Avnet Technology Solutions presented us with its Top Service Partner of the Year award at last week’s 2010 Partner Summit for Oracle/Sun Microsystems Solutions Providers outside Denver.  We were delighted and proud to win this award during a year when we were able to manage double-digit services sales growth amidst the change in control.

Check out our full press release here.

You can read the Avnet press release here.

And… you can check out slides from the event here.

How did the ASG Zoo Night get started?

When I joined ASG in 1996, I was told I’d have an ASG “Open Systems Open” golf day for my local customers. I thought that was great, but my next response was, “What else can we do?”

That’s when we came up with the idea of the San Diego Zoo Night. We hosted the first one in August 1997, with no less than a hundred people attending. We chose a smaller restaurant called the Treehouse inside the Zoo, and we gave away fanny packs from Eagle Creek. I still have mine, and I know some of my customers still have theirs too.

Although it was a fairly modest event that first year, it was a huge success, and the San Diego Zoo Night became an annual tradition. The next year, we moved into the big space by the skyway.

What do you enjoy most about the ASG Zoo Night?

I enjoy the process leading up to the party. For example, I always try to study the sign-up list ahead of time, so I can greet everyone by their first name. But in general, the Zoo Night reminds me that my customers have lives outside of work, and that’s important to me. So I really enjoy meeting my customers’ families. After all these years, I already know many of them, and I always look forward to meeting new ones.

I also enjoy having other ASG employees attend from out of town—especially those from Arizona who need a break from the heat.

Do you have a favorite memory?

One of my favorites is the year that Scott McNealy, former CEO of Sun Microsystems, came with his wife, kids, and mother.

Stay tuned to hear more and to see photos from the event, scheduled August 6th.