Sales Awards Blog

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On Monday, February 21, more than 200 customer service, call center, and sales executives from the U.S.A. and several other countries will gather at the Eden Roc Renaissance Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida for the presentation of the 5th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.  Tickets are still on sale.

This is the world's premier sales awards and customer service awards competition. More than 800 entries were submitted this year, and 35% of them were recognized as Finalists through the scores of more than 50 preliminary judges. This year's Finalists are listed here - what do do you think of them as a group?

Can't get to Miami on Monday? Look for the announcement of the final results on the awards' web site on Tuesday morning.

Here are the organizations that have already booked their tickets for Monday's banquet.

Accenture BPO Services of BC  Vancouver BC Canada     
American Support  Chapel Hill NC
Archipelago Learning  Dallas  TX                 
Assurant Solutions  Atlanta  GA                
Assurant Solutions, Lawton, OK
Bronto Software Durham NC                        
Bulldog Solutions, Inc., Austin, TX
Capital One Financial Corporation  McLean  VA       
Carnival Cruise Lines  Miami  FL                  
Catapult Technology  Bethesda  MD                 
Ceridian Corporation  Minneapolis  MN                
ChannelAdvisor  Morrisville  NC               
CIGNA Government Services  Nashville  TN              
Comcast, Philadelphia, PA
Competence Call Center AG  Headquarters  Vienna Austria                               
Constant Contact, Waltham, MA
CustomInk.com  McLean  VA                
Cvent, McLean, VA
Daxko, Birmingham, AL
DeVry  Inc.  Oakbrook  IL
DiCentral Corporation  Houston  TX     
DYMO Endicia  Palo Alto  CA
eCornell  Ithaca  NY
EMKAY, Itasca, IL
Epicor Software Corporation, Irvine, CA
Everything Everywhere - Customer Operations (T-Mobile and Orange), United Kingdom               
Family Heritage Life Insurance Company of America  Cleveland  OH                               
Force3, Crofton, MD
Gazelle, Boston, MA
GlassHouse Technologies, Framingham MA       
IHG Salt Lake City UT
Infogroup  Omaha NE
Informatica Corporation Redwood City CA        
Information Builders, New York, NY      
iolo technologies  Los Angeles  CA       
Kraton Polymers, Houston, TX     
L-com Inc.  North Andover  MA
Litle & Co, Lowell, MA    
LiveOps, Santa Clara, CA
LivePerson, New York, NY
Marriott International  Bethesda  MD
Marriott Vacation Club International  Orlando  FL          
Marsh U.S. Consumer, Urbandale, IA
Mayo Medical Laboratories  Rochester  MN             
MD On-Line, Inc., Parsippany, NJ
Merchant Warehouse  Boston  MA                 
Métier  Ltd.  Santa Rosa  CA                      
Model Metrics, Chicago, IL
Mondial Assistance  Richmond  VA                 
Oakwood Temporary Housing  Los Angeles  CA           
Office Depot  Inc. Boca Raton  FL                 
OnStar, Detroit, MI
Overstock.com, Salt Lake City, UT
PAETEC Holding Corp.  Fairport  NY                 
Paycom Payroll LLC, Oklahoma City, OK
Paycor  Cincinnati  OH                    
Paylocity  Arlington Heights  IL                    
PetRays Veterinary Telemedicine Consultants, The Woodlands, TX        
PHH Arval  Sparks  MD                      
Portugal Telecom, Lisbon, Portugal        
Prescription Solutions/UnitedHealth Group, Irvine, CA
PSAV Presentation Services  Long Beach  CA          
Rosetta Stone, Arlington, VA
Safelite Solutions  Columbus OH
Sales Management Association  Atlanta GA            
SilkRoad technology, Winston-Salem, NC
Sundance Vacations  Wilkes Barre  PA              
SurePayroll  Glenview  IL                    
Tahitian Noni International  Provo  UT              
TATA Motors Ltd  India                
Telecom Italia SPA  Rome Italy               
Teva Neuroscience  Inc. Kansas City  MO             
The Brooks Group, Greensboro, NC
Toshiba America Business Solutions Inc., Irvine, CA     
TRUMPF Inc.  Farmington  CT            
TRX, Inc., Atlanta, GA               
US Postal Service Business Alliances, Southeastern, PA                           
USANA Health Sciences  Inc . West Valley  UT          
ValueSelling Associates, San Diego, CA      
Walker Advertising Inc, San Pedro, CA
Wheels  Inc.  Des Plaines  IL

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John Cushman is a member of the final judging committee for the 2011 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. His eSales & Services team at AT&T has won multiple Stevie Awards in the sales awards categories of the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.

