March 1, 2022 – Indonesia News Gazette

March 1, 2022

TIS Shares Best Practices and Enables Compliance Capabilities for Customers Impacted by Russian Sanctions

Recent sanctions against Russia’s banking and political community necessitate thorough screening of all cross-border financial transactions by international businesses

TIS Company Logo

BOSTON, March 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — TIS, a global leader in enterprise B2B payments, today announced a new initiative to help international businesses mitigate the impact of recent sanctions levied against Russia’s banking community and political elite.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the political leadership of many NATO, European, and North American nations have agreed upon and implemented unprecedented sanctions against selected Russian individuals, businesses, and the financial infrastructure of the country. In addition, some Russian financial institutions will be excluded from the global SWIFT network, making cross-border financial transactions with these selected banks impossible through the SWIFT channel.

In order to maintain compliance with these new restrictions, businesses that operate internationally are not permitted to conduct business or participate in financial operations with any of the sanctioned parties, which includes the Russian Central Bank, Sberbank, VTB, Otkritie, among others.

While the sanctions list is evolving, businesses and individuals are also restricted from transacting with prominent Russian leaders and oligarchs, many of whom have had their foreign assets frozen.

“What is happening in Ukraine is difficult and heartbreaking on a humanitarian level. As we all try to determine how we can best support the people of Ukraine, we have also been asked by our customers for guidance on the rapidly evolving situation. As an international business, the complexity and evolving nature of sanctions coupled with the responsibility to remain compliant is creating a new set of challenges that need to be met. We want to communicate that we will support our customers while also providing free advisory services to other businesses who may have questions or concerns surrounding sanction screening.” – Erik Masing, CEO

TIS Sanction Screening:

TIS Sanction Screening assists in preventing accidental payment to a sanctioned party by businesses, and covers six global sanction lists, including OFAC and sanction lists from the United Nations, European Union and United Kingdom. The sanction lists are updated automatically by TIS daily and on demand.

Through TIS Sanction Screening, TIS aims to support its customers through this uncertain and complex time by offering Sanction Screening for free to its customers through Q2 2022.

TIS and SWIFT:

TIS’s SWIFT connectivity channel will automatically manage the implications resulting from the exclusion of Russian banks from SWIFT and will assist organizations with identifying impacted transactions.

TIS recognizes the gravity and complexity of the situation for many involved parties and aims to support global organizations through these difficult times.

Customers have been encouraged to contact TIS with any questions or concerns regarding compliance implications, or in case of specific failed transactions.

TIS also offers organizations that are not current customers the opportunity to discuss best practices with our team of payments experts and will look to assist organizations as they navigate this uncertain global payments environment.

For more information, please click HERE.

About TIS:

TIS is reimagining the world of enterprise payments through a cloud-based platform uniquely designed to help global organizations optimize outbound payments. Corporations, banks, and business vendors leverage TIS to transform how they connect global accounts, collaborate on payment processes, execute outbound payments, analyze cash flow and compliance data, and improve critical outbound payment functions. The TIS corporate payments SaaS solution helps businesses improve operational efficiency, lower risk, manage liquidity, gain a strategic advantage -and ultimately achieve enterprise payment optimization.

Visit us for more information at: www.tispayments.com

Contact:
Jennifer Knutel, VP Marketing
+1 978-875-2085
jennifer.knutel@tispayments.com

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March 1, 2022

“Volare” Takes Off

The New ITA Airways Loyalty Program

The presentation of the the new Volare loyalty program from ITA Airways in Rome along with the unveiling of the names of the Italian champions to whom the aircraft with the blue livery have been dedicated.

Left to right, Valentina Vezzali, Undersecretary of State to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers with responsibility for Sport, Alfredo Altavilla, Executive Chairman of ITA Airways, Vito Cozzoli, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Sport Salute S.p.A.and Giovanni Malagò, the President of CONI (the Italian National Olympic Committee),who presented to representatives of the Italian and international press the new Volare loyalty program and unveiled the names of the Italian champions to whom the aircraft with the blue livery have been dedicated at the new ITA Airways “Piazza di Spagna” Lounge at Terminal E of Rome Fiumicino Airport

The 4 pillars of the Volare Program: freedom, personalization, choice, connection
Never have so many Italian champions come together to celebrate the union of ITA Airways with Italian sport
ITA Airways reveals the new names for the aircraft with the blue livery. Great success for the survey of Italians
What’s new for the 2022 summer season: the first Rome Fiumicino-Miami flight departs today, followed by flights to North and South America, and to Japan
Excellent performance for punctuality and regularity

ROME, March 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, in the new ITA Airways “Piazza di Spagna” Lounge at Terminal E of Rome Fiumicino Airport, Alfredo Altavilla, Executive Chairman of ITA Airways, and Fabio Lazzerini, Chief Executive Officer of ITA Airways, alongside illustrious guests such as Giovanni Malagò, the President of CONI (the Italian National Olympic Committee), Valentina Vezzali, Undersecretary of State to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers with responsibility for Sport, and Vito Cozzoli, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Sport Salute S.p.A., presented to representatives of the Italian and international press the new Volare loyalty program and unveiled the names of the Italian champions to whom the aircraft with the blue livery have been dedicated.

