• Discuss.io is a smart video platform that connects brands to consumers and provides insights into conversations 
• Leading global companies use Discuss.io to capture and share insights in real-time
• The company’s products saw a surge in use as a result of COVID and provides tools to fill the gap in the video conferencing market 

About Discuss.io

Discuss.io is an enterprise-level smart video platform helping businesses make better-informed decisions by using experience and innovation to set up, capture, analyze and share consumer conversations to generate aha-moments and insights at scale. Leading global companies and their partners trust Discuss.io to enable deep, purposeful connections with their key audiences and to securely capture and share insights across their organizations in real-time.

Traditional enterprise video conferencing technology is generic and built for broad use. Discuss.io is purpose-built to enable meeting rooms of the future that allow companies to get more out of their video conversations. Brands connect with customers anywhere around the world and easily and securely record, categorize, transcribe, share and store insights, allowing companies to make better informed, strategic business decisions, whether big or small, based on their own direct experiences with consumers, rather than assumptions based on historical, behavioral, and third-party data. 

The company’s mission has always been focused on helping customers get insights from having more conversations with more consumers through innovations in video and workflow. While Discuss.io has developed several new products to combat the challenges brought on by COVID specifically, the company has worked to develop products that allow brands to adapt to changing and more agile environments since its founding by looking to the future of video conferencing. In 2019, Discuss.io launched its Pulse program, which enables live video conversations directly between consumers and marketers globally, enabling all marketers within an organization to build and strengthen consumer empathy. In 2020, the company refined and developed several products to enable businesses to better adapt to their new virtual settings, including private and enhanced chat features, new options for message editing and deleting, and personal meeting rooms that have also been built to provide users with the efficiency benefits of the platform, like interactive whiteboards, and integrated discussion guides. 

More recently, the platform launched its Respondent Management tool, an industry-first DIY hub feature that allows agencies and brands with their own panels and databases to connect and manage their respondents in one place, eliminating the need for multiple tools and systems, thus reducing friction in the consumer insights process.

While video conferencing has seen an uptick in light of the pandemic due to the need to connect virtually, many video platforms weren't developed with the intention of being used for important business conversations and lack a number of features that can be beneficial for a professional setting. The products that Discuss.io has developed as immediate solutions for COVID-19 also speak to a current gap in the video conferencing market, specifically, by providing a number of integrated tools that can aid all aspects of internal and external business communications across multiple industries.

Discuss.io helps enterprise market researchers, UX researchers, product managers, sales professionals, brand managers, and CX departments ramp consumer conversations and streamline the workflow. 

Discuss.io won the Silver Stevie Award for Company / Organization Categories - Most Innovative Company of the Year - Up to 100 Employees in The 2021 American Business Awards®.

Interested in entering The 2022 American Business Awards? Request the entry kit. 

Themen anschaulich erläutern, Kontakte für Unternehmensbotschaften sensibilisieren und Produkte greifbar darstellen: die Kategorien für Videos würdigen herausragende unternehmensbezogene Videos.

 

Videos gehören zu den wirkungsvollsten Marketing-, Trainings- und Kommunikationstools, die modernen Unternehmen zur Verfügung stehen. Professionelle Videos spielen in der heutigen Zeit eine große Rolle und Bewegtbilder sind aus unserem Alltag nicht mehr wegzudenken. Potenzielle Kunden lassen sich mit Videos viel häufiger erreichen als mit statischen Bannern. Forschungsergebnisse zeigen, dass zwei Drittel der Menschen Informationen besser verstehen, wenn sie visuell vermittelt werden. Umso wichtiger ist es, durch kreative Ideen aufzufallen und Mehrwerte von Produkten oder Dienstleistungen auf höchstem Niveau zu kommunizieren. Durch die verkaufspsychologische Gestaltung eines Produkt- oder Unternehmensvideos schauen Kontakte aufmerksam zu und werden nachhaltig geprägt.

Unternehmensvideos kommen nicht nur im Werbe- und Marketingbereich zum Einsatz. Für viele Zwecke bieten Unternehmensfilme eine praktische Alternative zur schriftlichen Kommunikation. Auch für das Recruiting ist ein Video ein erfolgreiches Mittel, um sich entscheidend von der Konkurrenz abzuheben.

Kurz: mit Unternehmensvideos wecken Sie Aufmerksamkeit, können Ihr Unternehmen authentisch präsentieren, Produkte und Dienstleistungen besser darstellen und Vertrauen schaffen. Die Möglichkeiten für den Einsatz von Unternehmensfilmen sind grenzenlos.

Ihr Video im Mittelpunkt

Nominieren Sie Ihr Unternehmensvideo in den Kategorien für Videos bei den German Stevie® Awards!

In diesen Kategorien können Sie Ihr Video einreichen:

• Ausbildung
• Branded Entertainment
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Dokumentarfilm
• Events & Webcasts
• Fashion & Lifestyle
• Food & Drink
• Imagefilm Unternehmen/Unternehmensübersicht
• Interne/Mitarbeiterkommunikation
• Magazinformat
• Motivationsvideo
• Nachrichten & Politik
• Orientierung
• Öffentlicher Dienst & Aktivismus
• PR
• Reise & Tourismus
• Sicherheit & Schutz
• Sport
• Vertrieb
• Wissenschaft & Bildung

Eine vollständige Liste der Kategorien und weitere Informationen finden Sie hier.

