Godard Abel, CEO of BigMachines, Inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame at its 26th Anniversary Gala Celebration
Chicago IL -- March 29, 2011 -- BigMachines, Inc., the leader in product configuration, pricing and quoting, proposal generator and B2B ecommerce, today announced that Co-Founder and CEO Godard Abel was inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame. Mr. Abel was recognized for his entrepreneurial achievements and for making a lasting impact on Chicago's business landscape.
"Since founding BigMachines in 2000, my mission has been to deliver industry-leading, innovative, cloud-based software to streamline sales processes," said Abel. "I am proud that in this challenging economy, we have consistently and successfully grown our customer base year-over-year, hired 100 talented global team members in the past year, and continued to invest in product innovation, services and supporting infrastructure. It is a great honor to be recognized by the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame and the Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies."
Under Mr. Abel's leadership, BigMachines has grown from a start-up to an industry leader and has been featured in Inc. Magazine's list of the 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America for the past three years. BigMachines was named to the JMP Securities "Hot 100: The Best Privately Held Software Companies" list for the past two years and in 2010, BigMachines received the CODiE Award for "Best Business Productivity Solution" from the Software & Information Industry Association as well as the "Best Sales Enablement Program" by Sales & Marketing 2.0 Awards.
"For the last 26 years, the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame has been a showcase of Chicag's successful entrepreneur community," said Michael Pagano, interim dean of the UIC College of Business Administration. "This new crop of inductees is further proof that even in the toughest times, through hard work, creativity and dedication, you can succeed in business. On behalf of the CBA, I congratulate the Class of 2011."
About BigMachines
BigMachines is the global leader in enabling B2B sales, helping companies sell more and sell faster. BigMachines' award-winning on-demand configurator, pricing and quoting, proposal generator, and B2B eCommerce software solutions empower sales across customers' channels by streamlining their sales processes from opportunity to order. Using BigMachines software, sales teams and channels can quickly configure products, generate quotes and proposals, manage complex pricing, generate legal contracts, and manage orders. BigMachines offers extensive reporting capabilities and easily integrates to leading CRM and ERP systems, including those from salesforce.com, Oracle, Microsoft and SAP. BigMachines' rapidly growing customer base includes global leaders such as Kodak's GCG, Siemens, Ingersoll Rand, and NTT Communications, as well as innovative growth companies such as Acme Packet. For more information, visit www.bigmachines.com.
About The Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame
Celebrating its 26th Anniversary, the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame recognizes innovative business leaders in the Chicagoland area. Each year, it inducts prominent entrepreneurs who have demonstrated the entrepreneurial spirit and business talent by founding or growing their respective business. The Hall of Fame encourages business leaders, students and government officials to honor the entrepreneurial spirit and business excellence.
Past inductees include: Robert J. Abt of Abt Electronics; John W. Baird of Baird & Warner; Gian M. Fulgoni of comScore, Inc; Robert W. Galvin of Motorola; Michael P. Krasny of CDW Computer Centers, Inc.; Stuart R. Paddock, Jr. of Daily Herald; Gordon Segal of Crate & Barrel; and Charlie Trotter of Charlie Trotter's.
The 2011 Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame partners include: American Airlines, American Chartered Bank, Crain's Chicago Business, Allscripts, Grant Thornton, Market M and the University of Illinois at Chicago Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies.
For more information or to obtain event photos, please call (312) 255-3125.
About the Institute of Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago
Founded in 1982, the Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago is one of the leading entrepreneurial research and professional organizations in the United States. The Institute's mission is to champion the entrepreneurship mindset and skill-set among students, faculty and the community-at-large. Today, the Institute offers innovative programs designed to advance the entrepreneurial spirit in students, business owners and the international research community.
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