Never have so many Italian champions come together to celebrate the union of ITA Airways with Italian sport: among the guests were champions of Italian sport like Bebe Vio, Gregorio Paltrinieri, Simone Barlaam, Giuseppe Abbagnale, Novella Calligaris, Deborah Compagnoni, Flavia Pennetta, Francesca Schiavone, Adriano Panatta, Filippo Ganna, Andrea Lucchetta, Dino Meneghin, Gustav Thoeni, Elisa Balsamo, Giacomo Agostini; and with them President Giovanni Petrucci, Mrs. Federica Rossi Cappelletti, Nicola Riva – Gigi Riva’s son –, the heirs Gioia Bartali and Angelo Fausto Coppi and Giuseppe Pottocar, Director of the Museum dedicated to Tazio Nuvolari.

Kick-off of the Volare program

“Volare” is the new loyalty program that was born on 15 October 2021 along with ITA Airways. It has been designed as an open ecosystem of services and products, made available by ITA Airways and its partners to ensure that customers have a unique, 360 ° travel experience of maximum value.

From today the program is enriched with new features that increase its flexibility and ease of use and offer frequent flyers everything they could desire from a program dedicated to them. Volare is widening its strength based on the four values on which it was developed: ‘Freedom’, ‘Personalization’, ‘Choice’, and ‘Connection’:

FREEDOM: this consists mainly of maximum flexibility in the accumulation and use of points. Volare is in fact a revenue-based program in which the accumulation of points is linked to overall expenditure rather than to the distance travelled, thereby ensuring that the customer gets a genuine return of value.

The methods of collecting points are clear and advantageous. Each purchase the customer makes accumulates points: from 10 to 23 points per euro spent, with multipliers based on the level of membership, the route, flight class, and the ticket purchased. Moreover, redeeming points has literally no limits. In fact, there are no ‘blackout’ dates or purchase limits for award tickets: any class, fare and route will be redeemable, on any date. The number of points required for award flights will vary according to the value of the ticket at that time; customers can therefore choose to use their points freely whenever they want to, based on how many points they want to spend. Finally, using the “cash & points” mode, the customer can pay for a ticket entirely using the points they have collected or, if these are not enough, making up the difference with cash.

PERSONALIZATION: Volare is a ‘made to measure’ program that consists of four exclusive Clubs, on an upward scale of increasing levels of premiumness and dedicated priority services:

Club Smart: lets the customer accumulate and redeem points with every purchase they make on ITA Airways flights and soon, also on the marketplaces of its partners.
Club Plus: has an access threshold of 30,000 points, and an accrual multiplier of 10%. This gives extra baggage services, priority benefits on baggage tags, boarding, check-in, transfer desk, and Priority lost and found, as well as a dedicated customer service.
Club Premium: has an access threshold of 60,000 points and an accrual multiplier of 20%. Its exclusive services include access to the Lounges, Free Fast Track, free assigned seat, extra baggage, and Priority benefits on baggage tags, boarding, check-in, transfer desk, and Priority lost and found, as well as a dedicated customer service.

Club Executive: with an access threshold of 90,000 points and an accrual multiplier of 30%, it gives access to the Lounges, Free Fast track, free assigned seat, extra baggage, and Priority benefits on baggage tags, boarding, check- in, transfer desk, and Priority lost and found, as well as a dedicated customer service and a Kit that includes a physical card and a welcome gift.

With every purchase on ITA flights, customers can accumulate the points they need to upgrade to the higher Club level and take advantage of various benefits and premium services. Furthermore, beginning from Club Smart, as the access threshold increases, the advantage for the customer also increases in terms of multipliers and the services available.

CHOICE: the third value that the Volare program offers to customers is greater choice. Thanks to the partnership with SkyTeam, all of the Club-related services that are currently available for all ITA Airways flights will soon be extended to the other airlines in the network, enabling members to access more than 1,000 destinations worldwide. Furthermore, as part of ITA Airways’ business expansion strategy, the Company is committed to building an ecosystem of partnerships that offer Volare members even more products and services on which they can accrue and redeem points.

