World Trade Center Institute

International Leadership Award

Hughes chairman and CEO Pradman Kaul was among several recipients of the 12th Annual International Leadership Award from the World Trade Center Institute during its awards ceremony held recently in Baltimore, Md. The coveted award is given to company leaders who have demonstrated exceptional business leadership, determination, and creative strategy in international business.

Established to help connect Maryland to the globe, the World Trade Center Institute is Maryland’s premier global business partner whose members benefit from valuable international business training, global connections, and customized consulting.

“Under Kaul’s leadership, Hughes’ remarkable accomplishments and strong growth record make the company a terrific model for other Maryland firms on the global horizon,” said Gary Collins, senior vice president, Bank of America and Chairman of the Leadership Awards Committee. “The 2008 honorees boast great Maryland stories, tremendous success, and impressive growth.”

Kaul is among six recipients honored for their work in taking their companies to new global heights. The winners were selected from a competitive roster of 80 business leaders and voted on by the International Business Leadership Awards Committee. 

Society of Satellite Professionals International

Industry Innovation Award for SPACEWAY 3

In February at the Satellite 2008 industry forum in Washington, D.C., the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) presented Hughes with its 2008 Industry Innovators Award for Systems Development & Applications. Hughes was recognized for its technology leadership in developing SPACEWAY 3, the world’s first commercial satellite system to employ onboard switching and routing.

“The SSPI Innovations Awards Committee unanimously chose to recognize Hughes for its pioneering work with SPACEWAY 3 in introducing true remote-to-remote mesh networking via fixed satellite services,” said Joe Pelton, chair of the SSPI Innovations Awards Committee. “The ability to provide onboard switching of services and achieve ‘intelligence’ onboard a fixed commercial satellite system is a key milestone that has taken [the industry] many decades to achieve.”

The Society of Satellite Professionals International is a nonprofit member-benefit society that creates opportunities for member education and interaction, honors achievement, and recognizes potential in the next generation of satellite professionals. The SSPI Industry Innovator Awards program was initiated in 1993 to identify and recognize outstanding new contributions to the field of satellite communications by both private-sector and publicsector organizations. Honorees are chosen for accomplishments ranging across a broad spectrum of advanced satellite technology and business applications.