Jane Johnson, Director Content Development, Pivot Communications, Salt Lake City, UT, United States               
Rebecca Jones, Owner, bScene Marketing Solutions, Miami, FL, United States  
Rose Jurczewski, Owner, Funxion Fuzion, Roselle, IL, United States        
Barbara Kasoff, COO, Women Impacting Public Policy, Washington, DC, United States    
Craig Kavicky, Director, Business Development-North America n, FITCH, Inc., Columbus, OH, United States               
Patricia Marie Kelly, Owner, Marie Kelly Unlimited, Algonquin, IL, United States
Shamina Krishna, Curriculum Development, Research & Advanced Training He, Smart Reader® Worldwide Sdn. Bhd., Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia               
Kristen Kuhns, EVP, TierSolution, Brentwood, CA, United States               
Jean Madden, Managing Director, Street Swags Ltd, Upper Brookfield, Australia               
Lynne Marcus, President, Marcus + Company, Albuquerque, NM, United States               
Kristin Marquet, President, Marquet Media, LLC, New York, NY, United States  
Linda Marshall-Smith, Founder & CEO, Soapdom, Inc., Santa Monica, CA, United States               
Carol Marx, Past President, American Agri-Women, Rickreall, OR, United States               
Maria Mattsson, Manager, Guest Services, Royal Caribbean International & Azamara Club Cruises, Miami, FL, United States               
Renie McClay, Founder, Learning consultant, Inspired Learning LLC, Wheeling, IL, United States               
Jeannine McHenry, Art Director/Principle, J. McHenry Design, Marina Del Rey, CA, United States               
Colin  McKillop, CEO, Butcher Enterprises, Windsor, ON, Canada             
Joanne Meredith, Senior Associate Director, Direct Response Marketing, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States  
Jon Michail, CEO, Image Group International, South Yarra, Australia        
Varvara Milovanova, Entrepreneur, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom  
Jane Morgan, Product Line Director, APC by Schneider Electric, Galway, Ireland
Angela Morgan, Founder, Lead Star LLC, Fairfax, VA, United States         
Pat Mussieux, Founder, Wealthy Women Leaders, Ontario, Canada       
Leslie O'Connor, Owner, Search Wizards, Atlanta, GA, United States      
Gabriela Olaru, Lecturer, Yeditepe University, Istanbul, Turkey 
Erica Olsen, Co-Founder, M3 Planning, Reno, NV, United States               
Kirsten Osolind, Founding CEO, Re:invention, Chicago, IL, United States
Mark O'Toole, Senior vice president, H|B, Newton, MA, United States  
Kaan Ozokmen, Agent Manager, K-Tex Sourcing & Buying Agency, Istanbul, Turkey        
Patricia Pereira, Director of Advertising, The Chemical Company, Jamestown, RI, United States               
Shalini Perera Bandaranayake, Director, Saladura (Pvt) Ltd, Colombo, Sri Lanka  
Heather Petersen, CEO, National Merchants Association, Temecula, CA, United States               
Harish Pillai, COO, Indus health plus pvt ltd, Pune, India 
Penny Pompei, National Executive Director, Women Construction Owners & Executives USA, Alexandria, VA, United States               
Fabi Preslar, President, SPARK Publications, Matthew, NC, United States             
Jesintha Rajaratnam, Managing Partner, Joje India Consultants - Finance and HR, Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates               
Emma Real, Corporate Communications Specialist, AECOM, Chicago, IL, United States   
Erica Rehberg, Regional Administrator, ConAm, Federal Way, WA, United States              
Lena Requist, Chief Operating Officer, Ontraport, Santa Barbara, CA, United States        
Sandra Rinomato, Broker, Sandra Rinomato Realty, Toronto, ON, Canada             
Christina Robinson, Patient Care Representative, Group Health Coop, Seattle, WA, United States               
Liz Rowell, Managing Director, Red Ark, St Leonards, NSW, Australia       
Mary Jo Rulnick, Author, Warner Books, Pittsburgh, PA, United States 
Lesley Salinero, Principal/ ESE Director, MCSD, Marathon, FL, United States 
Parna Sarkar-Basu, Vice President, Marketing Communications, Verivo Software, Waltham, MA, United States               
Amy Scarlino, President & CEO, Catchpole Corporation, Boston, MA, United States               
Katja Schroeder, President, Expedition PR, Brooklyn, NY, United States
Aysegul Seferoglu, External Communications Director, Effect PR/ e.a. Edelman Worldwide, Istanbul, Turkey               
Bae Seog Bong, Director, KCU, Seoul, South Korea          
William Sheridan, President, Cynosure Productions, Ltd., Jupiter, FL, United States               
Gary Shumaker, Senior Consultant, Gary E. Shumaker, Inc., Fairfax, VA, United States   
Susan Smith, AVP Bus. Process Mgmt & Change Delivery, Aviva Canada, Toronto, Canada               
Darci Steranko, COO, Footsteps to Family, Las Vegas, NV, United States               
Kim Stiglitz, Director of Lifecycle Marketing, VerticalResponse Inc., San Francisco, CA, United States               
Rosemary Stockdale, Managing Director, Sterling Marketing Ltd, London, United Kingdom               
Tyrus Sturgis, Business Development & Corporate Strategist, Purry Communications Group, Los Angeles, CA, United States               
Natalija Sudina, Chief Executive, Best4Kid LTD, London, United Kingdom               
Heena Sunil Bulchandani, Specialist-Training & Development, HR training, DEWA, Dubai, United Arab Emirates               
Letty Swank, Founder, Giftwrapperz, Los Gatos, CA, United States         
Veronique Topping, Web Developer, WomanOwnedNewYork.com, Rockville Centre, NY, United States               
Theresa Ulyatt, President, Smarter Systems, Charlotte, NC, United States           
Robin Vaitonis, Senior VP, Tanis Communications, San Jose, CA, United States   
Anne Walker, Founder & CEO, International Dance Supplies Ltd, Newton Abbot, United Kingdom               
K H Wang, Group Executive Director, Smart Reader® Worldwide Sdn. Bhd., Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia               
Antonie Whittier, Founder, Whittier Legal Consulting, Dallas, TX, United States 
Floor Wijburg, CEO, Yes We Care, Rotterdam, Netherlands         
Leah Wilkinson, Partner, Wilkinson Shein Communications, Baltimore, MD, United States               
Melissa Wilson, Owner, Wilson Monnig Creative, St. Peters, MO, United States
Laureen Wishom, President, Masterpiece Solutions, LLC, Houston, TX, United States               
Glenn Wohl, Marketing Manager, AT&T, Bedminster, NJ, United States
Pam Young, President, Unique Innovations Inc., Lancaster, PA, United States  