CONNECTION: Volare has an innovative, digital, and flexible footprint. It is always online and can be accessed at any time and anywhere via the web platform and the dedicated app.

There are already many subscribers to Volare, both from Italy and abroad. To date, the program has approximately 275,000 members, of which approximately 40,000 are Elite members (i.e. Club Plus, Premium and Executive). This result is also important because it is consolidated on the international market: suffice to say that 35% of the participants in the Status Match campaign came from foreign companies. Furthermore, preliminary analyses show that Volare subscribers buy and fly more than non-subscribed clients, confirming the importance of the program in increasing the satisfaction of our customers.

Aircraft with the blue livery

A few days ago, the “Naming Azzurri” survey concluded, an initiative by ITA Airways that asked to nominate the non-active Italian sports champions whose names could be given to the aircraft with the new livery.

The first aircraft to enter the fleet with the new blue livery was the Airbus A320 dedicated to the champion Paolo Rossi, which has been operational since 24 December 2021. From the beginning of 2022 two A319s entered service, dedicated to Pietro Mennea and Gino Bartali, along with an A320 dedicated to Fausto Coppi.

Those were the four names chosen by the Company. On 24 January 2022, the ‘ball’ was passed to the followers of ITA Airways, who nominated their Italian champions. The survey has proved a resounding success and has confirmed that the move of putting the customer at the center of business, a pillar in ITA Airways’ strategy, is a winning one as it makes them feel like protagonists and, above all, it puts into practice in the service offered to customers, the choices made by those who will receive it. In addition, the survey has confirmed that the national carrier’s flag is a value shared by the world of the web which testified to the spirit and the importance of being Italian and the pride of seeing the Italian sports champions flying on ITA Airways aircraft.

From the numerous nominations received from followers, ITA Airways has chosen the following Italian champions for its 22 aircraft with the new livery:

Giuseppe and Carmine Abbagnale
Giacomo Agostini
Roberto Baggio
Enzo Bearzot
Novella Calligaris
Deborah Compagnoni
Alessandro Del Piero
Marcello Lippi
Andrea Lucchetta
Dino Meneghin
Tazio Nuvolari
Adriano Panatta
Federica Pellegrini
Flavia Pennetta
Gigi Riva
Valentino Rossi
Francesca Schiavone
Sara Simeoni
Marco Simoncelli
Gustav Thoeni
Alberto Tomba
Francesco Totti

What’s new for 2022 summer season

In summer 2022 ITA Airways will be operating flights to 64 destinations of which 23 are national, 34 are international, and 7 are intercontinental. It is the intercontinental destinations that are the big new feature for this new season of ITA Airways, which, thanks to its latest-generation Airbus A330s and A350s, will reach the most important destinations in world tourism.

Just today in fact at 11.00, the first, Rome Fiumicino – Miami flight, AZ0630, marked the beginning of our new intercontinental operation. It will land in Miami at 16.40 local time.

The Rome FCO – Miami route will operate 3 times a week on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. The return flight will depart Miami at 19.40 local time.

The first Rome Fiumicino – Boston flight, AZ 614, will depart tomorrow 2 March, and will operate twice weekly every Wednesday and Saturday in the first three weeks of March, to be increased to 3 weekly frequencies starting from the last week of March. Operated by an Airbus A330, it will depart Rome at 10.20, landing in Boston at 14.00 local time. The return Boston – Rome Fiumicino flight will depart at 17.10 local time, landing in Rome at 07.00 local time.

The Rome Fiumicino – Miami and Rome Fiumicino – Boston flights will increase during the summer season and will rise from 3 to 5 weekly frequencies in the months of April and May. From June to September these flights will become daily.

On 2 April the first ITA Airways intercontinental flight will depart from Milan Malpensa to New York JFK. It will operate 5 times a week on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday. Operated by an Airbus A330, it will depart Milan Malpensa at 12.50, landing in New York at 16.10 local time. The return New York – Milan MXP flight will depart at 20.40 local time, landing at 10.50. The Malpensa – JFK flight joins the Rome FCO – New York JFK that was already operated by ITA Airways in the winter 2021/2022 season.

From June 2022 there will also be departures from Rome Fiumicino to new destinations: Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, and Tokyo. Thus, from 2 June, ITA Airways conquers two of the world’s principal markets, the United States and South America, which have always been preferred destinations for Italian holidaymakers and the countries with the largest populations of Italian origin. These two markets are also very important destinations for business and freight traffic. ITA Airways is also conquering the Japan market with a direct flight from Rome FCO to Tokyo Haneda. Operated by A330 aircraft, it will operate 5 times a week beginning from 1 June every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, departing Rome at 15.10 and landing in Tokyo the following day at 10.35. From 2 June the return flight from Tokyo Haneda will operate every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, departing Tokyo at 13.35 and landing in Rome at 19.35. From August these flights will become daily.