 Diese Eyecatcher konnten 2020 überzeugen

Die Communication Consultants GmbH aus Stuttgart wurde im letzten Jahr für den BITZER HR Azubi Film mit einem Gold Award für das beste Ausbildungsvideo ausgezeichnet. Im Auftrag von BITZER drehte die PR-Agentur einen Film, der potenziellen Auszubildenden zeigt, was sie bei BITZER erwartet. Mit dem Film wirbt das Unternehmen authentisch und witzig um talentierten Nachwuchs, indem es die Zielgruppe direkt und authentisch anspricht. Der HR-Industriemechaniker-Film spielt nicht nur auf dem grünen Sofa in Stuttgart, das in allen BITZER HR-Filmen zu sehen ist, sondern auch im BITZER Produktionswerk in Leipzig. Die beiden Auszubildenden Oliver Dittmann und Christian Stolze, die als Hauptdarsteller auftreten, fühlen sich sichtbar wohl vor der Kamera. Die angehenden Industriemechaniker führen die Zuschauer bis in ihre Ausbildungswerkstatt. Sie erzählen, was ihre Ausbildung beinhaltet und was sie an ihrer Arbeit und an BITZER besonders mögen. Oliver und Christian werden als echtes Team gezeigt. Sie helfen sich gegenseitig und spielen sich sympathische Streiche. Der Film gibt außerdem einen Einblick in das Hobby, das die beiden miteinander teilen: Nach der Arbeit schwingen sie sich auf ihre Motorräder und genießen das Gefühl der Freiheit.

Mit mehr als 20.200 Aufrufen auf YouTube ist das am 18.07.2019 veröffentlichte Video der Hit unter den BITZER HR-Filmen. Kein Wunder, dass BITZER überaus zufrieden ist und am Ball bleibt: Der BITZER HR-Industriemechaniker-Film ist Teil einer auf sieben Filme angewachsenen Reihe.

 

 „Was bedeutet eigentlich Glück?“. Dieser Frage ist die Panda Pictures GmbH aus München gemeinsam mit dem Bayerischen Volkshochschulverbands in einem Imagefilm nachgegegangen. Ziel des Films „Volkshochschulen in Bayern: Das sind Wir!“ war es, die VHS als vertrauenswürdigen, menschlichen, sympathischen, authentischen, kompetenten und erfahrenen Partner in der Erwachsenenbildung - nah am Menschen und erreichbar vor Ort darzustellen. Mit Hilfe der Protagonisten, welche freiwillige Dozenten und Teilnehmer diverser Kurse der Volkshochschule sind, ist es der Panda Pictues GmbH gelungen, die Vielfalt der VHS aufzuzeigen und dem Film eine sehr persönliche, emotionale Note zu geben. Für das gelungene Video wurde das Unternehmen mit einem goldenen Stevie ausgezeichnet.

Eine vollständige Liste der Gewinner finden Sie hier. 

 

 

 

Workplace cultures and behaviors play a big part in determining employee motivation and performance. Media Partners is a production company committed to helping clients build strong, productive work environments through their engaging training films on challenging topics.

No one likes working with uncivil or downright toxic people, but even the best and happiest organizations have their share of them. Toxic workplace behavior lowers overall productivity and performance, affects loyalty and motivation, and opens up the organization to lawsuits and public defamation. To actually change employee behavior for the better, companies should consider investing in training people skills.

A recent Harvard Business School study of more than 60,000 employees clearly demonstrated this need for workplace behavior training. It revealed that uncivil behavior in work environments can cost companies millions. Nearly half the employees subjected to incivility “decreased their work effort” and deliberately spent less time at work. Another 38 percent “intentionally decreased” the quality of their work, a quarter admitted to taking their frustrations out on customers, and over 10 percent resigned from jobs due to uncivil treatment.

Unfortunately, most corporate behavior training programs are too dry and fail to address or to engage employees in a meaningful way.

“Most corporate training is truly bad,” says Karen Edwards, vice-president of marketing for Stevie-winner Media Partners, a learning and development organization based in Bellevue, Washington, United States.

Media Partners produces story-based, cinematic-quality, engaging training films to address challenging topics, such as sexual harassment, bullying, and workplace violence.

“Most people are surprised to know there really is good, engaging training on some of the toughest topics. With our programs, employees don’t yawn, roll their eyes, or fall asleep,” says Edwards.

Media Partners is one of a handful of learning organizations that are leveraging the power of storytelling to create more high-performing, respectful workplaces.

Why Use Storytelling?

Neuroscientist Paul Zak and his team work extensively on the physiological and behavioral effects of storytelling. Through a recent experiment, they concluded that the more a story resonates with a person, the more likely it is to modify behavior.

While the power of storytelling is only being scientifically proven now, it has been used traditionally and culturally as a behavioral modification tool for centuries. Most people grow up on a healthy diet of stories, which consciously or subconsciously shapes the way they interact with others.

“Nature shaped us to be ultra-social, and hence to be sharply attentive to character and plot. We are adapted to physiologically interact with stories,” writes Jay Bhalla in a Scientific American article titled “It Is in Our Nature to Need Stories.”

