Entrepreneurs shortlisted for esteemed business programme

Pictured (L-R): Ian Murphy, Invest NI; Anne Heraty, Cpl Resources; Sean Duffy, Entrepreneur Of The Year programme; Julie Sinnamon, Enterprise Ireland; and Kevin McLoughlin, Entrepreneur Of The Year programme

The shortlist of 24 finalists in the 2016 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year (EOY) programme was revealed today.

The 19th year of the programme focuses on the theme of building a business legacy, and includes mentoring initiatives, bespoke executive education and an international CEO retreat to Boston.

Finalists will also benefit from networking with an experienced community of peers, as they join EOY community of former finalists and winners.

Finalists have been selected in three categories: emerging, industry and international.

From the huge number of nominations received from across the island of Ireland, the 24 finalists were selected by an independent judging panel of previous winners, chaired by Anne Heraty, CEO of Cpl Resources and previous winner of the 2006 programme.

As the finalists progress through the programme, the judging panel will determine the winners based on a number of criteria.

The winners will be announced at the televised awards in October 2016. The overall winner will go on to represent Ireland at World Entrepreneur Of The Year in Monaco in June 2017.

Julie Sinnamon, CEO of Enterprise Ireland, commented: “A key role of Enterprise Ireland is to support entrepreneurs and to help them scale their businesses internationally. We are delighted to support this year’s EY Entrepreneur of the Year event and wish all of the finalist’s well in the competition”.

Kevin McLoughlin, partner lead, EOY programme, said: “This year’s shortlist is of a remarkable standard, and it is particularly encouraging to see an increase in the number of female finalists in the programme from last year. The finalists represent a fantastic mix of listed and private entrepreneur-led companies from a diverse range of sectors, including food, retail, technology, and manufacturing. There is also a particularly strong spread of finalists from the burgeoning life sciences and pharmaceutical sectors in Ireland.”