For more than 25 years, Ernst & Young has celebrated the entrepreneurial spirit of men and women pursuing innovation and entrepreneurial excellence in their businesses, teams and communities.
The blood, sweat and passion they’ve poured into their businesses and the triumphs they’ve achieved stand as a testament to the role they play as visionaries, leaders and innovators.
Ernst & Young founded the Entrepreneur Of The Year Program to recognize this passion for excellence and to build an influential and innovative community of peers.
We have gathered here and in 25 other cities in the U.S. to welcome the men and women who are regional finalists into our entrepreneurial Hall of Fame and to toast their commitment to succeed. We applaud them for launching their companies, opening new markets and fueling job growth.
So let’s celebrate their achievements, their perseverance and their tireless pursuit of business excellence.
Brian Ring is a partner and program director for Entrepreneur Of The Year, Greater Los Angeles.
April Spencer is a partner and program director for Entrepreneur Of The Year, Greater Los Angeles.
Pat Niemann is the office managing partner for Ernst & Young, Los Angeles.
Finalists & Honorees
Master Entrepreneur
• Rick J. Caruso, Caruso Affiliated (Winner)
Distribution & Manufacturing
• Jeffrey R. Clark, Anthony (Winner)
• Michael Sheldon, Network Hardware Resale LLC (Finalist)
• Nathaniel Victor, Sonic Electronix Inc. (Finalist)
Financial Services
• Sunnie S. Kim, Hana Financial Inc. (Winner)
• Jeff Stibel, Dun & Bradstreet Credibility Corp. (Finalist)
• Alan Zafran, Luminous Capital (Finalist)
Food Services
• David Overton, The Cheesecake Factory Inc., (Winner)
• Lee Maen, Philip Cummins, Innovative Dining Group (Finalist)
• Emelio Castaneda, Field Fresh Foods Inc. (Finalist)
Interactive Media/Internet
• Bob Brisco, Internet Brands (Winner)
• Josef Gorowitz, Prodege LLC (Finalist)
• Allen DeBevoise, Machinima Inc. (Finalist)
Media
• Simon Bax, Bill Tillson, Encompass Digital Media Inc. (Winner)
• Vince Pace, James Cameron, Cameron Pace Group (Finalist)
• Brian Fitzgerald, Aaron Broder, Evolve Media Corp. (Finalist)
Services
• Peter Dameris, On Assignment Inc. (Winner)
• Linda Stone, APR Consulting (Finalist)
• Cesar Garcia, Iris International Inc. (Finalist)
Technology
• Jon E. Kirchner, DTS Inc. (Winner)
• David Hagan, Boingo Wireless Inc. (Finalist)
• Alex Kazerani, James Segil, EdgeCast Networks (Finalist)
