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Recent Press Releases> Press Release Archive > Article |
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Recent Press Releases - Article |
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Press Release: For Immediate Release NEW ZEALAND RELEASE: VISIBLE RESULTS CEO NAMED ERNST & YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR -20 SEPTEMBER 2001Michael Whittaker, CEO of the Atlantis Group of Companies and president and CEO of its Visible Results division, has been named New Zealand's "Entrepreneur of the Year" by global professional services firm Ernst & Young. Prior to winning the overall award, the 30-year-old marketing specialist captured one of six "category-specific" honors concurrently bestowed upon fellow New Zealand-based entrepreneurs, named in the technology/communications classification. In November, Whittaker will attend the Ernst & Young International Forum of Entrepreneurs and, in June 2002, he will represent his country at the firm's World Entrepreneur of the Year competition and awards ceremony. Whittaker, like all winners, met stringent criteria applied by Ernst & Young judges in selecting "Entrepreneur of the Year' honorees on national and international levels. Besides clear sales growth and financial strength, judges sought among applicants an exceptional ability to lead and inspire others, as well as to overcome major obstacles. They also looked for a keen sense of community involvement and sufficient acumen to create ingenious marketing techniques and develop local and international markets. Carol Campbell, national director of Ernst & Young Entrepreneurial Services Group, noted that having created an internationally successful, yet New Zealand-centric business, boded extremely well for Whittaker during the judging process. "Michael and his team carry out as many activities as possible in New Zealand," Campbell said. "For example, all Atlantis' technology development is done in Auckland, and its local support center supports calls from New York to Singapore." She added that the judging panel was similarly impressed with Whittaker's drive, entrepreneurial passion, and commitment to New Zealand. Whittaker was only a teenager when he commenced charting his success course by importing ceramic pots from Southest Asia. He then astonished the horticultural industry when he persuaded U.S. authorities to allow him to export live ferns to the U.S. Next came an ice cream venture, with Whittaker and a partner developing Killinchy Gold, one of New Zealand's premium ice cream brands. In late 1996, at the age of 26, Whittaker decided to fill what he and three friends perceived as the need for a top-notch database marketing concern. In its first year, the firm, dubbed Atlantis Marketing, expanded its staff from four to 30 persons. Less than four years later, it had become a leader in the field of database management and had amassed a client roster that includes such blue-chip New Zealand companies as Clear Communications, Baycorp, and Tower. In 1997, Whittaker founded Visible Results, a separate arm of the company. It has fast evolved into one of the world's leading Customer Relationship Management (CRM) companies, serving a growing client base across the convenience, fast food, fuel, and general retail fields. Yet, the story does not end there. Earlier this year, in a move reminiscent of the late Victor Kiam's Remington razors coup, Visible Results acquired GraphiCard T Systems of Overland Park, KS, the company whose patented GraphiCard T read/write technology serves as a unique foundation for Visible Results' loyalty card program. A separate division, Visible Results USA, was formed to introduce U.S. merchants to the technology, which is supported by a sophisticated CRM infrastructure. Several US companies have already committed to deploying the technology, which has already been successfully employed outside the continental US by such companies as McDonald's Hawaii, Mobil Oil New Zealand and KFC Australia. About Visible Results Visible Results USA, Inc. is a subsidiary of the Auckland, New Zealand-based Visible Results Group of Companies. Since its inception in 1997, the parent company has emerged as one of the world's leading customer relationship firms, serving a growing client base across convenience, fast food, fuels and the general retail industry. The company established Visible Results USA and a base in the US through the February 2001 acquisition of Graphicard Systems International (GSI), Overland Park, KS. The purchase included the worldwide intellectual property patents to the unique technology that underlies all Visible Results GraphiCardT programs. Visible Results USA established a marketing office in New York City in May 2001, following the addition of veteran retail and consumer products marketing consultant Gerald Lewis to its team as Chairman. For further information, visit the company's website at: www.visibleresults.com., or contact Visible Results USA, 230 Park Avenue, Suite 630, New York, NY 10169. Telephone is (212) 681-9159. Press Contacts: At Visible Results USA, Gerald Lewis, Chairman, (212) 681-9159; e-mail: glewis@visibleresults.com; at Visible Results Group of Companies, Michael Whittaker, President and CEO, (913) 851-9400, e-mail: Mwhittaker@tag.co.nz; at Parness & Associates Public Relations, Bill Parness or Lisa Kreda, (732) 290-0121
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