An entrepreneur is someone who bounds into the unknown, creating the future. They are visionaries who launch and reimagine businesses, employ millions and endow their communities, leaving legacies of accomplishment and enrichment.

This year’s honorees have made a difference in their organizations and in the region. Their positive impact on employment has reinvented the Northeast Ohio landscape into one of the most up-and-coming business regions in the country.

Every entrepreneur takes a different path to achieve success, but they all share some common traits: confidence, a willingness to take risks and the ability to see a need that other people didn’t even realize existed.

Over the years, Steven J. Demetriou has spent time in a wide range of industries, but he’s always approached leadership with the same philosophy.