Now in its 23rd year in Ireland, the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ 2020 programme nominations are officially open.
Mayo entrepreneurs are encouraged to put themselves forward to follow in the footsteps of well-known Mayo business people, Áine Lecky and Eibhlin Murphy, Major Equipment Limited, who were finalists in 2018 and Harry Hughes from Portwest, who was the overall winner in 2017.
Roger Wallace, new Partner Lead for EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Ireland, said: "The launch of the programme is an exciting time for all of us here at EY. This year we are keen to see an even broader range and diversity of nominees, across industries, age, gender, location and background. That’s why we are urging all Mayo entrepreneurs to consider putting themselves forward, and for people to encourage entrepreneurs in their families and networks to get involved."
The programme is open to entrepreneurs from all sectors and growth stages in the Republic and Northern Ireland. The awards programme is divided into three categories - Emerging, Industry and International - with eight finalists per category.
24 finalists will be selected by an independent judging panel, comprising former winners and chaired by Anne Heraty of CPL Resources plc. Anyone interested can find out more or complete an online nomination form at www.eoy.ie Those nominating someone else must do so with the entrepreneur’s consent.
This year’s 24 finalists will engage in a strategic growth programme over a 10-month period, which includes a week-long CEO Retreat to South Africa. As part of this international retreat, the finalists will join a group of more than 100 previous finalists and winners of the programme where they will meet a range of world-class entrepreneurs, business people and academics based in Africa.
The finalists will also be welcomed into a community of 525 peers in the Irish EY Entrepreneur Of The Year community. To date, more than three quarters of the alumni of the programme have conducted business with one another.
The programme will include executive education sessions; networking fora; extensive media profiling; the annual Gala Awards Dinner. An award is presented for each category, and an overall winner will be announced at the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards in October. The overall winner will represent Ireland at the World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Awards in Monte Carlo the following June. For further information, please visit www.eoy.ie
