Nominations are being invited now for prestigious annual awards that recognise the best of the North East’s entrepreneurial talent.
Panels of leading business figures and entrepreneurs have been secured to judge the submissions for the Entrepreneurs’ Forum awards, to be presented in September.
There are three awards: Emerging Talent, Entrepreneur of the Year, and a special award for Lifetime Achievement.
The Entrepreneur of the Year will be chosen by a panel comprising Jeremy Middleton CBE, of Middleton Enterprises; Forum board member Lorna Moran OBE, founder of NRG; Jonathan Greenaway, of PwC; and Ian Baggett, of Adderstone Group, a former winner of the award.
The winner of the Emerging Talent accolade will be selected by last year’s winner and Forum board member Rob Mathieson, of AYO Digital; Lee Stamp, of PwC; Jonathan Gold, of Rivers Capital Partners; and board member Brian Jobling, executive chairman of Eutechnyx and chairman of North East Air Ambulance.
The Forum board will judge nominations for the Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be presented to someone who has made a lasting and valuable commitment to business in the North East.
The awards will be presented at a black tie dinner on Friday, September 19 at the Hilton Newcastle Gateshead Hotel.
Celebrating ten years of talent so far, the list of previous winners reads like a who’s who of North East business.
Last year’s Entrepreneur of the Year was Jeff Winn, founder of Winn Solicitors, and the Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Sir Peter Vardy.
Nicola Short, chief executive of the Entrepreneurs’ Forum, said: “Our awards presentation is one of the most inspiring events on the calendar as we celebrate the talent, innovation, dedication and vision of some amazing entrepreneurs.
“We want the whole business community in the region to get involved and help us identify our winners for 2014, who don’t necessarily have to be members of the Forum but they do need to be making a significant contribution to the North East economy.
“Our Entrepreneur of the Year will be someone who has grown their business, revenue and profits through innovation, teamwork and strong leadership. The Emerging Talent will be building a business of outstanding potential and have been trading for less than five years.”
For more information about the awards and to submit nominations, which must be in by midnight on Friday, May 23, visit www.entrepreneursforum.net
To book a table at the awards, call 0191 500 7780 or email info@entrepreneursforum.net
