The 2008 Stevie Awards for Women in Business is an international competition recognizing the accomplishments of outstanding women executives, business owners, and the organizations they run. The awards are produced by the creators of the prestigious American Business Awards^SM.

Stevie Awards were handed out in categories including Best Entrepreneur, Best Executive, Lifetime Achievement, and Women Helping Women at the gala event at New York’s Marriott Marquis Hotel on November 14. More than 1,200 entries from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted for consideration.

I am very proud to say that in the category in which I was a finalist, shown below, I was announced as the winner. As I stated several weeks back when announced as a finalist, it is humbling to be included in a list of women leaders of the stature of my fellow nominees. Now I can truly say that it is an honor to have been selected the winner from amongst such a distinguished and accomplished group of executives. My heartfelt congratulations go out to each of these finalists as well as to the winners and finalists in all categories honored last evening.

Best Executive – Service Businesses – More Than 2,500 Employees

Stevie Award Winner:

• Nina Simosko, Global Chief Operating Officer, SAP Education, SAP America, Palo Alto, CA

Finalists:

• Maria Pardee, President of Global Integration, BT Design, BT, El Segundo, CA
• Gail Donovan, Executive VP & COO, Continuum Health Partners, New York, NY
• Deborah Bothun, U.S. Advisory Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Entertainment, Media and Communications Practice and Global Convergence Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Los Angeles, CA
• Susan St. Ledger, Senior Vice President of the High Tech & Manufacturing Vertical, Salesforce.com, San Francisco, CA
• Lizabeth H. Zlatkus, Executive VP & Chief Financial Officer, The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., Hartford, CT
• Kathy Pankanin, Area Vice President, VWR International, West Chester, PA
• Jessie Paul, Chief Marketing Officer, Wipro Technologies, Bangalore, India

The Stevie Awards for Women in Business are governed by a Board of Distinguished Judges and Advisors that features many leading women entrepreneurs and luminaries in business. Members of the Awards’ Board selected Stevie winners from among the finalists. Finalists were chosen by business professionals worldwide during the preliminary judging period.

Details about the Stevie Awards for Women in Business and the list of honorees are available at www.stevieawards.com/women.

Nina Nets It Out: Being recognized by your peers is a humbling and exciting experience. Importantly, this recognition is not just about the “winner” or even the distinguished list of nominees – it is also very much about the need for all business women to continue to learn, grow and challenge themselves. It is about celebrating the diversity, skills and experience that women bring to the executive table and paving the way for others to follow.