Christopher Barnett of ABA Centers recognized as Entrepreneur Of The Year^® 2024 National Overall Award Winner

Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) announced that Christopher Barnett, CEO of ABA Centers, an integrated behavioral health care organization focused on autism diagnosis and care, has been named the Entrepreneur Of The Year^® 2024 National Overall Award winner.

For nearly 40 years, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program has celebrated the bold leaders who disrupt markets, revolutionize industries and transform lives. Christopher was chosen by an independent panel of judges from a group of 214 Entrepreneur Of The Year regional winners, representing 185 companies across the US. He has built a remarkable business that not only demonstrates innovation, but also has a significant positive impact, providing hope for families and continuing to challenge the current autism care market.

Early diagnosis is critical for children on the autism spectrum, which affects one out of every 36 children in the US. When Christopher founded ABA Centers, the typical waitlist for an appointment could stretch as long as three years. ABA Centers slashed the standard wait time to under three weeks from first phone call to diagnosis. He also cut the time required for a first treatment visit to fewer than 50 days. ABA Centers operates on the client’s schedule, opening facilities on nights and weekends and offering in-home therapy. Building on his background in behavioral care, Christopher structured a therapy program that features a play-based approach that emphasizes positive reinforcement.

Since its inception in 2020 ABA Centers has established itself as one of the fastest growing and premier solutions for individualized care in the United States. To achieve this growth, Christopher hired well-compensated, qualified therapists and reduced their clinical caseloads in an industry notorious for clinician burnout. He recognizes that employees are the heart of the organization and places a strong emphasis on providing better pay, internal career advancement opportunities and employee development programs.

“Entrepreneur Of The Year honors leaders that are setting new standards in every part of their lives — in their businesses, communities, and overall industries. Christopher has certainly earned his place among an extraordinarily elite group of alumni,” said Andrew (AJ) Jordan, EY Americas Entrepreneur Of The Year Director. “Christopher saw a real problem in our society — the way we diagnose and treat autism, and set after addressing it with grit, creativity and passion. He has built an innovative, disruptive business that has set new standards for autism health care. We are thrilled to celebrate him as the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 National Overall Award winner.”

Beyond his focus on nurturing talented practitioners, Christopher has a constant eye on clinical innovations. A strong believer in leveraging data to provide better care, he’s made significant investments in AI to incubate cutting-edge software within ABA Centers. The success of the company has always been more than a professional goal for him. It’s also a personal mission as he seeks to make a lasting impact in the life of autistic children and their families.

Christopher also fosters a culture of giving back at all levels of employment, evidenced by instilling those values in his daughters, who volunteers weekly at local food banks while attending college. Christropher strongly feels that profitability and benevolence are not mutually exclusive.

In addition to Christopher, EY US recognized eleven other exceptional Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 National Award winners from nine companies, including:

• Michael Intrator, CEO, Coreweave, Roseland, New Jersey
• Christine Chang and Sarah Lee, Co-Founders and Co-CEOs, Glow Recipe, New York, New York
• Eric Reimer, CEO and Co-Chairman of the Board, Healthmap Solutions, Tampa, Florida
• John Poindexter, CEO and Chairman of the Board, J.B Poindexter & Co, Inc., Houston, Texas
• Cassandra Thurswell, CEO, Kitsch, Los Angeles, California
• Marco Assis, CEO, Propio Language Services, Overland Park, Kansas
• Terrence McLean, CEO and Co-Founder, SageSure, Jersey City, New Jersey
• Dhruv Saxena, CEO, ShipBob, Chicago, Illinois
• Benjamin Rosenthal, CEO and Co-President and Ashli Blumenfeld, Co-President, Standard Meat Company, Fort Worth, Texas

Winners were selected by a panel of independent judges comprised of entrepreneurs and other respected business leaders from across the US. 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 program honors original founders who grew their business from inception; visionary CEOs who transformed existing companies with innovation, and family business leaders who modernized legacy models for future success.

“With each passing year, the world is becoming increasingly complex, and the potential challenges to a business’s success are always evolving. This year’s national award winners have remained undaunted in the face of market, geopolitical and economic uncertainties,” said Jordan. They’ve managed to grow, transform and innovate within their industries and contribute to their communities even in the face of seemingly insurmountable hurdles. They lead by example and embody spirits of ambition, drive and purpose. I cannot wait to see how they continue to shape the future.”

The National winners were announced during a celebration held at the Strategic Growth Forum®, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies. Learn more about the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 National honorees. All regional and national winners who were celebrated this year are lifetime members of an esteemed community of award winners, with exclusive, continued access to the experience, insight and wisdom of fellow alumni and other ecosystem members in nearly 80 countries — all supported by the full suite of EY resources.

EY US also supports 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.

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.

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