Fairfax, VA – October 11, 2012 – Finalists were announced today in the 9th Annual Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, the international competition recognizing the accomplishments of outstanding women executives, business owners, and the organizations they run.  

The Stevie Awards for Women in Business are produced by the creators of the prestigious American Business Awards and International Business Awards.  The Stevies are widely considered to be the world’s premier business awards.

This year’s Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners will be announced at an awards dinner at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City on Friday, November 9. 

More than 1,200 entries were submitted this year by organizations and individuals around the world for consideration in more than 90 categories including Executive of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, Women Helping Women, and Communications Campaign of the Year. 

Among the leading contenders with multiple Finalists are Accenture, Chicago, IL USA; Aegis Media, South Africa; ClientAttraction.com, Stamford, CT, USA; DHL Global Forwarding, Miami, FL, USA; Fresh  Easy Neighborhood Market, El Segundo, CA, USA; Friends of the Global Fund Africa, Lagos, Nigeria; iolo technologies, LLC, Los Angeles, CA, USA; McKinsey Development, Inc., Warrenton, VA, USA; Medicard Finance Inc., Toronto, Canada; MWW, East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Pivot Communications, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Reading Room, London, United Kingdom; Sentis Pty Ltd, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; Vaco Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; VerticalResponse, San Francisco, CA, USA; and Vodafone Istanbul, Turkey.

For a complete list of Finalists by category, visit www.StevieAwards.com/Women.

Finalists were chosen by more than 130 business professionals worldwide during preliminary judging.  Members of five final judging committees will determine the Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award placements from among the Finalists during final judging.

About the Stevie Awards
Stevie Awards are conferred in four programs: The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.  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.

Today, Friday September 28, is the final entry deadline for the 2012 (9th annual) Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, the world's premier business awards for women executives, entrepreneurs, and the organizations they run. 

To begin your submission process, you should:

1. Request an entry kit. 
The entry kit contains all of the information you'll need to be able to prepare and submit entries to this year's awards. All entries are submitted online. You can begin by registering here.

2. Review the categories.
All female entrepreneurs, executives, and the organizations they run, worldwide, are eligible to be nominated. The Stevie Awards for Women in Business feature more than 80 categories to recognize achievement in many facets of worklife, including:

• Entrepreneur Awards
• Executive Awards
• Management Team Awards
• Company of the Year Awards
• PR Awards
• Marketing Awards
• New Product Awards
• Website & App Awards
• and More

3. Submit your entries.
Select your categories, write your submissions according to the instructions, and submit your entries.

Three tips to help you make the most out of your entries include:

1. Determine Who or What You Want to Nominate, and in Which Categories
Decide which individuals, organizations, or work  that you will nominate, then select the most appropriate categories for those entries. 

2. Use the 2011 Stevie-winning Entries as Models
2011 Stevie-winning entries are examples of entries that judges scored highly, and we recommend that you emulate their style, tone, and structure.  Click here to go to the list of 2011 honorees.

3. Prepare Your Entries
Stevie-winning entries are:

a. Well-written.  They are terse and succinct.  Their tone is modest, even when describing the most impressive accomplishments.
b. Focused on a few accomplishments.  Describe in detail just a few accomplishments, instead of listing many accomplishments in brief.
c. Accompanied by supporting information.  Provide links to online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in your entries.

The Stevie Awards for Women in Business are judged by many leading women entrepreneurs, executives and luminaries in business.  More than 200 professionals worldwide will participate in the judging process this year.

The 2012 results will be announced at an awards dinner at Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City on November 9.

Need help answering  your last minute questions?  Email us at help@stevieawards.com  or call us at + 1 703-547-8389 and we'll get back to you right away.