The 2022 ITA Airways summer season will also feature the most popular Mediterranean destinations with new flights to the islands of Italy, Spain, Greece and Croatia. In particular, ITA Airways will operate seasonal flights in August from Rome FCO and Milan LIN to Lampedusa, Pantelleria, Corfu, Heraklion, Rhodes, Ibiza, Menorca, and Mallorca.

Also in August, the destinations of Kefalonia, Dubrovnik and Split will be served from Rome FCO, and Thessaloniki from Milan Linate.

All the new ITA Airways flights can be purchased on the ita-airways.com website, from the ITA Airways Call Center, or from travel agencies and airport ticket offices.

Thanks to our codeshare agreements with the major international carriers, ITA Airways is also continuing to grow its commercial strategy via partnerships with other global carriers – giving a privileged access route to the markets of greatest interest for the Company, firstly and foremost in Europe but also in America, Africa, and Saudi Arabia.

With the direct flights from Rome Fiumicino and Milan Linate, these codeshares enable ITA Airways to reach the entire domestic networks of the following airlines via their hubs: Air Malta, Tarom, Air Europa, Bulgaria Air, Tap, Croatia Airlines, Air Serbia, KLM, Luxair, Middle East Airlines, Etihad Airlines, Air France, Delta, Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Czech Airlines, Air Baltic, Pegasus Airlines, and Royal Air Maroc.

In all, 20 codeshare agreements have been signed so far, for a total of 248 destinations served, on which ITA Airways will use its own codes.

The Piazza di Spagna Lounge

Inaugurated in mid-January, the “Piazza di Spagna” Lounge is located in Boarding Area E of Rome Fiumicino airport and extends over an area of about 1,000 square meters with 200 available seats. It includes meeting areas, bookable in advance, and the Kids Lounge, which is dedicated to welcoming our younger guests and allowing them to play. The Lounge offers customers an environment that is elegant and at the same time familiar, thanks to having an Italian approach to hospitality. Customers are welcomed at the entrance by the blue of the new ITA Airways livery, which symbolizes the unity, cohesion, and pride of our country and represents Italian sport and our national team. The catering service is inspired by Italian food and wine excellence, with a bar area where among other things, our customers can sample a selection of fine Italian wines or a typical Italian aperitif prepared by professional bartenders. The offer is in two parts: breakfast and an all-day catering service with an additional hot meal interlude for passengers taking the morning flights to New York, Miami, and Boston. The offer is completed by Wi-Fi connectivity, TV screens with the news of the day, a display for checking flight departure times, and our new digital newsstand service.

This contactless digital reading service was created thanks to our partnership with PressReader, as a very large virtual room where passengers can find newspapers and magazines from all over the world. Offered free of charge, it will enable them to access more than 7,000 titles directly from their device, including newspapers and magazines from 120 countries in more than 60 languages, without any limit. Access is very simple: after completing the web check-in, the passenger directly receives a link to the digital kiosk within the email that delivers the boarding pass. The link is valid for the following 58 hours, and there is also an app that can be used to download the content and read it offline, at any time.

Operational performance

As at 15 February 2022, ITA Airways recorded 96,9% of flights landed on time, and 99,9% of its entire operation was completed in regularity. In January ITA Airways was the top airline in Europe in terms of punctuality and the first in the world in terms of regularity. This was certified by data from FlightStats, an authoritative independent US company that prepares monthly rankings of these indicators for all airlines.

ITA Airways, which started operations on 15 October 2021, was immediately positioned at the top of these punctuality and regularity rankings by providing a service that met with customer satisfaction. These positive results are the result of the professionalism and dedication of all ITA Airways employees, thanks to constantly listening to the opinions of all our customers, who are always at the center of the business.

About ITA Airways

ITA Airways is a company totally owned by the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance for the exercise of business in the air transport sector. ITA Airways aims at creating an efficient and innovative air carrier that will become a reference point in providing Italy with quality connectivity both in terms of international destinations, thus boosting tourism and foreign trade, and within the Country, also taking advantage of the train-air integrated mobility. ITA Airways will place the best customer service at the center of its strategy (through a strong digitization of processes that ensure a best-in-class experience and personalized services), combined with sustainability, in its environmental (new green and technologically advanced aircraft, use of sustainable fuels), social (equality and inclusion for a gender-neutral company) and governance (integration of sustainability into internal strategies and processes) aspects. ITA Airways is a member of SkyTeam alliance as of October 2021.