It makes perfect sense, therefore, that organizations should utilize storytelling to create positive behavioral changes in employees.

Show, Don’t Tell

Learning and development organizations typically deliver training programs either textually or orally. This means employees either have to read through tomes of textual material or to sit through presentations and lectures, many of which they’d rather not attend.

It’s not too difficult, therefore, to see why companies like Media Partners are veering toward video as the training medium of choice. Videos are one of the most compelling ways to engage people, and they are being consumed on a massive scale. Mobile video consumption is rising 100 percent every year, over 50 percent of people watch videos online every day, and almost 60 percent of senior executives say that, if there are both text and video options about a topic on one page, they prefer to watch the video (Forbes).

Media Partners has leveraged video-based storytelling to deliver over 150 original, high-quality training videos that creatively address workplace behavioral issues.

Their unique approach to workplace training led to a Silver Stevie win in the Training Video category at the 17th Annual American Business Awards®, 2019, for their training video titled “Once & for All: Stopping Sexual Harassment at Work.”

Interested in entering The American Business Awards this year? The entry deadline is February 12, 2020. 

The team at Vend, a San Francisco, CA based point-of-sale software company in the USA, has built a multitude of features into their retailer software that can be confusing to the average person—from inventory management and digital receipt generation to customer loyalty capabilities and an analytics dashboard.

Such abundant functionality is great for users, but can be a headache for the marketing team. How do you convey all those benefits in a short presentation that doesn’t lose the audience’s attention?

Vend seems to have found the answer, as evidenced by a brief video it shares with prospects via YouTube and other channels. Using in-house talent, including writers Simon Pound and Nick Houldsworth and their Director of Design, Michael Ramirez, the segment earned the company its second Gold Stevie® Award in three years.

The goal: communicate everything the app can do, in just two minutes. That’s no easy task when your product’s prime benefit is being an all-in-one solution that retailers can turn to for their sales optimization needs.

The creatives at Vend developed a video that laid out the software’s top five selling points, but also imparted a lively feel that keeps the viewer engaged. To do that, they used animation that quickly bounces from one scene to the next. Underscoring the narration is buoyant music—a contribution from James Dansey—that gives the work a lively, playful feel.

One of the virtues of the video is that, for its considerable scope, it never loses the viewer. The uncluttered graphics certainly help. Throughout the piece, for example, the team uses the same flower pot to represent the merchandise it can help users manage.

The resulting production is proof that you don’t need an off-the-wall idea or gimmicks to make a great video. Sometimes a simple idea and solid execution will do the trick.

The payoff: a Gold Stevie in The 2017 American Business Awards for best video in the sales-technology category—not bad for a $5,000 internal production. Considering the company brought home a Gold in 2015 for a product overview video, the creative team is clearly on a roll.

Reflecting on that initial win, Pound says the impact was significant. “That was great. It helped us recruit, get media attention, and double down on a creative approach,” he says. “It opened doors with partners and led to us winning other awards in Stevies around the world.”

The Growing Role of Video 

Since its founding in 2010, Vend’s cloud-based point-of-sale and retail platform has become the tool of choice for sellers around the globe. It’s now used by more than 20,000 stores in over 150 countries. Through its mobile platform, the company likes to say that users are able to run “the next generation of retail.”

In addition to its San Francisco headquarters, the company now has offices in Auckland, Toronto, London, and Melbourne, and has raised more than $45 million (U.S.) from top-tier investors.

A smart marketing strategy has certainly helped hasten that growth. Online video, in particular, has proven to be an effective medium, Pound says, because it’s being used in a way that marketers can easily track.

“We are loving that with new retargeting and audience creation tools available to us we can now measure and convert from video, meaning it is back in the front of our plans,” he explains.

This latest video, entitled “5 ways Vend will transform your business,” has proven to be a particularly powerful tool. People who have seen the video on Vend’s website are twice as likely to request a demo and take a trial.

The production was also key to a re-engagement campaign for older leads that it was trying to convert. The effort led to 200 trials, simply by showing how the software has evolved in a compelling way.

It’s not the only video for which the company has received attention of late. Its recent e-commerce and PayPal videos have also won awards for their ability to drive results.

What’s the formula for success? “Quality, creativity, and originality,” says Pound. “And trying to make complex things simple.”

It’s a recipe that seems to be catching the attention of business owners, not to mention a panel of experienced judges. “Winning Stevie Awards have been huge for our business to ensure we are at a world-class level,” Pound says.

Media owners look for technology they can trust to help them gain complete control over monetized content with video advertising. SpotX is a company in the United States that considers themselves to be a one-stop solution, offering modern ad serving and sophisticated programmatic capabilities with an entire suite of integrations and ad units across all devices. This work has led them to win the Gold Stevie® Award for “Maverick of the Year” in The 2017 American Business Awards

Getting the message across

SpotX is a video advertising and monetization platform with 20 offices across the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific. Their technology powers modern ad serving, programmatic enablement, and other advanced video monetization tools for a variety of different media owners, such as PBS, Spotify, E.W. Scripps, Zynga, and Conde Nast. In October 2017, RTL Group, a leader across broadcast, content and digital, completed its 100% acquisition of SpotX which is currently combining its business with smartclip, a sister company. SpotX was founded in 2007 by Mike Shehan and Steve Swoboda, CEO and CFO respectively, and has nearly 600 employees.

