LILLI BARNETT WINS STEVIE® AWARD IN 2006 SELLING POWER SALES EXCELLENCE AWARDS sm

Houston, TX – Kimball Hill Homes, one of the nation’s leading homebuilders, announced today that Lilli Barnett, director of national sales training at Kimball Hill, was presented with a Stevie Award in the Sales Educator Leader of the Year category in The 2006 Selling Power Sales Excellence Awards last night.

The new awards were jointly presented by Selling Power magazine, the leading sales management publication with 145,000 subscribers in 67 countries, and The Stevie® Awards, which have been hailed as “the business world’s own Oscars” by the New York Post (April 27, 2005).

Nicknamed the Stevies for the Greek word “crowned,” winners were announced during a gala banquet at the Westin Casuarina Hotel, Spa and Casino in Las Vegas. More than 230 nominated sales executives from around the world attended.

Barnett is currently the director of national sales training at Kimball Hill Homes. She has over 25 years of experience in all disciplines of retail and new home sales, property management, general real estate and sales management. Barnett combines real hands-on experience with a strong educational background in the sciences, completing pre-med and psychology undergraduate degrees, and graduate studies in marketing, psychology and business management.

Barnett titled her Kimball Hill Homes training program Showtime. She teaches Kimball Hill associates that sincerity and genuine caring excellence with their internal and external guests are the most important ingredients to success. She is winner of numerous industry awards including Richey’s Top Gun, 2000 Leadership Award, and 2002 Longest Mile Award.

“At Kimball Hill, we had already crowned Lilli as a winner and leader in influencing everyone on the importance of integrity selling. However, it is very rewarding to know that the American business community also recognizes and values Lilli’s training philosophy and expertise," remarked Joe Weathersby, vice president of operations at Kimball Hill Homes.

Kimball Hill Homes was also named as a Finalist in the National Sales Training Program of the Year category.

Members of the Awards' Board of Distinguished Judges & Advisors and their staffs selected Stevie Award winners from among the Finalists. Finalists were chosen by business professionals worldwide during preliminary judging.

The elegant Stevie trophy was designed by R. S. Owens, the same company that makes the Oscar and the Emmy

About Kimball Hill Homes
Kimball Hill Homes, a recognized leader in the building industry and winner of numerous awards for design and quality, is in its fourth decade of building homes across America. Based in Rolling Meadows, IL, the company currently builds in nine states and 13 major markets that include: Chicago, Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Tampa, Sarasota-Bradenton, Naples, Cleveland, Las Vegas, Sacramento, Stockton, Portland-Vancouver and Milwaukee. For more information about the company, visit their web site at kimballhillhomes.com.

About The Stevie Awards
Hailed as “the business world’s own Oscars” by the New York Post (April 27, 2005), Stevie Awards are conferred in four programs: The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, The Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Selling Power Sales Excellence Awards. Honoring companies of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about The Stevie Awards at www.stevieawards.com.

About Selling Power
Selling Power is the world’s leading sales management magazine with more than 145,000 subscribers in 67 countries. Learn more at www.sellingpower.com.

Sponsors of the 2006 Selling Power Sales Excellence Awards included Careerbuilder.com, Factiva, Fusion Sales Partners, HR Chally, and SAP.