For more information:
LaPresse SpA Communication and Press Office Director
Barbara Sanicola – barbara.sanicola@lapresse.it

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/76179e2d-2792-4d7f-ae96-5a448c04ff5b

The photo is also available at Newscom, www.newscom.com, and via AP PhotoExpress.

March 1, 2022

Modelo Builds on Success With the Launch of New Product Innovations

Naranja Picosa

The No. 2 beer brand in the U.S.¹ expands its Mexican beer portfolio to bring more Chelada offerings and test three new beverages

CHICAGO, March 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Modelo announced today the introduction of new product offerings, including expansions on their popular flavor-forward Cheladas and new test offerings such as a premium light beer, Modelo Oro. As the No. 2 beer brand in the U.S.¹, Modelo Especial is bolstering its leadership in the high-end beverage category with an expanded portfolio that addresses the flavors and varieties fans look for in an authentic Mexican beer brand.

The new offerings include:

Modelo Chelada Naranja Picosa – available nationally
Modelo Chelada Limón y Sal, 12 oz. 12-pack – available nationally
Modelo Oro – available in Charlotte, NC; Fresno, CA and Houston, TX
Modelo Cantarito-Style Cerveza – available in Atlanta, GA; San Diego, CA and Arizona
Modelo Ranch Water – available in Texas and New Mexico

Limón y Sal

“In addition to being the No. 2 beer brand in the country¹, Modelo Especial is the best-selling beer in nine key markets throughout the U.S.², with plenty of room to grow. While we will continue to drive our flagship offering, we hope these innovations will continue our momentum and bring new opportunities for drinkers to enjoy Modelo products,” said Greg Gallagher, Vice President of Brand Marketing, Modelo. “We are the No. 1 line-up of Cheladas in the U.S.¹ and the brand driving all category growth³, so we are committed to investing in new flavorful options and delivering sizes that consumers want.”

Cantarito-Style Cervesa

Available nationally, the brand is releasing a 12oz 12-pack of the popular Modelo Chelada Limón y Sal flavor to make it easier to share when celebrating the Fighting Spirit with friends. The newest, vibrant flavor in the Chelada lineup is Modelo Chelada Naranja Picosa – a fun and zesty blend of refreshing flavors including orange, lime, salt, and a hint of spice.

Modelo’s innovations will bolster the brand’s continued growth, as evidenced by its sales: as of January 2022, Modelo is the No. 1 growth beer brand, up 13 percent in extra sales compared to the same period in 2021⁴.

Modelo Oro

“When developing our regional product innovations, we aimed to test new offerings that consumers are asking for in key markets – with the authenticity that only Modelo can bring,” said Saúl Trejo, Senior Brand Manager, Modelo. “We know that consumers are increasingly reaching for lighter, more premium sessionable offerings⁵, so we developed Modelo Oro, a light cerveza that seals in Modelo’s golden flavor. Meanwhile Modelo Cantarito-Style Cerveza is inspired by the vibrant cantarito cocktail from Jalisco, Mexico – a drink to celebrate the strong Mexican culture and heritage we see throughout the U.S.”

Modelo’s new premium light beer offering is Modelo Oro, a time-crafted and premium light beer with an exceptionally smooth, crisp clean finish. Modelo Ranch Water is a crisp spiked sparkling water crafted with real flavor and Mexican ingredients – with a splash of real Mexican lime juice and a hint of 100% blue agave. Modelo Cantarito-Style Cerveza is a light lager made with a hint of real grapefruit, orange and lime juices.

For more information on these innovations and other Casa Modelo products, visit www.modelousa.com.

¹ IRi Last 52 Weeks Ending 01.02.22, Dollar Sales
² 2021 IRi Dollar Sales Total MULO + C
³ IRi, Total US MULO + C, $ sales, L52 weeks ending 1-2-22
⁴ IRi Total US MULO + C, CBI FY22 ending 2.13.22
⁵ Modelo Chelada Multi-Pack Assessment & Qual Validation Research 2019

Ranch Water

ABOUT MODELO^®
Born in 1925 in the small town of Tacuba, Mexico, Modelo has been bringing distinctive high-quality beer to people ever since, including Modelo Especial^®, Modelo Negra^®, and a flavorful lineup of Modelo Cheladas. Modelo Especial is a golden, full-flavored Pilsner-style Lager with a clean, crisp finish. As the #1 imported beer in the U.S., Modelo Especial recently surpassed 150MM cases sold in 2021. The Modelo family of beers are exclusively brewed, imported and marketed for the U.S. by Constellation Brands.

