Dell Announces finalists For 2008 UK Small Business Excellence Award

10 UK Finalists Drive Innovation within SMB Sector

Dell today announced the 10 UK finalists of the 2008 Dell Small Business Excellence Award (www.dell.co.uk/ceaward), in partnership with The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and The Daily Express. Dell’s global partner, Independent Council for Small Businesses (ICSB), selected the following companies as having demonstrated the outstanding application of technology to foster growth and deliver an exceptional customer experience:

Pat Clarke Total Training, Lincoln, England - providing training, support and consultancy to healthcare and social service businesses

Sandmere Practice, London, England - offering primary healthcare services to its patients

Mantle Panel Ltd, Walton-On-Thames, England - developing energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly building solutions for UK homes

9-20 Recruitment, Glasgow, Scotland - delivering a highly specialised IT recruitment service across all business sectors

Eurotech Monitoring Services, London, England - providing security devices, alarms, patrols and services

Wiggly Wigglers, Hereford, England - creating gardens of the future through combining natural beauty and environmental sustainability

Kids Review, Kent, England - offering a website which enables children to add, edit and share their own reviews of books they have read, within a safe and managed environment

Crown Fitness Club, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales - providing fitness equipment in a friendly surrounding for its members

Labels4Kids, Stirling, Scotland - offering personalised labels for children to attach to a range of clothing and accessories

Masters Traditional Games, St Albans, England - offering high quality traditional board and table games
A judging panel will now meet to select one of these companies as the UK winner, who will receive:

£15,000 in Dell products and services, a day of best practice sharing with Dell executives, including time with Michael Dell, and a 10-year membership to an Accredited Chamber of Commerce in the UK.

The UK winner will also join 10 other national winners from across the globe to compete for the title of 2008 Global Small Business Excellence Award winner. The overall global prize includes:

£25,000 in Dell products and services; the opportunity to take part in an entrepreneurs summit hosted by Michael Dell; lifetime membership to the ICSB whose mission is to advance entrepreneurship through global knowledge sharing and networking; and mentoring opportunities with Endeavor entrepreneurs, a global network of high-impact entrepreneurs creating jobs in emerging countries. 

Monique Bonner, Dell’s Sales Director for SMB in UK and Ireland, commented: “This is our inaugural year for the award in the UK and the high quality of finalists is a testament to the quality of work being undertaken within the UK small business community. This initiative is designed to reward those organisations that are setting a benchmark for smaller enterprises and utilising technology to drive growth and ultimately deliver extraordinary levels of service.”

John Dunsmure, Managing Director of the British Chambers of Commerce said: “Small businesses throughout the UK are increasingly being made aware of the need to choose the right technology to assist with the growth of their businesses. This year’s competition has underlined the importance of IT to business development, and alongside Dell, we are delighted to highlight the achievements of the smaller businesses.”

The 2008 Small Business Excellence award was open to businesses with 100 or fewer employees in the UK. The UK winner will be announced in September 2008, with the overall global winner announced in Autumn 2008. The remaining nine finalists will receive a Dell business-class laptop and a one-year membership to an Accredited Chamber of Commerce in the UK.

About British Chambers of Commerce
The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is the authentic voice of British businesses. The BCC sits at the heart of a powerful nationwide network of Accredited Chambers of Commerce serving business across the UK, which employ over five million people.

About Dell
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) listens to customers and delivers innovative technology and services they trust and value. Uniquely enabled by its direct business model, Dell is a leading global systems and services company and No. 34 on the Fortune 500. For more information, visit www.dell.co.uk, or to communicate directly with Dell via a variety of online channels, go to www.dell.co.uk/conversations. To get Dell news direct, visit www.dell.co.uk/RSS.

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