What item of news recently caught your eye and why?
While the tragedy in Tucson captured everyone’s attention, I found myself truly inspired by the various acts of heroism demonstrated by people from all walks of life.

What New Year’s resolution have you made and why?
I don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions and instead prefer to build a 12-month roadmap for my top three professional and/or personal objectives.  I review my progress each quarter, and make any necessary adjustments during the course of the year. (After all, it is MY list!)

What book are you currently reading?
I am reading E$caping Oz: Protecting your wealth during the financial crisis.  It’s a book written by one of my “mentees” at AT&T, Jim Mosquera, and provides an easy-to-understand game plan for one to follow in order to build and sustain financial security.

What was the last movie you saw, and would you recommend it?
My wife and I recently went to see The Little Fockers, with Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro.  It was a hilarious family comedy, and well worth the price of a ticket.  The kid that plays Ben Stiller’s son in the movie is a riot!

What is your favorite sport or hobby?
My favorite sport is professional baseball—not just the major leagues but at all levels of play.  I recently started collecting baseball cards as a hobby, and sure wish my Mom hadn’t thrown mine away.  You would be amazed at how much a little piece of cardboard can appreciate in value over the years.

Who is your favorite historical figure?
I have many, but my all-time favorite is Gandhi, a fascinating man who was able to overcome oppressive tyranny with passive resistance.  I believe we all could learn much from this inspiring leader.

Who (apart from close family) is your favorite living person?
Nelson Mandela.  Here is a man of greatness who used reconciliation to cure a nation from apartheid atrocities.

If you could choose another profession, what would it be?
I would love to be the general manager of the New York Yankees for one full season, and then retire.  By the way, the current GM’s name is Cashman, so Cushman might not be such a stretch …

What quality or qualities do you most value in your business associates?
#1 – Business Ethics; #2 – Honesty; #3 - Loyalty

What do you think is the worst bad habit to have at work?
Sometimes, an individual who is intensely driven to success can lose sight of the bigger picture, or the ramifications that a single action can bring.  The ends do not always justify the means .

As someone at the top of your profession, what keeps you inspired or makes you hit the ground running in the morning?
Very strong espresso with lots of sugar gets me started!  Seriously, I really enjoy my work and the people associated with it.  I have had the benefit of working for one of America’s top corporations for a number of years, during an evolutionary period where change is occurring at an extremely rapid pace.  Challenge is there for the taking, every day.

What do you consider has been your greatest achievement in business?
Husband—Dad—Son, these are where my greatest achievements lie.  In business, I am fortunate to have had several opportunities to achieve success, but those achievements pale in comparison to those that have come in my personal life. [

What advice or useful tip would you give to someone who is just starting out in business?
The same advice I give to my own adult daughter and son:  Be professional; have perseverance; and be patient!

About John M. Cushman
John Cushman has an extensive background in product management, marketing, and operations leadership. His career spans a number of major defining points in the telecommunications industry, including 800 number portability, the expansion to new toll-free area codes such as 888, payphone compensation legislation, and the explosive growth in use of the World Wide Web for everyday business and information needs.  For the past three years, Cushman has been leading the vision, execution strategy, and day-to-day field operations for electronic sales and service, an online channel that has grown to represent more than $4 billion in annual revenue and $750 million in productivity savings for his corporation.  As Vice-President of eSales & Service, he is responsible for all aspects of B2B eCommerce for AT&T. With an operating budget of over $90 million, he leads a global team of almost 2,000 associates.

About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates—AT&T operating companies—are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation’s fastest mobile broadband network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high-speed Internet and voice services.  AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse® and AT&T | DIRECTV brands. The company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T Advertising Solutions and AT&T Interactive are known for their leadership in local search and advertising. In 2010 AT&T again ranked among the 50 Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE® magazine.  Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com.

The following professionals participated in preliminary-round judging of the 5th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service from November 2010 to January 2011.  Their average scores determined the Finalists in the sales awards, call center awards, and customer service awards categories.  We can't thank them enough for their work this year.  Entries were up more than 60% over last year, so they had their work cut out for them!  Special thanks to Frank Powell of PetRays and Shannon Russell of Seattle Pacific Industries, the two judges who scored the most entries and are thus the winners of two free tickets to the February 21 awards banquet in Miami Beach.

