Gary Davis, president, Aetna Plastics Fabrication
FINALIST: Industrial and Engineered Products and Materials In 1975, when he was 23 years old, Gary Davis was forced into the role of business leader without any qualifications. Davis’ father had died and left Aetna Plastics to his wife and son. The business was struggling and in need of a reboot, which Davis had to […]
Marie Seipenko, President and CEO, Preferred Solutions Inc.
Semifinalist, Staffing & Support Services Working at Preferred Solutions Inc. for 17 years, Marie Seipenko has stamped her unique ideas all over her business, from its products to its unique business strategy designed around customer needs. Seipenko understands that a company doesn’t have to be big to diverge from the industry norms and try new […]
Alex Kazerani, chairman and CEO; James Segil, president, EdgeCast Networks
Finalists – Technology For Alex Kazerani and James Segil, starting a Web hosting company in the ’90s involved significant risk and uncertainty. However, the co-founders accepted that risk and uncertainty and built EdgeCast Networks into a position of strength. The primary differentiators for EdgeCast revolve around the technology — fewer servers, massive amounts of storage, […]
Randolph Buseman and Michael Hickenbotham, partners, Ernst & Young
DIRECTORS INTRODUCTION – St. Louis Randolph Buseman partner Kansas City office of Ernst & Young Michael Hickenbotham partner St. Louis office of Ernst & Young For more than 25 years, Ernst & Young has celebrated the entrepreneurial spirit of men and women who make our economy vibrant. Ernst & Young founded the Entrepreneur Of The […]
John Eldred, President and Owner, Midwest Tape LLC
Finalist, Distribution John Eldred’s entrepreneurial story begins more than 30 years ago, when he decided to open his first business — a video rental store in Toledo, Ohio, called Sights & Sounds. While building his company, Eldred looked for opportunities in other niches and industry segments that required media, including videotapes. This led him to […]
Patrick Perry, president and CEO, Genesys Systems
FINALIST Patrick Perry president and CEO Genesys Systems In the midst of the recent economic downturn, Pat Perry decided he had to “fire” his biggest client. As president and CEO of Genesys Systems, an innovative engineering firm, he was very concerned about how the client’s culture was negatively affecting Genesys employees. Perry saw far greater […]
John Raymont, founder, president and CEO, Kurion Inc.
WINNER – Business Services John Raymont founder, president and CEO Kurion Inc. As the CEO of a six-person start-up, John Raymont accepted the challenge in April 2011 to clean tens of millions of gallons of radioactive water at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station that was damaged by an earthquake and tsunami. It was a […]
Michael Vasquez, CEO, St. Gregory Centers Inc.
FINALIST After a family friend lost his life to drug use, Michael Vasquez delved into the reasons behind the low 15 percent national success rate of traditional drug and alcohol treatment centers. Utilizing his findings, Vasquez has since driven change in the areas of addiction treatment, recovery management and center operation as CEO of St. […]
James Lind, CEO, McKees Rocks Industrial Enterprises Inc.
FINALIST / INDUSTRIAL MANUFACTURING James Lind has climbed from the very bottom to the very top at McKees Rocks Industrial Enterprises Inc. through hard work and determination. He started as summer help during college. However, he quickly surpassed his peers in responsibilities and caught former President Jack Klee’s eye due to his strong initiative and […]
Scott Barnyak, Christy Maruca and Chris Simchick, Co-founders and Principal Partners, SDLC LP
FINALIST / SERVICES When they co-founded SDLC LP, partners Scott Barnyak, Christy Maruca and Chris Simchick put up a quote in their office. It read, “I am not worried that it’s not going to happen. I’ll make it happen. You go make the things you want.” This quote sums up the philosophy the three have […]