Company: PGi, Atlanta, GA
Company Description: PGi has been a leading global provider of collaboration software and services for over 20 years. PGi’s cloud-based software applications let business users connect, collaborate and share ideas from their desktop, tablet or smartphone. PGi has a global presence in 25 countries, with over 45,000 enterprise customers, including 75% of the Fortune 100.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Company of the Year - Computer Software - More Than 250 Employees

Nomination Title: PGi

1. Tell the story about what this nominated organization achieved since January 1 2013 (up to 525 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

In today’s hypercompetitive, global business economy, growth is a challenge for companies of all sizes, in all geographies and every industry. And technologies emerge every day that disrupt the status quo and revolutionize the marketplace. To survive and grow within this challenging ecosystem, businesses must work harder than ever to stay competitive. Operating efficiently is no longer enough. Companies must now rapidly exchange new ideas, innovate faster, reach new markets, increase sales and recruit more effectively in order to propel their businesses forward and succeed. At the very core of each of these critical activities is collaboration.

At PGi, a leading global provider of collaboration software and services, we have dedicated the last 22 years to building collaboration solutions that help businesses grow and thrive. This moment in time is exciting for us. We believe the market is moving towards next generation collaboration applications—like our own iMeet® and GlobalMeet® solutions—that leverage the cloud, social platforms, webcam video, video streaming, file sharing and mobile computing to deliver a more robust, productive and meaningful collaboration experience.

2013 was a game-changing year for PGi, as we took leadership of the global pure-play collaboration and conferencing industry by growing our customer base, launching market-shifting innovations in our first-party collaboration products and hosted more virtual meetings in more countries than ever before:

• Hosted 70 million virtual meetings with over 300 million people from 137 countries, up nearly 25% from the previous years.
• Released industry-leading innovations and enhancements to iMeet and GlobalMeet®, PGi’s game-changing virtual collaboration apps, resulting in growing accolades from industry analysts and media, as well as significant new enterprise sales and trials.
• Served more than 45,000 enterprise customers, including 75 percent of the FortuneTM 100
• Generated nearly 75% growth in our collaboration software applications—approximately two-thirds of which came from our current audio customers upgrading to PGi software; and
• Completed three strong acquisitions, adding thousands of enterprise customers, more than a quarter-million business users and new channels for growth.

Our innovative software-as-a-service (SaaS) collaboration solutions are driving the collaboration and conferencing markets forward. In 2013, we launched the PGi Innovation Lab—the first skunkwerks-style innovation program in our industry. Using the popular theory of Agile Development, the PGi Innovation Lab, led by our CTO David Guthrie, is driven by our vision: We provide collaboration solutions to the world for the shaping and advancement of ideas. This visionary approach to development and innovation in our industry has already produced one exciting new business productivity app (Agenday) and targeted next-step innovations in our flagship products’ development cycles.

“PGi was founded on the entrepreneurial spirit of innovation, tallying over 100 patents and patent applications since its founding in 1991, including advances that created the infrastructure for the modern, global conference call,” said Boland T. Jones, PGi founder, chairman and CEO. “This bold new initiative is part of PGi’s never-ending quest for advancement and innovation. We are dedicated to inventing simple, persona and mobile solutions that meet business’ core technology needs, while also providing workers with the robust, yet easy-to-use tools that are vital for productivity and collaboration.”

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Provide a brief (up to 125 words) biography about the leader of this nominated organization:

In the mid-1980s, Boland Jones started his first company — American Network Exchange (AMNEX) — which provided the first alternatives to the AT&T® operator service. Jones foresaw a future in business communications and founded PGi in 1991. PGi has since been recognized by Forbes® as one of America’s 200 Best Small Companies and received the Best Product Line Strategy Award from Frost & Sullivan®. Named one of Georgia’s Top Performing CEOs and Technology Entrepreneur of the Year of the Southeast Region, Jones personifies a new kind of leadership. Believing in the power of innovation that makes life easier, productive and cost-effective, Jones stands by the value of dreaming big ideas and turning them into realities that shape the future and help companies do better business.