Media Contact:
Stephanie McGuane
Stephanie.mcguane@cbrands.com

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9beb31df-02db-48ea-a0af-3d04d40687fe

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/aaf19497-fac6-4ed4-95a5-6a380a5d301b

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/52aa45bb-5588-47b3-b97a-6673b0b8ebbe

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/872b3592-dfdf-4c10-94a7-084e09fd3645

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a3518bc8-7a02-424d-8d93-742c548b1b91

March 1, 2022

Winners Announced in 16th Annual Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service

New Categories for 2022 Recognize Thought Leadership

Winners have been announced in the 16th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.

More than 2,300 entries were considered in over 90 categories for sales, customer service, and contact center achievements.

FAIRFAX, Va., March 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Winners in the 16th annual Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service, recognized as the world’s top customer service awards and sales awards, were announced today. Stevie Award winners will be celebrated during a virtual awards ceremony on May 11.

The complete list of Stevie Winners by category is available at http://www.StevieAwards.com/Sales.

More than 2,300 nominations from organizations in 51 nations were considered in this year’s competition. Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award winners were determined by the average scores of more than 150 professionals on eight specialized judging committees. Entries were considered in more than 90 categories for customer service and contact center achievements, including Contact Center of the Year, Award for Innovation in Customer Service, and Customer Service Department of the Year; more than 60 categories for sales and business development achievements, ranging from Senior Sales Executive of the Year to Sales Training or Business Development Executive of the Year to Sales Department of the Year; and categories to recognize new products and services, solution providers, and organizations’ and individuals’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic. New categories this year honor excellence in thought leadership in customer service and sales.

IBM of Armonk, NY USA and DP DHL, worldwide both won 11 Gold Stevie Awards, the most of any organization in the competition. Other Stevie winners with three of more Golds include Sales Partnerships, Inc., Broomfield, CO USA (eight), ValueSelling Associates, Carlsbad, CA USA (six), HP, Inc. Boise, ID USA (four), The Biz Dojo Inc, Calgary, Canada (four), UPMC Health Plan, Pittsburgh, PA USA (four), Allianz Services Pvt Ltd, Kerala, India (three), Nutrisystem, Fort Washington, PA USA (three), TransPerfect, New York, NY USA (three), and Voya Financial, Chandler, AZ USA (three).

Winners of two Gold Stevie Awards include Contact Lens King Inc., Chaplain, NY USA; Datasite, Minneapolis, MN USA; Dubai Municipality, Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Empolis Group, Kaiserslautern, Germany; Future Generali India Insurance Company Ltd., Mumbai, India; Michael Kors, New York, NY USA; Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA USA; Municipality and Planning Department, Ajman, United Arab Emirates; Optima Tax Relief, LLC, Santa Ana, CA USA; POWERHOME SOLAR, Mooresville, NC USA; PowerSchool Group LLC, Folsom, CA USA; Ruby, Portland, OR USA; SAP, Newtown Square, PA USA; Sber, Moscow, Russia; SoftPro, Raleigh, NC USA; Spinnaker Support, Greenwood Village, CO USA; Support Services Group, Lewis Center, OH USA; Talkdesk, San Francisco, CA USA; Templeton & Partners, London, United Kingdom; VakifBank, Istanbul, Turkey; and VMware, Palo Alto, CA USA.

Other organizations winning a combination of four or more Gold, Silver, or Bronze Stevie Awards include Abrigo, Austin, TX USA; Arise Virtual Solutions, Miramar, FL USA; Blackhawk Network, Pleasanton CA USA; CarrefourSA, Istanbul, Turkey; Clubspeed, Irvine, CA USA; EFG Companies, Irving, TX USA; Element Electronics, Winnsboro, SC USA; HireVue, South Jordan, UT USA; Intuit, Mississauga, Ontario Canada; Nuance Communications, Boston, MA USA; OpenGov, San Jose, CA USA; Optum Eden Prairie, MN USA; Princess Polly, Los Angeles CA USA; Pushpay, Redmond, WA USA; QNB Finansbank, Istanbul, Turkey; RAIN Group, Boston, MA USA; Toco Warranty, Los Angeles, CA USA; TTEC, Englewood, CO USA; Visualize, Birmingham, MI USA; VIZIO Inc., Irvine, CA USA; and WNS (Holdings) Limited, Mumbai, India.

The 10 most-honored organizations in the competition will receive Grand Stevie Award trophies. Those winners will be announced the week of March 14.

Beginning today through April 1, the public may vote for their favorite providers of customer service in the People’s Choice Stevie® Awards for Favorite Customer Service, an annual feature of the awards. Voting is open at http://peopleschoice.stevieawards.com. Winners of the People’s Choice Stevie Awards in multiple industries will be announced the week of April 4.

