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EY Announces Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2024 Gulf South Award Finalists
29 Apr 2024
Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates ambitious entrepreneurs who are shaping the future
Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced the finalists for the Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2024 Gulf South Award. The Gulf South program celebrates entrepreneurs from Central and South Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Now in its 38th year, Entrepreneur Of The Year is the preeminent competitive business award for audacious leaders who disrupt markets, revolutionize industries and have a transformational impact on lives. Over the past four decades, the program has recognized the daring entrepreneurs with big ideas and bold actions that reshape our world.
These 48 entrepreneurs were selected as finalists by an independent panel of judges. The candidates were evaluated based on their demonstration of building long-term value through entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, growth and impact, among other core contributions and attributes.
"The finalists of this year are audacious entrepreneurs who are making a significant impact in their respective industries and communities" said Anna Horndahl, Partner and Entrepreneur Of The Year Gulf South Program Co-Director.
“These pioneers, chosen by an independent panel of judges, showcase relentless commitment to their businesses, customers and communities. We are thrilled to acknowledge their accomplishments," said Travis Garms, Partner and Entrepreneur Of The Year Gulf South Program Co-Director.
Entrepreneur Of The Year honors many different types of business leaders for their ingenuity, courage and entrepreneurial spirit. The program celebrates original founders who bootstrapped their business from inception or who raised outside capital to grow their company; transformational CEOs who infused innovation into an existing organization to catapult its trajectory; and multigenerational family business leaders who reimagined a legacy business model to fortify it for the future.
The 2024 Gulf South finalists are:
Shannon Payne | Allied Fire Protection | Pearland, Texas
Jay McEntire IV | Arva Intelligence | Houston
Andrew Levy | Avelo Airlines | Houston
Justin Fenchel, Bradley Schultz and Aimy Steadman | BeatBox Beverages | Austin
Katy Mimari | Caden Lane | Boerne, Texas
Martin Keighley | CarbonFree | San Antonio
Derek Maetzold | Castle Biosciences | Friendswood, Texas
Scott Aronstein | Connectivity Source | Houston
Joshua Weisman | Construction Concepts | Houston
Jeff Lee and Courtney Shields | DIBS Beauty | Austin
Dr. Andrea Thomaz | Diligent Robotics | Austin
Feras Moussa and Ben Suttles | Disrupt Equity | Houston
Dean Drako | Eagle Eye Networks | Austin
Mark Engels | ePayPolicy | Austin
Erine Gray | FindHelp | Austin
Andy Flanagan | Iris Telehealth | Austin
John Poindexter | J.B. Poindexter & Co., Inc. | Houston
James D. Ross, PE | LJA Engineering, Inc. | Houston
Asher Kazmann | Locke Solutions LLC | Houston
Chad Millis | Millis | Missouri City, Texas
Kate Bourgeois | Mississippi Export Railroad Company | Moss Point, Ms.
Mike Francis | NanoTech Materials, Inc. | Houston
Beth San Segundo | OriGen Biomedical | Austin
Charles Leddy | Presidian Hospitality | San Antonio
Emerson Smith | Pushnami | Austin
Stuart Hinchen and Peter Jenkins | Quva Pharma, Inc. | Sugar Land, Texas
Robbins Schrader | SafeRide | San Antonio
Russ Davis | SchoolStatus | Ridgeland, Ms.
Dr. Lefteris Ntouanoglou | Schoox, LLC | Austin
Nicole Budworth | Senox Corporation | Austin
Ted Ross | SpyCloud | Austin
Trevor Best and Dr. Suman Khatiwada | Syzygy Plasmonics | Houston
Hal Brumfield | Tachus Fiber Internet | The Woodlands, Texas
Joe Spell | Tides Medical | Lafayette, La.
Katie Jensen | Triton Stone Group | Elmwood, La.
Tony Hartl | Undefeated Tribe Operating Company LLC | Austin
Jared Boudreaux | Vector Controls and Automation Group | Pearland, Texas
Russell Diez-Canseco | Vital Farms | Austin
Ting Qiao | Wan Bridge | Houston
Chris Brundrett | William Chris Wine Company | Hye, Texas
Chris O'Dowd | WIN Reality | Austin
Wayne Morton | Wind Energy Transmission | Austin
Learn more about the finalists at ey.com/us/eoygulfsouth
Regional award winners will be announced on June 13th during a special celebration. The winners will then be considered by the National independent panel of judges for the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Awards, which will be presented in November at the annual Strategic Growth Forum®, one of the nation’s most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies.
In addition to Entrepreneur Of The Year, EY US supports other entrepreneurs through the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ program and the EY Entrepreneurs Access Network to help connect women founders and Black and Hispanic/Latino entrepreneurs, respectively, with the resources, network and access needed to unlock their full potential.
Sponsors
Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards include presenting sponsors PNC Bank, Cresa, Marsh USA, SAP and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In the Gulf South, sponsors also include ADP, DLA Piper, Marsh McLennan Agency, vcfo, Big Picture Inc., and Pierpont Communications.
About Entrepreneur Of The Year®
Founded in 1986, Entrepreneur Of The Year® has celebrated more than 11,000 ambitious visionaries who are leading successful, dynamic businesses in the US, and it has since expanded to nearly 80 countries and territories globally.
The US program consists of 17 regional programs whose panels of independent judges select the regional award winners every June. Those winners compete for national recognition at the Strategic Growth Forum® in November where National finalists and award winners are announced. The overall National winner represents the US at the World Entrepreneur Of The Year® competition. Visit ey.com/us/eoy.
About EY
EY exists to build a better working world, helping to create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets. Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate. Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today
EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the 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. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.