Prime Minister guest of honour at Telstra Business Awards

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will join Telstra CEO Sol Trujillo, in presenting one business with the prestigious 2008 Telstra Australian Business of the Year Award, at the national gala dinner in Sydney on 10 October 2008.

35 businesses will compete against their interstate peers to take home a national award.These businesses were recently honoured as state award winners and are now eligible to win a national award in their category.

This year’s finalists in the national 2008 Telstra Business Awards are:

• Palm Micro-Business Award (for businesses with five employees or fewer):
Advanced Body Image, Elliott’s Small Engines, Find A Babysitter.com.au, Hamperesque, LaRoo, mumentum, Stress Free Marine and The Maria Island Walk.

• MYOB Business Award (for businesses with more than five employees, but less than or equal to 20 employees):
Clearmake, Bruny Island Charters and Tasman Island Cruises, eWAY, GoGet CarShare, Port Adelaide Brewing Company t/a Port Dock Brewery Hotel, TraxOn Industries Pty Ltd, and Wild Action Productions.

• Panasonic Australia Business Award (for businesses with more than 20 employees, but less than or equal to 200 employees):
Atlantic Group (v), Carr Civil Contracting, Centor Architectural, Coopers Brewery, Penguin Composites, stratsec, Machinery Automation & Robotics, and Security & Technology Services (NT) Pty Ltd.

• AMP Innovation Award (for businesses that have successfully introduced an innovation):
Roma Food Products, Centor Architectural, Codarra Advanced Systems, EVRsafe Marine Technologies, Machinery Automation & Robotics, Penguin Composites, and Smartburn Pty Ltd.

• Sensis Social Responsibility Award (for demonstrated leadership and contribution by a business to the environment, people, education or the community):
All Things Chocolate, Bholu Pty Ltd, Bruny Island Charters and Tasman Island Cruises, ETIKO FAIR TRADE, Jape Furnishing Superstore, Marion Physiotherapy, South West Audiology and Hearing Services, and Thomson Adsett Architects.

For more information about the 2008 Telstra Business Awards and to purchase tickets to attend the gala event on Friday 10 October, please visit www.TelstraBusinessAwards.telstra.com