Exceptional leadership

Publishers use SpotX to connect all of their demand sources—ad networks, DSPs (demand-side platforms), trading desks, and exchanges—creating a single place where media owners have complete control and actionable insights to maximize revenue. Mike Shehan is excited about the attention they’ve received.

“This award has helped us elevate our Chief Revenue Officer in-market and highlighted his exceptional leadership across members of our global team.”

Shehan continues on about how the Stevies specifically impacted their Chief Revenue Officer.

“Our Stevies winner, Sean Buckley, was named Chief Revenue Officer at SpotX last year at the age of 29, making him the fourth C-level executive at our company. Sean's tenacity and deep knowledge of the complex ad tech industry have contributed to his rapid rise and we're thrilled to have such a dynamic leader as a member of our team.”

Adapting to the Future

SpotX is deeply involved in the ongoing industry discussion around the rise of OTT video and the rapid adoption of programmatic advertising across desktop, mobile, and connected TV devices. “We've gained an early foothold in the burgeoning Asia-Pacific region, where mobile adoption over the last few years has spurred enormous growth in video advertising,” says Shehan.

As a leader in the over-the-top (OTT) video space, SpotX continues to drive home the importance of understanding how media buyers and sellers think about OTT advertising. In February 2018, the company announced detailed insights about the current state of video advertising on OTT in a report called “TV is Total Video: Predicting OTT and the Future of Video Advertising.” SpotX also announced a strategic integration with JW Player to launch Video Player Bidding, a new way to help reduce video latency and improve monetization for publishers with just one click.

SpotX is also a strong proponent of the server-to-server bidding model for ad inventory, aiming to educate the industry on the many benefits and efficiencies that it provides for media owners. Shehan comments on an organizational change they made that helped solidify their success today.

“We united the departments that serve our two distinct groups of customers under central leadership, spurring collaboration across our global teams.”

The adaptability of leadership in making sure that you’re always innovating and staying ahead of the competition is crucial in the world of video, and SpotX is all about “X marks the spot.”

It is two minutes and fifty-three seconds of simple, but remarkably effective storytelling.

A silver-haired man, dressed in a dark sport coat, walks through the streets of Norman, an unpretentious American town in the heart of Oklahoma. As he slowly meanders down the city streets, he recites a poem in his measured, slightly raspy voice.

The first verse describes a frazzled gentleman who, upon visiting a friend, begins to open up about his latest difficulties. If not for its business slant, like worries over “negative cash flow,” it would be easy to confuse the nuanced lines for those of Robert Frost.

Eventually, the friend he’s come to see changes his fortunes. Now, he has systems “designed with vision and purpose” that provide better insight into his operations. He and his wife start doing more travelling, thanks to generous dividend checks.

Watch McMahon's video here.

So it is that McMahon Marketing helped its client, a local business coach, address one of its biggest challenges: a lot of prospects simply don’t know what these coaches do, or why they need one.

“Small business owners feel isolated and stressed and believe others are thriving while they’re failing,” says CEO Korey McMahon, whose U.S.-based agency produced the video ad. 

McMahon says the spot’s success shows that there’s a viable way to address those challenges. “The message is: Others have done it. You can too, and here’s how.”

The resulting work, entitled “The Owner & The Coach,” earned McMahon’s agency a Gold Stevie Award for best Service Sales Video in The 2017 American Business Awards.

A compelling message

A big part of the ad’s appeal is its stripped-down, authentic vibe. It stars the client himself, Martin Holland, who intones a poem he originally wrote while taking his dog for a walk.

In it, Holland, who works for Las Vegas, America-based ActionCOACH, finds a way to demystify his industry, turning the business owner-coach relationship into a uniquely personal interaction.

“The thing about coaching is people don’t know what it is,” Holland told his hometown newspaper, The Norman Transcript. “Or if they do, they have misbegotten ideas about what it is. We were trying to show before and after of the stresses small business owners go through and how their lives change.” 

McMahon saw Holland’s rhyming verse as the perfect way to get his client’s message across. With a budget of just $1,000, he enlisted a local film director, Cooper Williams, to turn it into an ad.

“We created something that we felt like was top quality, that we were really proud of,” McMahon told the newspaper. “We took a shot, not really expecting to win anything because of the nature of the competition and the quality in the Stevie awards. It was very exciting for our team and all of the hard work that they do.”

Making an impact

Already, the video has been having a big effect. Holland says he recently spoke with two business owners in northeast Oklahoma who are perfect examples. The husband saw the need for a coach to help revitalize the company, but his wife was hesitant.

Upon seeing the video, that immediately changed. “She said, ‘I get it now. I’m all in.’”

The spot is also a huge shot in the arm for McMahon Marketing, a five-year-old inbound marketing agency with a staff of just seven full-time employees. Despite their lean budget, they were proud to win the Gold with several multinational firms with billions of dollars in revenue as their competition.

“It’s so important for not only our credibility, but also the talent we recruit,” says McMahon. “I feel we have the most talented team around, and this is just validation that we are creating nationally recognized videos and marketing services,” he said.

Today, the Stevie® Awards issued the call for entries for The 2017 (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.  Entry details are available at http://www.stevieawards.com/aba. 