Cheryl Alaniz, Director, Member Services, Topco Associates LLC, Skokie, IL
John D. Allen, President/CEO, Allen Worldwide Solutions Ltd, St. Thomas, ON Canada
Jane Blackwell, Community Outreach Manager, High Point Bank & Trust, High, Point, NC
Jeffrey Brooks, Senior Manager, Support Services, Peak 10, Charlotte, NC
Dawn Collier, Customer Service Manager, Sunco Carriers, Lakeland, FL
Patricia Cotter, VP Worldwide Operations, Netezza Corporation, Marlborough, MA
Derek Cunningham, VP-Sales, DAXKO, Birmingham, AL
Jan Delory, President, Sales Vantage Point, Raleigh, NC
James Donovan, VP/General Manager, National Inside Sales, Cbeyond, Atlanta, GA
Carolyn K Edwards, Communications Consultant, London, United Kingdom
David Figueroa, Adoption Analyst, eSales & Service, AT&T, Bothell, WA
Heisha Freeman, VP, Client Development, Quantum Relocation Services, Dallas, TX
Michael Gerard, VP, Sales Advisory Practice, IDC, Framingham, MA
Steve Gershik, Chief Marketing Officer, The Brand, Art & Technology Studio, Beachwood, OH
Jaki Glenn, Regional Senior Sales Representative, Taleo Learn, Taleo, Belton, SC
Bob Gooderl, Associate VP - Client Services, Symetra Financial, Bellevue, WA
Shane Hallen, Regional Vice President, Sales, PAETEC, Plymouth Meeting, PA
Joshua Harris, Senior Director, Program Sales, Direct Alliance Corporation, Tempe, AZ
Bill Hicks, Director of Business Development, The Sales Management Association, Atlanta, GA
Marie Holliday, EFT-ADV, MAAMET, President, EFT Spain, Murcia, Spain
Dustin Johnson, Vice President of Sales Operations, Market Force Information, Norcross, GA
Amanda Kendall, VP of Customer Exeprience, Unionbay Sportswear, Kent, WA
Patti LaChapelle, Manager, Training and Development, Marriott International, Bethesda, MD
Rebecca Lane, President, Epitome Health and Beauty Ltd, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
Seleste Lunsford, Executive Consultant, Sales Performance, AchieveGlobal, Tampa, FL
Robyn McNeely, Continuous Improvement Coordinator, CIGNA Government Services, Nashville, TN
Sharon Metzung, Publications & Graphics Manager, Lake Metroparks, Concord Township, OH
Jay Mitchell, Managing Director, Motum, LLC, Irving, TX
Alan Moak, VP & COO, Assurant Solutions, Atlanta, GA
Sean Murphy, Executive VP - eCommerce, CustomInk, McLean, VA
Reghunath Nair, Training Manager, Oman Insurance Company (PSC), Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Adam Patenaude, General Manager, Aloft Hotels, San Antonio, TX
Summer Poletti, Director of Client Relations, Payroll Tax Management, Inc., Santa Ana, CA
Matt Popinski, Director of Support Services, DAXKO, Birmingham, AL
Frank Powell, Marketing Director, PetRays, The Woodlands, TX
Bridgette Ridgeway, President & CEO, TaylorField, Brown Deer, WI
Peter Rifkind, Director of Client Service, UltraLinq Healthcare Solutions, Inc., New York, NY
Shannon Russell, Compliance Manager, Seattle Pacific Industries/Unionbay Sportswear, Kent, WA
Scott Sachs, Senior Director, Call Center Operations, Assurant, Wayne, PA
Stu Schlackman, Owner, Competitive Excellence, Richardson, TX
Kristina Schwende, Owner/Program Developer, Sabre Business Skills, Richmond, BC Canada
Ansa Sekharan, Senior VP, Global Customer Support, Informatica Corp., Redwood City, CA
Randy Selleck, Senior Director, Call Center Operations, Assurant Solutions, Atlanta, GA
Paula Sellergren, Director of Marketing, Mather LifeWays, Evanston, IL
Donnovan Simon, Director, Sales Support, SMART Technologies, Calgary, AB Canada
Alexsis Stephens, Human Resources Manager, Assurant Solutions, Lawton, OK
Ralph Stewart, Marketing Director, Maintenance Connection Inc., Davis, CA
David Stuart, Customer Support Manager, Halogen Software, Ottawa, ON Canada
Janice Sutherland, Head of UK Sales Contact Centres, Bank of Ireland, Bristol, United Kingdom
Christopher Tepas, Chief Marketing Officer, EMKAY, Itasca, IL
Linda Varrell, President, Broadreach Public Relations, Yarmouth, ME
Sundy Visbal, Director of Digital Strategy, Womenetics, LLC, Decatur, GA
Julia Zamorska, VP of Corporate Communications, iolo technologies, Los Angeles, CA

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It summarizes the 5 best ways that sales and business development professionals can be recognized in the four Stevie Awards competitions in 2011 (which include the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, and the Stevie Awards for Women in Business).  For the most part it recommends the sales awards, management awards, and other categories that sales folks should focus on, and outlines the general submission requirements for those categories.

