Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award Winners Announced in the Pacific Northwest Region
Seattle, WA, June 26, 2007 –Ernst & Young LLP announced the award recipients of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The YearŽ 2007 award in the Pacific Northwest Region. This year’s award recipients were recognized at a special black-tie gala event at the Sheraton Seattle Hotel & Towers Grand Ballroom on June 22.
All award recipients were selected by an independent panel of judges composed of area business leaders. The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 award recipients in the Pacific Northwest Region are:
- Communications — William Marks, SeaMobile Enterprises
- Construction & Engineering — Jerry Frank, Petra Incorporated
- Financial Services — Harold Gilkey, Sterling Financial Corporation
- Food & Beverage — James Bernau, Willamette Valley Vineyards
- Health Services — Dwayne Clark, Aegis Living, LLC
- Life Sciences — Peter Thompson, Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
- Manufacturing & Distribution — Rud Browne, Ryzex Group
- Retail & Consumer Products — Tom Campion, Zumiez
- Services — Jeffrey Thomas, Ambassadors Group, Inc.
- Software — Alex Algard, WhitePages.com, Inc.
- Technology — Raymon Thompson, Semitool, Inc.
"For 21 years, Ernst & Young has recognized outstanding entrepreneurship through our Entrepreneur Of The Year program," said Greg Beams, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year program director for the Pacific Northwest Region. "This year’s awardees are truly an inspiration to all. We salute them for their drive, determination and hard work – and congratulate them on their success."
Regional award recipients are eligible for consideration for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national program. Award recipients in several national categories, as well as the overall national Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award recipient, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California on November 17, 2007. The overall national Entrepreneur Of The Year award recipient is then considered for the worldwide event held in Monte Carlo.
The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year awards program celebrates its 21st anniversary this year and continues to recognize the leaders and visionaries who are creating and building world-class businesses. Awards are given to entrepreneurs who have demonstrated excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.
Sponsors
Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are pleased to have Bank of America as the national presenting sponsor, as well as SAP America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation as national sponsors.
In the Pacific Northwest, local sponsors include Scherzer International, Puget Sound Business Journal, The Big Picture Film and Video Arts, and The Summit Group Communications.
About the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards
The Entrepreneur Of The Year awards program was created and is produced by professional services firm Ernst & Young LLP. As the first award of its kind, the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who are building and leading dynamic and growing businesses. The program, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2006, honors entrepreneurs through regional, national and global award programs in over 125 cities and 40 countries.
About Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young, a global leader in professional services, is committed to enhancing the public’s trust in professional services firms and in the quality of financial reporting. Its 114,000 people in 140 countries pursue the highest levels of integrity, quality, and professionalism in providing a range of sophisticated services centered on our core competencies of auditing, accounting, tax, and transactions. Further information about Ernst & Young and its approach to a variety of business issues can be found at
www.ey.com/perspectives. Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, a U.K. company limited by guarantee, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited does not provide services to clients. Ernst & Young LLP is a U.S. client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.