Press release

7 Oct 2020 Seattle, US

EY Announces Winners for the Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2020 Pacific Northwest Region Award

EY builds on three decades of honoring unstoppable entrepreneurs in the Pacific Northwest Region.

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Related topics Entrepreneur Unstoppables

EY builds on three decades of honoring unstoppable entrepreneurs in the Pacific Northwest Region

Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) is pleased to announce the winners of the  Entrepreneur Of The Year® The Pacific Northwest Region Award. Entrepreneur Of The Year® is one of the preeminent competitive business awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. The Pacific Northwest Region program celebrates entrepreneurs from Oregon and Washington. This group of unstoppable entrepreneurial leaders transforming our world was selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous award winners, leading CEOs, investors and other regional business leaders. The Pacific Northwest Region award winners were unveiled during the program’s first-ever virtual awards gala, hosted by Deborah Norville, anchor of Inside Edition, on Tuesday, October 6, 2020.

“We are honored to recognize these outstanding leaders who truly embody the hard work, tenacity and grit of the entrepreneurial spirit,” said Brooke Illahuston, Entrepreneur Of The Year Pacific Northwest Program Co-Director. “Their innovative thinking and strong leadership are critical to the economic vibrancy of our communities and especially important during these challenging times.”

The winners for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2020 Pacific Northwest Region Award are:

  • Sean McClain | AbSci (Vancouver, Wash.)
  • Ed Dominion | D6 Inc. (Portland, Ore.)
  • Daniela Braga | DefinedCrowd (Seattle, Wash.)
  • Henry Albrecht | Limeade (Bellevue, Wash.)
  • Peggy Jarvis Miller | Pacific Star Communications, Inc. (Portland, Ore.)
  • Ganesh Shankar | RFPIO, Inc. (Beaverton, Ore.)
  • Jessica Gomez | Rogue Valley Microdevices, Inc. (Medford, Ore.)
  • Patrick Criteser | Tillamook County Creamery Association (Tillamook, Ore.)

Nominees were evaluated based on six criteria, including overcoming adversity; financial performance; societal impact and commitment to building a values-based company; innovation; and talent management.

Since its launch, the program has expanded to recognize business leaders in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries throughout the world.

Regional award winners are eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2020 National Awards, to be announced Thursday, November 19, during a virtual awards gala. The awards are the culminating event of this year’s virtual Strategic Growth Forum®, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies. The Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner will then move on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Award in June 2021.

Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners become lifetime members of a global, multi-industry community of entrepreneurs, with exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of program alumni and other ecosystem members in over 60 countries — all supported by vast EY resources. Since 1986, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program has recognized more than 10,000 US executives.

Pacific Northwest Region Focus

Each year, EY US showcases successful entrepreneurs from 20 regional competitions across the United States. In 2019, nine entrepreneurs leading companies from the Pacific Northwest were selected as Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners. Past award winners in the Pacific Northwest include: Raj Singh, Accolade; Jessie Woolley-Wilson, DreamBox Learning; Madeline Haydon, nutpods; Kyle Stavig, Myers Container; Werner Nistler, Touchmark; David Wasielewski, Din Tai Fung Restaurant; Chad Robins and Harlan Robins, Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation; Jill Nelson, Ruby Receptionists; Brian Mariotti, Funko; Ally and Scott Svenson, MOD Pizza; and Matt Oppenheimer, Remitly; among others. For a full list of past winners, please visit our Hall of Fame.

For information on the Entrepreneur Of The Year Pacific Northwest program, please visit www.ey.com/us/eoy/pnw. Join the conversation on social media using #EOYUS and #EOYPNW.

Sponsors

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored by SAP America and the Kauffman Foundation.

In the Pacific Northwest Region, sponsors also include PNC Bank and Woodruff Sawyer.

About Entrepreneur Of The Year®

Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world’s most prestigious business awards program for unstoppable entrepreneurs. These visionary leaders deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world. The program engages entrepreneurs with insights and experiences that foster growth. It connects them with their peers to strengthen entrepreneurship around the world. Entrepreneur Of The Year is the first and only truly global awards program of its kind. It celebrates entrepreneurs through regional and national awards programs in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries. Winners go on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ title. ey.com/us/eoy

About EY Private

As Advisors to the ambitious™, EY Private professionals possess the experience and passion to support private businesses and their owners in unlocking the full potential of their ambitions. EY Private teams offer distinct insights born from the long EY history of working with business owners and entrepreneurs. These teams support the full spectrum of private enterprises including private capital managers and investors and the portfolio businesses they fund, business owners, family businesses, family offices and entrepreneurs. Visit ey.com/private

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