The following professionals have joined the sales awards final judging committee for the 2011 (5th annual) Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, the world's leading competition for sales awards, contact center awards, and customer service awards.

The final entry deadline for the 5th annual competition is December 31.  Get your entry kit here.

Johnny Anderson, VP-Sales, Bulldog Solutions
Damian Artt, Senior VP-Worldwide Sales and Services, Wind River
Kieran Callaghan, VP-Direct Sales, Dish Network
Bob Conlin, VP-Marketing & Business Development, Accero
John Cushman, VP eSales & Service, AT&T
Dan Dapper, VP of Worldwide Sales & Operations, Right Hemisphere
Brent Dierking, Director of Business Development, NorthStar EMS
Jessica Eker, VP, Global Life Sciences Practice, TransPerfect
Chris Harrington, VP Americas Enterprise & Omniture Channel Sales, Adobe Systems
Michael Haske, VP-Sales & Marketing, Paylocity
Paul Hoffman, President of Worldwide Field Operations, Informatica Corporation
Suzanne King, Director of Sales Operations, XO Communications
Shane Lewis, Assistant VP - Sales, Sundance Vacations
Chino Nakagome, CEO, Moon Cake Limited
Mitch Sobocinski, National Account Manager, DHL Express
Jeff York, Chief Sales Officer, Paycom

These distinguished sales professionals join the Board of Distinguished Judges & Advisors that will perform the final judging in late January to determine the 2011 Stevie Award winners, who will be announced at a banquet in Miami Beach, Florida on Monday, February 21.

The Stevie Awards are pleased to announce that the Sales Management Association has signed on as a sponsor of the 5th annual (2011) Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, which is accepting entries through December 31. This is the premier competition for sales awards and customer service awards in the world.

Get your entry kit for the awards here.

The SMA is a global, cross-industry professional organization for sales operations and sales management. The Sales Management Association promotes professional development, peer networking, best practice research, and thought leadership among professionals who support, manage, coach, and lead sales organizations. SMA provides on-line resources, tools, training, career development, and professional networking opportunities for members in 17 countries.

At the request of the SMA, a new category has just been added to the 2011 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, Sales Operations Leader of the Year. You'll find that category listed as #12 under the Individual Sales Categories.

SMA members get to enter four of the top Individual Sales Categories for free:

SMA members should contact SMA for the promotion code to submit to qualify for free submission.

Last but not least, sales awards honorees in the 2011 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service will be offered free membership in the Sales Management Association.

Finalists in the 2011 competition will be announced in mid-January, and the final results will be announced at a banquet at the Eden Roc Renaissance Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida on Monday, February 21.

What item of news recently caught your eye and why?
There were certainly quite a few attention-grabbing news stories in the past couple of weeks that I followed closely--anything from the Federal Reserve’s second round of quantitative easing (QE2), currency wars, deflationary fears in the U.S. and other developed economies, elections in Brazil and the U.S., and of course a Royal Wedding in the U.K.!  But my eyes are fixed on the U.S. unemployment rate.  My work revolves around helping people find their next $100K+ job, so I am closely following all the economic trends in the U.S. that might impact private sector job creation and employment.  When I hear about the persistent lack of labor mobility caused by people stuck with their underwater houses, or that QE2 is ostensibly in full swing to fight deflation, it is unsettling. 

What book are you currently reading?
Well, I usually read in two tracks--one for fun and one for intellectual stimulation.  For fun, I’ve just finished reading The Millennium Trilogy by the Swedish author Stieg Larsson.  The other track is now dedicated to a variety of Six Sigma books as I am preparing for a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification.  It’s probably not the most exciting read, but it is certainly helpful for someone who always strives for excellence in managing customer-facing organizations.