One category in the awards will continue to accept entries through March 11. It is the Sales Partnerships Award for Ethics in Sales, which will recognize organizations for best practices and achievements in demonstrating the highest ethical standards in the sales industry. Entry requirements for this category are outlined at https://stevieawards.com/sales/nominate-2022-sales-partnerships-ethics-sales-award.

About the Stevie Awards
Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards®, The International Business Awards®, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 nominations each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. 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.

Sponsors of the 16th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service include Sales Partnerships, Inc., Thought Leadership Leverage, and ValueSelling Associates, Inc.

Marketing Contact:
Nina Moore
Nina@StevieAwards.com
+1 (703) 547-8389

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a8a7c18c-40b4-4999-9a72-ee6afaecb74d

March 1, 2022

Gilas eyes PBA player-laden 30-man pool

Published by
Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines – A bulk of PBA cagers may be back in full force for Gilas Pilipinas moving forward for a loaded schedule leading to the 2023 FIBA World Cup following a split campaign in the just-concluded February window of the qualifiers. In an initial discussion between Gilas coach Chot Reyes and PBA commissioner Willie Marcial on Tuesday, an expanded pool of 30 players led by a majority of pro standouts have been proposed for a slew of international tilts starting with the Southeast Asian Games this May. The early plan, which also includes the possibility of adjusting the PBA calendar,… Continue reading “Gilas eyes PBA player-laden 30-man pool”

March 1, 2022

Tron Ninjas encapsulate the classic Arcade in a metaverse

London, UK, March 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — (via Blockchain Wire) The TronNinja arcade built on the Tron Blockchain is set to bring back the local Arcade with a twist. A mini metaverse dubbed the Ninjaverse will allow users to meet, socialize, and compete in a Roblox style open world. Each user can play as their TronNinja NFT and even own their own Retro Arcade machine and its revenue.

Retro arcade games have a place in most gamers’ hearts. The games we spent our days playing before life got in the way, those who remember, know that the local Arcade was always much more than playing games; the social aspect of it was just as important. That was all lost long ago when computers became accessible.

The team behind TronNinjas came together out of love for retro gaming! They are a multi-national team of software developers, marketers and visionaries. They are making the Tron Blockchain the home of the Ninjaverse due to the high throughput and low-cost transactions. It was deemed the perfect solution for a Play to Earn game.

“At its core, the Tron ninja arcade was born out of love for something which died long ago; playing games in arcades was more than gaming; it was a social hub for people when not everyone could have a computer. You would spend your days with friends competing, playing, and socializing at your local Arcade — That is what we are trying to encapsulate here; not only playing games but the social aspect of Tron Ninjas is as essential. We are trying to digitalize the local Arcade and bring back an old art form in a new medium.” Mo – Founder

The TronNinja Arcade is now live, and anyone can take part in weekly GameFi E-Sports events with prizes for the winners. There are already four playable retro games; users can earn the TronNinjas native token TNT just by playing games. The next phase of the project is the Ninjaverse.

Website: https://tronninjas.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tronninjas
Discord: https://discord.com/invite/G6r8rY9Smd
Ninjaverse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0Tw7lRbpT8

Mo K
Founder
TronNinjas
info (at) tronninjas.com

March 1, 2022

Monticello Joins an International Group to Strengthen Its Offering

Agreement reached between Monticello and BIP, a consulting multinational in Italy

NEW YORK, March 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Monticello Consulting Group, a leader in the financial services sector and one of the best recognized consulting firms in the Capital Markets segment, announces an agreement reached with BIP, a multinational consulting company.

The two consulting firms have signed an agreement for the acquisition by BIP of Monticello’s equity, in which the current ownership will continue to hold a significant stake in the Company. In addition, CEO Will Morgan will continue to lead the operations in the United States.

Founded in Italy in 2003, with global revenue of 347 million euros as of 30 September 2021, BIP now has over 4,000 professionals in the main European, American and Middle Eastern countries. This transaction guarantees Monticello the opportunity to enrich its offering of consulting services, making use of the experience of a global partner such as the BIP Group. Thanks to the synergies in line with Monticello’s ambition and culture, Monticello will expand their presence globally and deepen their service offerings on a larger scale, benefiting all stakeholders.

This agreement will allow BIP to further enrich its offering in the United States, where the Group has been present since 2015, and to consolidate it, thanks to the experience gained over the years by Monticello.

Following the acquisition, there will be over 150 professionals of the BIP Group in the United States, thus strengthening the ability of the consulting multinational to serve large organizations in the region and to support their digital growth, as well as to continue its international expansion. Through this transaction, BIP expects to hire an additional fifty professionals in the US by the end of 2022.

