Freelancer.com CEO Matt Barrie Wins 2011 Ernst & Young Technology Entrepreneur of the Year Award!

SYDNEY, Nov. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --Freelancer.com, the world's largest outsourcing and crowdsourcing marketplace, proudly announced that CEO Matt Barrie is the 2011 Ernst & Young Technology Entrepreneur of the Year winner.

"This is a great honor, to be recognized by the leading lights in Australia's business and startup communities," said Barrie.

Ernst & Young announced the winners last night at a black tie awards ceremony in Victoria. Joining Barrie in the winner's circle were iiNet founder Michael Malone (Entrepreneur of the Year and Listed category winner), Brian Siemsen (Siemsen group, Emerging category winner), Naomi Simson (RedBalloon, Industry category winner), David McMahon (McMahon Services, Services category winner) and Melinda Cruz (Miracle Babies Foundation, 2011 Social Entrepreneur).

Barrie impressed the 9 member judging panel, which selected the Freelancer.com CEO based on 6 categories: Entrepreneurial spirit, Innovation, Personal integrity and influence, Financial performance, Strategic direction, and National and global impact.

The 2011 Ernst & Young award caps off a very impressive year for Matt Barrie. He was named the inaugural BRW Entrepreneur of the Year, chosen as a featured speaker at SXSW festival, and also won two Webby Awards in New York.

Speaking about his success and ambition for Freelancer.com Barrie said, "I want Freelancer.com to be Australia's first big consumer Internet company, like eBay, Facebook or Google. Those companies changed the world and brought us all closer together and our mission is to have the same lasting impact."

Freelancer.com is already the world's largest outsourcing marketplace, with 3 million users, all over the world, and has saved small businesses in the west billions of dollars getting small projects done, such as building websites, copywriting, graphic design and data entry.

"Technology is disrupting the global labor force and leveling the playing field. There's another 5 billion people coming online, who are determined to raise their living standards. Businesses in the developed world, through Freelancer.com, are able to play an integral part in helping these people find work. It's a win-win situation for everyone," he concluded.

To view the complete list of winners and learn more visit: http://www.eoy.ey.com.au/www/595/1001127/displayarticle/1645312.html

About Freelancer
Webby award winning Freelancer.com is the largest outsourcing and crowdsourcing marketplace in the world. Through Freelancer.com, businesses connect with 3 million independent professionals from all over the world. Employers can hire freelancers in areas such as software, writing, data entry and design, right through to engineering and the sciences, sales & marketing and accounting & legal services. The average job is under US$200, making Freelancer.com extremely cost effective for small businesses, which often need a wide variety of jobs to be done, but cannot justify the expense of hiring full time.

SOURCE Freelancer.com