Ernst & Young announces the Entrepreneur Of The Year® Awards 2012 independent judging panel for Southwest Area North

DALLAS, May 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Ernst & Young LLP announced today the 2012 independent judging panel for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® Program in the Southwest Area North. The panel, which selects the regional Entrepreneur Of The Year award finalists and winners, is made up of local business leaders, including previous winners of the award, leading CEOs and private capital investors. This year's award winners will be announced at the Hyatt Regency Dallas on Saturday, June 23, 2012.

The judges are:

• W. Greg Dunlevy - Executive Vice President and CFO - Kosmos Energy
• Valerie Freeman - Founder and CEO - Imprimis Group, Inc.
• Wayne B. Goldberg - President and CEO - LQ Management LLC
• Eliot Kerlin, Jr. - Partner - Insight Equity
• Ronald A. Klausner - CEO - Cambium Learning
• Jim Nixon - President and CEO - Varel International
• Andrew Rosen - Partner - HM Capital
• Stephen Valenta - Managing Director - NASDAQ OMX        

"Our panel of 8 judges includes a diverse group of highly accomplished individuals that span a variety of industries – many of them entrepreneurs in their own right," said Debra von Storch, Partner and Director of the Entrepreneur Of The Year program in Southwest Area North.  "Many have won the Entrepreneur Of The Year award in the past and understand what it takes to be an innovator and an entrepreneur especially in a challenging economy."

Now in its 26th year, the Program has honored the inspirational leadership of such entrepreneurs as Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com, Michael Dell of Dell Inc., Herb Kelleher of Southwest Airlines, Fred Smith of FedEx, Larry Page and Sergey Brin of Google, Richard Schulze of Best Buy, Andrew Mason of Groupon, Mindy Grossman of HSN, Inc., Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn, and many more.

Awards criteria

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. Self-nominations are encouraged, and there is no fee. Application forms were due by March 9, 2012.

Entrepreneurs eligible for consideration include not only company founders, but also leaders of multi-generation family businesses and transformational public and private company CEOs. Additionally, the nominee's company must be at least two years old.

Information is also available at www.ey.com/us/eoy. For information on the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards in Southwest Area North please visit www.ey.com/us/eoy_swan  

Sponsors

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are sponsored in the United States by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and SAP America.

In Southwest Area North regional platinum sponsors include Colliers International, Haynes and Boone and gold sponsors are ADP, BBVA Compass Bank and Roach Howard Smith & Barton.

Contact Information

For more information and nomination forms contact: Darlene Pearson-Lowe, Program Manager, Entrepreneur Of The Year Southwest Area North Awards, at +1 214 969 8342 or [email protected]. Information is also available at www.ey.com/us/eoy.    

About Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year®

Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year is the world's most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs. The unique award makes a difference through the way it encourages entrepreneurial activity among those with potential, and recognizes the contribution of people who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. As the first and only truly global award of its kind, Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses, recognizing them through regional, national and global awards programs in more than 140 cities in more than 50 countries.

About Ernst & Young

Ernst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide, our 152,000 people are united by our shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. We make a difference by helping our people, our clients and our wider communities achieve
their potential.

Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit www.ey.com.

This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP, a US client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.

Contact:        Teri Steffek
Company:      Ernst & Young LLP
Tel:               +1 713 750 1260
E-mail:          [email protected]

SOURCE Ernst & Young LLP