REVIEW THE ENTRY KIT.

All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations -- public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. There are two early-bird entry deadlines this year – November 17 and December 14 – with discounted entry fees.  The final entry deadline is February 16, but late entries will be accepted through March 15 with payment of a late fee.

The 2017 awards will honor outstanding work since the beginning of 2016.

More than 200 professionals nationwide will participate in the judging process in February through April.  The Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie® Award winners will be announced on May 1, and celebrated during a gala event in New York City on June 20.

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

-Web Site Awards, App, Video, Live Event, and Other Media Awards

New categories for 2017 include:

• Mobile Site & App Awards: Family & Kids, Fashion & Beauty, Financial Services, and more
• Video Awards: Travel & Tourism
• Company/Organization Awards: Each of the 34 Company of the Year categories have been broken into 3 sub- categories by company size and/or revenue
• Management Awards: Apparel, Beauty & Fashion, and Consumer Services
• Marketing Awards: Branded Utility of the Year
• New Product Awards: Data Visualization Technology, Endpoint Security Management Solution, Event Management Solution, and more
• PR Awards: Communications Research, Healthcare, Media Relations, and more

Every new product or service nominated in The 2017 American Business Awards will automatically be included in voting for the People's Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite New Products. Voting will open to the general public in May, and the winners will be honored at The American Business Awards banquet on June 20.

The 13th 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, is currently accepting entries through July 13. This is the extended final entry deadline this year.

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. An international judging panel of more than 200 executives will determine the Stevie Award winners. Results will be announced in mid-August. Stevie Award winners will be presented their awards at a gala banquet in Rome, Italy on October 21.

Today we will highlight the Video Awards Categories. These categories recognize excellence in videos produced for a business- or work-related purpose that were first released or otherwise made public since January 1, 2015 .

Information to be submitted online for entries in these categories in the 2016 competition include: 

a. An essay of up to 125 words describing the video's purpose and results to date
b. If applicable, the video itself, in the form of an attachment or a URL, which you must attach to your entry through our attachment/link uploading tool
c. Optionally, you may list creative and production credits for your work - a list of the people and organizations that contributed to its development

We prefer that you submit your video online.  However, if you will submit your video on DVD for review by the judges, you must first submit your entry information online. Then print out a copy of your entry and mail it with one (1) copy of the DVD to: The Stevie Awards, 10560 Main Street, Suite 519, Fairfax, VA 22030. U.S.A.

Q01. Branded Entertainment
Q02. Corporate Overview
Q03. Events & Webcasts
Q04. Internal/Employee Communications
Q05. Magazine Format
Q06. Meeting Modules
Q07. Motivational
Q08. Orientation
Q09. P.R.: Annual Reports
Q10. P.R.: Government
Q11. P.R.: Industrial
Q12. P.R.: Media & Entertainment
Q13. P.R.: Non-Profit Fund Raising
Q14. P.R.: Other
Q15. P.R.: Technology
Q16. Sales: Direct Response Marketing
Q17. Sales.: Government
Q18. Sales.: Industrial
Q19. Sales.: Media & Entertainment
Q20. Sales.: Other
Q21. Sales.: Technology
Q22. Sales: Product Sales
Q23. Sales: Service Sales
Q24. Security/Safety
Q25. Tourism/Travel
Q26. Training
Q27. Viral

Past Stevie Award winners in the  Video Awards cateogries include:

• Passion Film, Mumbai, India: Shakti Bhog Brand Film- Corporate Overview
• PayPal, San Jose, CA USA: PayPal in 90 Encourages PayPal Employees to Be the Customer- Internal/Employee Communications
• Hyundai Heavy IndustriesCo., Ltd (HHI), Ulsan, South Korea: The World’s Leading Heavy Industries Company, HHI- P.R.: Technology
• Vend Limited, Auckland, New Zealand: Vend Ecommerce & TopShelf Style- Sales: Technology
• The Korea Scholarship Foundation (KOSAF), Seoul, South Korea: Kim Hung Ki Mentor Team- Training
• BBG Production, Istanbul, Turkey: Kerem Bürsin Destroys “Buffering”!- Viral
• …and many more!

The Stevie Awards are delighted to announce the eleven distinguished professionals who will chair the judging committees of The 2016 (14th annual) American Business Awards.

The American Business Awards are the premier business awards program in the U.S.A., with categories to recognize achievement in every facet of work life, from management to marketing, human resources to new products and websites.

The eleven committee chair selections are based on the categories that will be judged. Judging chairs helped to form their committees, each of which will be comprised of 10-20 other executives. 

Winners in this year's American Business Awards will be announced on
May 2.  Judging will take place from late March through April. Winners will be celebrated at an awards banquet in New York City on June 20.  Tickets will go on sale May 2.

 Here are this year's final judging committee chairs.

COMPANY/ORGANIZATION

Chair:
Robert Frost, Vice President, Customer Care
Carbonite, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts

Rob Frost is Vice President, Customer Care for Carbonite, a leading provider of hybrid backup (cloud and local) and recovery solutions for home users and businesses. Rob is hyper-focused on customer satisfaction and sets the highest standards for customer service. As VP of Customer Care, Rob and his award-winning, global customer care team continually strive to make sure every customer interaction is a positive experience.

