AFSMI Announces Recipients of George O. Harmon Award and Lifetime Achievement Award; Recipients honored at the 34th S-Business Education Summit and Expo.

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The Association for Services Management International (AFSMI) announced the 2004 recipients of its George O. Harmon and Lifetime Achievement Awards at its World Conference, the 34th S-Business Education Summit and Expo, which was held October 3-6 in Dallas, Texas.

The George O. Harmon Award honors individuals in the customer services and support industry who have made significant contributions to their company, the industry, and AFSM International. The award is named for George O. Harmon. George played a major role in the Association's formation, served as its second president, and was a long-time supporting member. This year the award went to Reinhard Klein, IBM EMEA Technology Transformation Services Executive, a 37-year IBM Global Services veteran who now manages the IBM Technical Support Outsourcing Business for EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa). Mr. Klein currently is chapter secretary and board member for the AFSMI Austria Chapter. He also served as president of the Austria Chapter from 1993-1996 and president of AFSMI in 1997, and he was on the AFSMI EMEA board until 2003. "This award recognizes individuals who have earned the respect of their peers through outstanding managerial and leadership qualities that enhance the professionalism of s-business," said John Schoenewald, CEO of AFSMI. "Reinhard Klein typifies this level of contribution and dedication."

AFSMI also announced a Lifetime Achievement Award at this year's conference, which was awarded posthumously to Donald F. Blumberg, who passed away earlier this year. Mr. Blumberg was the founder and former president of D.F. Blumberg Associates, a consulting firm specializing in strategic planning, market research, productivity improvement, and management systems design and implementation. He had more than 40 years of experience in these areas and over the years had served as a consultant to a broad array of vendors in the high-technology services industry. "Don Blumberg was a true visionary in the high-tech services industry," commented John Schoenewald. "His breadth of knowledge and insights will be sorely missed by s-business practitioners around the world."

This year's AFSMI S-Business Education Summit and Expo continued the long tradition of providing AFSMI members and non-members alike with world-class keynote headliners, thought-provoking speakers, in-depth case studies, extensive networking, and an expansive technology showcase. The conference theme, "Learning - Sharing - Advancing," underscores AFSMI's commitment to providing an independent, neutral, and noncommercial forum focused on in-depth case studies and best practices.

About AFSM International

Founded in 1975, AFSM International (Association for Services Management International) is a global, not-for-profit, professional association of customer services and support executives and managers committed to s-business excellence. AFSM International is the acknowledged leader in providing the knowledge, fellowship, and career connections that further the personal and professional development of executives, managers, and individuals involved in s-business. For more information or to join AFSM International, visit www.afsmi.org.

About S-Business

S-business is the industry-standard term AFSM International developed to describe all of the activities, organizations, and individuals involved with providing customer services and support for technology-based products and solutions.