What was the last movie you saw, and would you recommend it?
Food, Inc.; it promises you will never look at dinner the same way, and it’s true!  This movie shows how the mass production of cheap and low-quality food is really not that good for us.  I would recommend it to anyone who eats non-organic foods!

What is your favorite sport or hobby?
At the risk of coming across as old-fashioned, I have been knitting and crocheting with some exotic wools, and producing pieces that my girlfriends and I actually wear.  Recently I had to make three hats to settle an inner-circle war.

Who is your favorite historical figure?
Frederic Chopin. Although his name sounds French, Chopin was one of the greatest Polish composers; he was able to capture the sadness of the Slavic soul in his music.  I grew up behind the Iron Curtain, where society in general placed a premium on the fine arts, so l learned to read music, play the piano, and sing in a choir ... and looking back, Chopin was a major reference for me.

Oakwood Temporary Housing, headquartered in Los Angeles, California, won a Stevie Award for Sales Process of the Year in the sales awards categories of the 2010 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.

Oakwood, a provider of furnished and serviced apartments worldwide, knows that being successful in sales takes more than stamina and ingenuity: Having a process helps ensure reliability and success. Until 2009, Oakwood’s sales team had been functioning on the fly—doing what seemed right, with no metrics, no benchmarks, and no methodology. Based on the company’s experiences and research, Oakwood realized that identifying and institutionalizing its best practices would be a key driver in building its success.

As a result, Oakwood’s sales and sales operations teams instituted the “Sales Playbook,” a process that has completely transformed how they do business. The goal has been to achieve a best-in-class sales-and-marketing framework.

According to Oakwood, the main focus of this process was to teach their sales team how to “win fast and lose fast.” As a result, the team now spends less time on losing prospects and more focusing on winnable deals that positively impact the bottom line.

Challenges
Oakwood had no overarching best practices or processes for the sales force to follow. They needed to create a system that would achieve consistent results and reduce time between qualifying and closing sales.

The system also needed to outline what “success” looked like for Oakwood, to identify top performers’ practices, and to propagate them among the masses. This system would develop a definition for managing opportunity that would provide clear, measurable objectives to determine if a sale was progressing.

Major Initiatives
Oakwood sales leadership conducted an intensive interview process and led a cross-functional team to identify top performers’ best practices. By combining those ideas with outside best practices, they decoded the tools and resources needed to gather, get, and grow business and to focus on the Single Sales Objective (SSO).

SSO moved Oakwood from an account-management mindset to an opportunity-management mindset and provided the objectives necessary to determine if sales were progressing.  The system also defined a common language to articulate key strategic components.

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Preliminary judging opened this week for the the 2011 (5th annual) Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, the world's premier honors for customer service and sales professionals.  There are more than 40 sales awards categories in the competition, and more than 30 customer service awards categories.

Once of the great things about preliminary judging of the Stevie Awards is that anyone can apply to participate.  Interested?  Apply online today.  If your application is accepted you'll be able to judge online, at your convenience, anytime through January 7.

There are two big reasons why you should spend a few hours participating as a preliminary judge:

1. Judging is a great badge of honor to put on your resume or CV.  Active judges are always acknowledged on the awards web site (here's the list of the 2010 judges) and in the awards dinner program.
2. You'll get to read and evaluate a lot of great success stories in your field, whether it's customer service or sales, and there's no better way to measure the pulse of achievement in your professionals, especially when those stories of success are coming from industry leaders.  Last year's winners, for example, included Macy's, FedEx, AT&T, SAS Institute, DHL Express, Royal Caribbean International, and more.

And here's a bonus third reason why you should participate: the two preliminary judges who score the most entries will receive two free tickets to the 5th annual awards banquet, slated for Monday, February 21 at the Eden Roc Renaissance Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida.

One of the big changes/additions to the Stevie Awards this year is in our 5th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.  In the past this program honored only the achievements of sales, customer service, and call center professionals: individuals, teams, and entire departments.

For the 2011 awards (entries are being accepted now through the end of 2010), we've added a slew of new product awards categories in the SASCS.  We now have new product of the year categories as follows (the numbers are our internal categories codes):

90. Collaboration Solution – New
91. Collaboration Solution– New Version
92. Contact Center Solution – New
93. Contact Center Solution – New Version
94. IVR or Web Service Solution – New
95. IVR or Web Service Solution – New Version
96. Marketing Solution – New
97. Marketing Solution – New Version
98. Relationship Management Solution – New
99. Relationship Management Solution – New Version
100. Workforce Management Solution – New
101. Workforce Management Solution – New Version

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