Prior to joining Carbonite, Rob was Director of Client Services and Technical Support at Intronis. Rob also served as Senior Director of Support and Global Client Relations at Acronis, where he spent three years in Moscow, Russia, delivering global support in nine languages.

MANAGEMENT

Chair:
Jay Starkman, CEO
Engage PEO, Hollywood, Florida

In 2011, after more than two decades marked by substantial achievement within and outside the Professional Employer Organization (PEO) industry, Jay set out to build a new kind of PEO where quality service would be the driving focus of everything. That PEO is Engage. Today, Engage is one of the fastest-growing companies in the country.

Before forming Engage, Jay was president and CEO of AlphaStaff, a PEO, which he grew from a small player to a top-five industry leader. Jay sold the company in 2008 to a private equity group. Prior to AlphaStaff, Jay was president and CEO of OneChem, a software application provider to the chemical industry.  He also was managing partner of his own successful law firm, which specialized, in employment and commercial law. Among his numerous leadership awards, Jay most recently received the Gold Stevie® Award for Executive of the Year in the 2015 American Business Awards, and the Gold Award for Chief Executive Officer of the Year in the 2015 Golden Bridge Awards.

Jay is a previous member of the board of directors of the Employee Services Assurance Corporation (ESAC), the accrediting body for the PEO industry; and the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO).

MARKETING

Chair:
Gina Ellis-Strother, Director of Marketing
Charleston County Park & Recreation Commission, Charleston, South Carolina

Gina Ellis-Strother has been Director of Marketing for Charleston County Park & Recreation Commission since 2013.  She has had more than 20 years of experience in travel and technology marketing, and previous employers included American Airlines, SABRE, Worldspan, and Verizon Wireless.  

In 2015, the American Marketing Association of Charleston awarded Gina the Spark! Award for Marketer of the Year for her innovative rebranding and advertising work for Charleston County Parks. That same year, she was presented with the Gold Stevie Award for Marketer of the Year at the American Business Awards in Chicago. She is a member of the American Marketing Association, serves as an officer of the board at the Charleston Collegiate School, and continues to use her marketing expertise to support the nonprofit organization, The Parklands Foundation.  

Gina graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor Degree from Hunter College at The City University of New York, and received a Master of Business Administration at The Citadel Military College of South Carolina. She presently lives in Charleston, SC with her husband Troy and daughter Gabrielle.

PR/IR/CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

Chair:
Jock Breitwieser, Director, Corporate Communications
TriNet, San Jose, California

Jock Breitwieser runs corporate communications at TriNet, a strategic partner to small and medium-sized businesses for HR, payroll, employee benefits, employment law compliance, and risk mitigation. He drove the company’s communications during its IPO and is responsible for TriNet’s external communications and social media strategy.

Prior to TriNet, Jock spearheaded global public relations, customer references, and social media for Dell SonicWALL in 17 countries. He drove positioning and communications when the previously public company went private with Thoma Bravo in 2010 and during SonicWALL’s acquisition by Dell in 2012. Before that, he was global head of corporate communications and web marketing at CallidusCloud, a provider of cloud-based sales and marketing solutions. Before that, Jock worked at The Hoffman Agency, Edelman Worldwide, and
 EURO RSCG where he executed successful international PR and analyst relations programs in the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France, and Hong Kong for global clients in high-tech, telecommunications and financial services. He has also co-founded a network security startup, run a successful Kickstarter campaign, and served as marketing/communications advisor to startups. He has written a bestselling book on PR-practices, received numerous awards for excellence in communications, and was featured by Forrester Research for his exemplary approach to driving sales results with analyst relations.

Jock holds an M.A. in contemporary history, law, and political sciences from the University of Bochum, Germany. He also studied in Tours, France with a scholarship from the European Union. In his spare time, Jock enjoys international travel and competes in Triathlons.

Jock tells us: “Every year, The Stevie Awards honor the achievements of the very best organizations in the U.S. It’s an incredible honor to chair the group of outstanding experts that make up the Judging Committee for the Corporate Communications/IR/PR categories. The committee and I will take great pride in identifying the most deserving organizations and teams. It will be a pleasure to review the creative and highly professional submissions. I cannot wait to start judging the submissions for the 2016 Stevies.”

HUMAN RESOURCES

Chair:
Narasimhan Srinivasan, Vice President & Head of Human Resource
Tata Consultancy Services, Edison, New Jersey

Narasimhan Srinivasan (Narsi) is the Vice President and Head of Human Resources for Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) in North America. He has been with TCS for the last 22 years. Narsi’s career spans 27 years, and during that time, he has played multiple roles in Delivery, Business Development and Human Resources areas in the IT Industry. He has been working in Human Resources for the last 9 years. His key roles at TCS include Global Head of Learning and Development, Head of Organizational Effectiveness, HR Director– APAC, Regional Manager–Bristol, UK, and Client Partner for Standard Chartered Bank, Target, AXA, and Nedcor Relationships.

Narsi graduated from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India, with a Master ofScience (Hons.) Chemistry, and a Master of Science (Technology) Computer Science in 1985. Narsi is very much interested in sports and plays cricket and golf.

