Microsoft Dynamics Calls on all UK Businesses to Enter Change Ambassadors Competition

LONDON, March 22, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Entry deadline - 29^th March 2013

Microsoft Dynamics, in partnership with the Economist Intelligence Unit, is calling for final submissions to the Change Ambassadors Programme 2013, which will recognise the skills, efforts and vision of key change-makers within UK business.

The competition is about recognising those employees who, often behind the scenes, have helped execute successful change- big or small.

The inaugural awards are encouraging anyone who has executed successful change within their organisation in the UK in the last 24 months to make their submission before entries close on Friday 29^th March 2013.

The awards are open to businesses of all sizes in the UK and are targeting managers to departmental heads or business executives, with five awards on offer across key categories: Marketing, People and Culture, Technology, Finance, and No Boundaries.

The shortlisted entries will be announced in April 2013 and the final winners of each category will be revealed at an exclusive awards ceremony on Thursday 16th May 2013. They will be decided by category judges made up of qualified experts from leading British businesses, academia, and other influential thinkers.

Each of the winners will receive a week-log executive seminar at the prestigious Cranfield School of Management, an annual digital subscription to The Economist and an audience for the winner and their organisation with some of the country's leading figures in business at the awards ceremony in May.

Prestigious judges of the five categories include:

• Doug Baillie, Chief Human Resources Officer at Unilever and member of the Unilever Leadership Executive, will judge entries to the People and Culture category
• Umair Haque, Director of Havas Media Labs and ranked one of the world's most influential management thinker by Thinkers50, will judge the No Boundaries category
• Tom Standage, Digital editor at The Economist, who oversees the publication's website, Economist.com, and its mobile-phone, tablet and e-reader editions, among judges in the Technology category
• Jonathan Salem Baskin, President of Baskin Associates who, with 28 years' experience working with some of the world's leading brands and author of award-winning marketing blog Dim Bulb, will judge the Marketing category
• Scott Moeller, Director and Founder of the M&A Research Centre at Cass Business School, will judge the Finance category.

The judges will be looking for entries that demonstrate excellent inter-personal, communication, leadership and management skills and self-motivation, among others.

They will assess effectiveness through a combination of quantitative and qualitative information, including ROI and productivity, sponsor's and peers' feedback.

Alasdair Ross, Global Product Director at the Economist Intelligence Unit and host of the awards ceremony, says: "The Change Ambassadors Awards celebrate the efforts and innovative thinking of people in the UK who have implemented change in their organisation. Businesses need talented individuals who can identify where change is needed to stay one step ahead of the competition."

Steve Morrow, Director, Microsoft Dynamics UK, lead sponsor, said: "The most successful businesses understand the need to adapt as the world evolves around them. At the heart of change there is always an individual who pioneered an idea from inception to reality and fundamentally improved the way that business works; these awards are designed to reward their achievements."

For more information and to find out how to enter please visit: http://www.changeambassadors.com

Notes to Editor

Keep up to date on exciting new developments, including newly confirmed judges to the panel at #changeambassadors on Twitter.

About Microsoft Dynamics

Over the last three decades, Microsoft has consistently transformed the way that people live, work, play and connect through great technology. Microsoft is redefining how business solutions empower people for greater success, predict potential issues and opportunities, and enable organisations to expand the possibilities for competitive advantage.

Microsoft Dynamics is a flexible, powerful business solution for CRM and ERP that enables you to be agile and progressive in a constantly changing world. Dynamic Businesses are connected, forward-looking organisations that thrive by empowering their people to reach their full potential.

Businesses can consume the Microsoft Dynamics technology in the model that works for them - as an integrated suite in a business or subsidiary, or workload by workload in larger enterprises, with the workloads together composing the simplicity of a suite.

About the Economist Intelligence Unit

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is the world's leading resource for economic and business research, forecasting and analysis. It provides accurate and impartial intelligence for companies, government agencies, financial institutions and academic organisations around the globe, inspiring business leaders to act with confidence since 1946. EIU products include its flagship Country Reports service, providing political and economic analysis for 195 countries, and a portfolio of subscription-based data and forecasting services. The company also undertakes bespoke research and analysis projects on individual markets and business sectors. More information is available at http://www.eiu.com or follow us on http://www.twitter.com/theeiu

The EIU is headquartered in London, UK, with offices in more than 40 cities and a network of some 650 country experts and analysts worldwide. It operates independently as the business-to-business arm of The Economist Group, the leading source of analysis on international business and world affairs.

SOURCE Microsoft Dynamics & Economist Intelligence Unit