ASCII Executives Named to SMB 150 List

Jerry Koutavas and Doug Young have been voted two of the top 150 worldwide SMB IT channel influencers

Bethesda, Maryland — April 25, 2012 — The ASCII Group, Inc. (ASCII), the nation’s oldest and most established community of solution providers, announced today that President Jerry Koutavas and Chief Operating Officer Doug Young have been named to the SMB 150 Channel Influencers List.  The SMB 150, a collaboration between SMB Nation and SMB Technology Network, is the SMB technology channel’s annual list of its 150 most influential members.

Young and Koutavas were chosen during a two-phase voting process. In the initial stage, channel community members voted on 400 nominees at SMB150.com. Following the community vote, a panel of industry experts evaluated each nominee based on a pre-established rubric. The community vote accounted for 40{0227c8b27d3643b319fca80e0d52ece22d029d3e12a11668fde66cd4475dd8cc} of each nominee’s overall rating, with the expert panel’s decision contributing the remaining 60{0227c8b27d3643b319fca80e0d52ece22d029d3e12a11668fde66cd4475dd8cc}.

Koutavas stated, “It’s an honor to be included as one of the top channel influencers.  Since 1984, ASCII has diligently worked with both our solution provider members and vendors to grow the strength of the channel, and I want to thank everyone for recognizing our efforts.”   Young added, “I’m thrilled to have been selected for this honor, especially considering the quality of the other nominees.”

Koutavas, Young, and their fellow SMB 150 influencers have been invited to attend the SMB 150 Awards Gala on May 16, 2012, at the Westin Bonaventure in Los Angeles. The event is hosted by SMB Nation and SMB Technology Network and sponsored by BlackBerry, OKI Data Americas, and Quest Software. Each SMB 150 winner will receive a personalized award plaque, recognition in the SMB Nation magazine and other media outlets, and a 64 GB BlackBerry PlayBook.
    
“I encourage everyone in the SMB channel community to join me in celebrating the accomplishments of the men and women who made the SMB 150 list,” said SMB Nation Founder and Chairman Harry Brelsford in a blog article posted on the SMB Nation website. “Each and every one of them has spent countless hours growing our community and deserves every accolade we can give them. I can’t wait to toast them in Los Angeles.”

For more information on 2012 SMB Nation 150 Award Gala – A Magical Evening!