CUSTOMER SERVICE & SUPPORT

Chair:
Steve Fulmer, Senior Vice President of Government Guaranteed Lending
First GREEN Bank, Orlando, Florida

Steve Fulmer is the Senior Vice President of Government Guaranteed Lending at First GREEN Bank, a “local bank with a global mission” that endeavors to do the right thing for the environment, and the company’s people, community, and shareholders. Steve oversees all Small Business Administration and US Department of Agriculture Business Lending in Florida for the bank.

Steve has over 8 years experience in banking in Central Florida. He currently serves on the executive board of the Oviedo/Winter Springs Chamber and the steering chairman for Future Leaders of CREW Orlando.  

Steve has a Master’s Degree of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix and is a US Army veteran. 

NEW PRODUCT OR SERVICE/INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Chair:
Derek Gerry, Director, Strategic Accounts
C-4 Analytics, Saugus, Massachusetts

Derek Gerry is Director, Strategic Accounts at C-4 Analytics, a provider of customizable full service digital marketing solutions in Boston. A skilled content and search optimization strategist with a deep appreciation for Saul Bass, Ken Nordine, and the fundamentals of marketing communication, Derek has been part of the team at C-4 Analytics since 2010. In his capacity as Director of Strategic Accounts, Derek has developed and implemented campaigns in the health care, consumer retail, energy, and automotive sectors.

Derek has spent nearly 20 years creating content and marketing campaigns for online audiences, working for some of the United States’ top companies, including Standard & Poor’s, Harcourt Brace, and IAC.

Derek is also an accomplished broadcaster who hosts a weekly news and commentary show in Boston, and he has appeared on several talk stations in the Boston area.

ANNUAL REPORTS & PUBLICATIONS

Chair:
Justin Bell, CEO
Lion Agency, Miami, Florida

Justin Bell is an experienced marketing executive and brand strategist residing in Miami, Florida. Justin is CEO of Lion Agency, a multinational digital agency with offices in Buenos Aires, Miami and São Paulo. Lion Agency is an award-winning agency (earning five American Business Awards in 2015), and works with leading brands including American Express, Celebrity Cruises, Elizabeth Arden, FANIA Records, Tío Gazpacho, and the University of Miami.

Justin joined Lion Agency in 2015 when Lion Agency acquired Arc+Arrow Creative Group. Justin founded Arc+Arrow in 2013 after working his way through various senior leadership roles at Omnicom Group where he worked with brands including Best Buy, Costco, Motorola, Wal-Mart, and Samsung, as well as Carphone Warehouse, Dixons Retail, and John Lewis in Europe.

Justin is a graduate of The Ohio State University and Ashland University with degrees in marketing.

LIVE EVENTS

Chair:
Staci Johnson, Vice President of Marketing
Roth Staffing Companies, L.P., Orange, California

Staci Johnson is the Vice President of Marketing for Roth Staffing Companies, one of the largest privately held staffing companies in the country. She heads the corporate marketing department and all its functions, including campaigns, website creation, digital marketing, email catalogs, social media, live events, virtual events, public relations, newsletters, branding … if it gets communicated, it goes through Staci’s Marketing team. 

Staci was the recipient of the 2015 Gold Stevie Award for Marketing Executive of the Year. With her help, Roth Staffing Companies has been honored by Fortune as a 100 Best Workplaces for Women and 50 Best Small & Medium Workplaces, as well as Best Staffing Firms to Work For by Staffing Industry Analysts, and Best of Staffing for both Client and Talent Satisfaction by Inavero and CareerBuilder. Staci’s Marketing team has been lauded with VOICE Awards from the American Staffing Association for five consecutive years and referred to as the best Marketing department in the industry.  The team has also been recognized with B2B Marketing Awards.

Staci started her career in Television after receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Television Production from San Francisco State University.  She went on to receive a Master of Arts in Communication Studies from University of California, Davis.  In addition to teaching television production and communication classes at UC Davis and Yuba Community College, her marketing career includes working in the healthcare, banking, government, and arts industries before settling in to 10 years at Roth Staffing Companies–and counting. 

Staci tells us: “I hope it’s not too clichédé to say how much of a humbling honor it is to be invited to Chair this Judging Committee for the Stevie Awards. I have such great respect and admiration for those professionals who have participated in helping select past Stevie Award winners and I am excited to join this exclusive group. The American Business Awards go above and beyond to find, select, and recognize truly exceptional companies and business leaders worthy of praise. I look forward to helping honor and congratulate this year’s recipients.”

WEBSITES & APPS

Chair:
Eric Farr, Principal
BrainStorm, Inc., American Fork, Utah

Eric Farr is a Principal at BrainStorm, Inc., a leading provider of end-user adoption and change management solutions. BrainStorm’s mission is to change the way the world works. On top of changing the way the world works, BrainStorm is known for being one of the best places to work in the country. BrainStorm was named to Outside’s Best Places to Work for the fourth consecutive year, three time Utah Business Best Companies, and was featured twice on Fortune.com for being one of the 100 best places to work for both women and camaraderie in the nation. Corporate culture isn’t the only award-winning aspect of the company: BrainStorm has also been recognized by Microsoft, Zip Recruiter, and, of course, the Stevies for their outstanding products and services.