Will Morgan, CEO of Monticello, together with Andrea Airaghi, Managing Partner M&A of BIP, and Giorgio Gristina, Managing Partner of BIP in the US, will continue to lead the development of the business in the United States.

This transaction with Monticello is the most recent showcasing of BIP Group’s international growth strategy that has been underway for years, following similar deals in both South America and the United Kingdom. Monticello is BIP’s first transaction since the entry of the private equity fund CVC Capital Partners, majority shareholder of the BIP Group from 2021.

Will Morgan, CEO & founder of Monticello Consulting Group shares, “I am excited to announce this new chapter for Monticello Consulting as we move forward with combining our services with BIP, a global leader in consulting and digital transformation. Working alongside our amazing colleagues at BIP, Monticello’s consultants and our business platform will be positioned to scale quickly and compete immediately for new business, new clients, and new types of projects, further solidifying our market leading position in banking, capital markets, and financial services advisory. Our longstanding clients in the New York and London financial markets will benefit tremendously from our new expanded capabilities.”

“I am delighted to welcome a new group of professionals who enrich our offer in the United States and thrilled to have taken another big step forward in our globalization strategy,” comments Carlo Capè, CEO of BIP. “The choice of a partner like Monticello, with whom we share the same motivation for innovation, has allowed our Group to conclude a strongly desired and supported operation, strategic for strengthening the positioning of BIP as an Italian excellence in the world.”

“This investment represents a major step forward in expanding our portfolio worldwide,” adds Andrea Airaghi, BIP’s Managing Partner M&A. “Through this transaction we strengthen our presence in the United States, a strategic area for our global growth plan with the acquisition of Monticello delivering great added value to the BIP Group’s offer, enriched by a consolidated experience in the financial services sector and digital transformation.”

BIP was assisted in the transaction as financial advisor by Equita Sim, with a team led by Simone Riviera (Deputy Head of Investment Banking) and composed of Giulio Godi (Director) and Leone Laboni (Analyst). The international legal firm Cozen O ‘Connor, with a team led by Christian Moretti (Partner and Vice Chair, International Practice) and Beatrice Bottini (Senior Associate), assisted BIP for the legal due diligence and the drafting of all the documents of the transaction, supported by the Group General Counsel of BIP, Lodovico Bianchi Di Giulio. PwC, with a multidisciplinary team from Milan and Dallas, led by Giuseppe Rana (Partner Deals) with Joseph Gehring (Senior Manager), Gabriella Melacca (Manager), Luigi Farago (Associate), Nicola Broggi (Partner M&A Tax) and Alessandro Campione (Director M&A Tax), conducted the due diligence on financial, tax, and accounting aspects.

Monticello was assisted in the transaction by Equiteq as exclusive financial advisor, with a team led by Daniel Siller (Managing Director) and composed of Ravi Dosanjh (Vice President) and Christopher Saunderson (Analyst). Lisa Hedrick and Sarah Mikowski, members of Hirschler’s M&A and Finance Group, provided legal counsel to Monticello.

BIP, founded in Italy in 2003, is today one of the leading multinational consulting firms and employs over 4,000 people globally. Its professionals offer management consulting and business integration services, supporting companies in the research and adoption processes of disruptive technological solutions.

BIP press office contact:
communication@mail-bip.com
Tel. +39 02 454 1521

Monticello Consulting Group is a trusted advisor in the global financial services industry, partnering with its clients to achieve their vision of excellence. Monticello Consulting was founded in 2004 and works with a global portfolio of large banks, wealth managers, and other financial institutions. Monticello’s consultants are seasoned professionals, many with decades of industry knowledge and significant expertise in financial services. Headquartered in New York City, Monticello offers a combination of expertise and proven methodology to drive meaningful bottom-line results in the areas of digital transformation, change management, and financial services advisory.

Monticello press office contact:
Monticello Consulting Group, Inc.
info@monticellocg.com
Tel. 646-661-4992

March 1, 2022

PSEi seen zooming past 7,500-level in Q2

Published by
Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The local bourse is projected to breach the 7,500-level by the second quarter as the Philippines’ economic recovery proves stronger than expected, although volatility remains on the international front. The Philippine Stock Exchange index raked in 1.37% to finish at 7,311.01 on Monday, staying above the 7,000-mark since October 11. For analysts at First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC) and University of Asia & the Pacific (UA&P), recent economic developments could push the market higher. “PSEi momentarily broke through the strong resistance of 7,500 on February 9th, but slig… Continue reading “PSEi seen zooming past 7,500-level in Q2”