Back to Entrepreneur Of The Year

Meet the judges

The success of the program relies on the efforts of our independent panel of judges. These past Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award recipients and civic and community leaders devote significant effort to review and deliberate the merits of each nominee. We deeply appreciate their dedication to this process.

Jess Cole | 2020 MW EOY judge

Tracy Britt Cool
Co-founder
Kanbrick, Illinois
Judge 2020

Tracy Britt Cool | 2020 MW EOY judge

Justin Christian
Founder and CEO
BCforward, Indiana
Midwest award winner 2020
National winner 2020

 

Tracy Britt Cool | 2020 MW EOY judge

Jessica Cole
President and CEO
Becker’s Healthcare, Illinois
Midwest award winner 2019
Judge 2020

Tracy Britt Cool | 2020 MW EOY judge

Amy Derick, M.D.
Owner and CEO
Derick Dermatology, LLC, Illinois
Midwest award winner 2019
Judge 2020

Dave Hansen | 2020 MW EOY judge

Jerry Jendusa
Co-founder and Partner
STUCK LLC, Wisconsin
Midwest award winner 2014
National finalist 2014
Judge 2019-20

Jerry Jendusa | 2020 MW EOY judge

Jason Lippert
President and CEO
LCI Industries, Indiana
Midwest award winner 2018
National finalist 2018
Judge 2020

Jason Lippert | 2020 MW EOY judge

Dhruv Saxena
CEO and Co-Founder
ShipBob, Inc., Illinois
Midwest award winner 2019
Judge 2020

 

Dhruv Saxena | 2020 MW EOY judge

Ira Weiss
Co-Founder and Partner
Hyde Park Venture Partners, Illinois