Eric, recently named one of the Ten Coolest Entrepreneurs by Utah Valley Business Q Magazine, has over 20 years of experience in entrepreneurship and business leadership, and has been instrumental in building BrainStorm’s unique relationships with its customers and partners.  In Eric’s free time you can find him exploring each corner of the world, often on a motorcycle. 

Eric was thrilled to have BrainStorm honored in the 2015 Stevie awards and is looking forward to being the Chair of the committee judging the Website and App Awards for the 14^th annual American Business Awards.

VIDEOS

Chair:
Jody Brown, Executive Vice President, Public Relations, Corporate Communications, and Congressional Relations
CACI International, Inc., Arlington, Virginia, USA

Jody Brown is Executive Vice President of Public Relations, Corporate Communications, and Congressional Relations at CACI International Inc., a provider of information solutions and services in support of national security missions and government transformation for Intelligence, Defense, and Federal Civilian customers. Jody initiates and directs the company's internal and external communications, public relations, congressional relations, marketing communications, corporate branding and strategies, philanthropy and community relations, and employee communications. She leads the coordination of strategic leadership events, provides critical direction for change management activities, and is a member of the company's Mergers & Acquisitions Executive Team. Jody provides strategic input and direction to the company's investor relations and has led or made major contributions to a wide range of projects and initiatives that have spurred and supported CACI's growth. Her contributions have been essential in enabling CACI to sharpen client focus, increase awareness of the company's solutions and capabilities, expand into new markets, enhance recruitment communications, and enhance shareholder value.

Jody is a member of the Professional Services Council (PSC) Legislative Action Network and sits on PSC's Communications Committee and Government Affairs Committee, which provides valuable information exchange on legislative, regulatory, and related policy issues; and is a member of the Women's Foreign Policy Group, which promotes women's leadership in international affairs. In community outreach activities in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area where CACI is headquartered, Jody is an active supporter of the American Heart Association, and Comfort for America's Uniformed Services (Cause). Within CACI, her leadership achievements have been acknowledged with numerous company awards and recognition.

You've been busy this year. The holidays are officially over and it’s back to work. Whatever the reason, you haven’t gotten around to submitting entries to the 2016 American Business Awards. But you've gotten a reprieve. We are going to show you how to submit entries to the ABAs in 10 minutes. The entry deadline of The American Business Awards, the preeminent business awards program in the U.S.A., is this coming Thursday, February 18. Submit your entries through Thursday to avoid late fees.

We know, you're still busy. Your calendar this week is still chock full. But surely you can find some time during your lunch break to prepare your submission. Because in 10 minutes you can prepare and submit an entry to the ABAs and potentially win a Stevie®, one of the most coveted trophies on the planet.

Here are a number of ways you can do that.

Repurpose Nominations From Other Awards Programs
The submission requirements for the ABAs are fairly open-ended, and there's a wide variety of categories to choose from. If you've entered any other awards programs this year, simply repurpose the nominations you wrote for those competitions for the ABAs. Most categories require only the submission of an essay of up to 650 words and a bullet-list summary of the achievements portrayed in the essay. It should be fairly easy to reconfigure your other awards nominations for the ABAs.

Repurpose Your Press Releases and White Papers
It's likely you've already done the heavy-lifting of describing your organization's achievements, your innovations, your new products and services, your marketing and PR campaigns, etc. Throughout the year you've been trumpeting your successes through press releases and white papers. Simply comb through your output over the past year and cobble together the text you've already written into a short essay. Note that the 2016 ABAs will recognize your achievements since the beginning of 2015.

Repurpose Your Press Clippings
With every ABA nomination you have the option to attach any number of press clippings, work samples, video clips, photographs, etc. to your essay, to help paint the picture for the judges. Does one or more of your press clippings feature a compelling story that can be the basis of the essay for your ABA nomination? There's no need to reinvent the wheel if it already exists and you can reuse it.

Hire a Consultant
Did you know that there are a number of consultancies that specialize in preparing and submitting awards nominations on behalf of their clients? There are quite a few in the U.S.A., and they've been remarkably successful over the years in winning Stevie Awards for their clients. Contact us if you'd like a referral to one of them who can take the process of getting entries into the ABAs off your hands this week.

Submit Media Work
Most often people think of business awards as recognizing a member of management or a member of your team. The American Business Awards has categories for a broad range of achievements including videos, apps, websites, publications, and live events. It's really easy to enter these categories. These categories generally require only a short essay of up to 125 words, describing the nominated work's purpose and results to date, and the nominated video or app, etc., itself.

Resubmit a Nomination From Another Stevie Awards Program
Did you have success with a nomination in the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, or the Stevie Awards for Women in Business? One Stevie Awards competition has nothing to do with another, and resubmitting a nomination from one program to this year's ABAs is a valid strategy followed by many organizations.

Contact Us for Help
You'll save a lot of time by letting us do some of the important work for you. We'll save you the trouble of plowing through our category lists to find the category that's right for you, for example. Contact us, by email at help@stevieawards or telephone at +1 703-547-8389. Tell us what your organization wants to be recognized for, and we'll suggest the best category for your nomination.

Whichever strategy you choose to get your ABA nominations written and submitted,  be sure to submit through February 18 to avoid late fees!

Ready to enter The 2016 American Business Awards?  Begin here: