Entrepreneurs gathered in Palm Springs, CA this weekend to celebrate 30 years of ingenuity in America and announce this year’s EY Entrepreneur Of The Year National award recipients. Awards were presented in 11 categories, and Atlanta boasts three of the National category winners.
 
“Our category winners and finalists represent some of the most unique and transformative companies in their respective industries,” said Mike Kacsmar, EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Americas Program Director. “The entrepreneurs behind these companies are bringing new ways of thinking to American business and are a hugely positive force for the economy.”
 
By category, the Atlanta winners are:
 
Distribution and Manufacturing: Vernon J. Nagel, Chairman, President and CEO — Acuity Brands, Inc
Finalists included the following:

· Angel Alvarez, Founder and CEO – ABB Optical Group, Coral Springs, FL

· Laurent Bresson, President and COO – Nexteer Automotive, Saginaw, MI

· Larry Lawson, President and CEO – Spirit AeroSystems, Inc., Wichita, KS
 
Financial Services: David Zalik, CEO — GreenSky, LLC

Finalists included the following:

· J.P. McNeill and Nick Fergis, Co-founders – Renovate America, Inc., San Diego, CA

· Hank Seale and Matt Flake, Founder and CEO – Q2 Software, Inc., Austin, TX

· Mark E. Watson III, President and CEO – Argo Group International Holdings, Ltd, San Antonio, TX
 
Media, Entertainment and Communications: Ben Chestnut, Co-founder and CEO — MailChimp

Finalists included the following:

· Alter Driver, CEO & Co-Founder – Scopely, Los Angeles, CA

· Jeff Green and Dave Pickles, Co-founders – The Trade Desk, Ventura, CA

· Harry Kargman, Founder & CEO – Kargo, New York, NY
 
J.W. “Bill” Marriott Jr., Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board of Marriott International, Inc., has been named the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2016 National Overall Award winner. To view video of all of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners, please visit ey.com/us/eoy .