If ever there's an award presented at the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards Gala for Most Times Attended, I will graciously walk on stage, wipe away a tear, thank my family for their support, and offer the audience with inspirational words of wisdom. I will then carry my award back to my seat at the Silicon Slopes table and pretend not to notice the envious eyes staring from all around the Grand America ballroom. Because I have been to this awards gala a bunch of times and deserve that award when they decide to give it. But they haven't yet, so I enjoyed this year's gala while eating shrimp, listening to The Gold Standard, and enjoying the real winners' inspirational words of wisdom.
The first to receive an award was the Youth Scholarship Recipient Emily Guertler, CEO of Straight Shot Apparel. She's managed to found a successful company that helps sick kids while in her youth. All I've ever done is possibly win an imaginary award in the future. So thanks for the existential crisis, Emily.
Next, Crystal Maggalet, CEO of FJ Management, Inc., accepted the Life Time Achievement award. She was just as gracious in her speech as she was in our interview last week.
Then the category winner awards were presented, starting with Manufacturing and Consumer Products, which went to Joel Clark, Co-Founder and CEO and Cam Smith, Co-Founder and COO of Kodiak Cakes LLC. Next, Ben Peterson, CEO, and Ryan Sanders, COO of BambooHR won the Business Software award. Chris Klomp, CEO, Adam Green, Chief Information Security Officer and Wylie van den Akker, Chief Technology Officer of Collective Medical Technologies, Inc., won the award for Health and Life sciences, and Dave Durocher, Managing Director, Alan Fahringer, Director, Joseph Grenny, Co-Founder and Chairman, Tim Stay, CEO and Lola Zagey, Director of The Other Side Academy won in the Social Entrepreneur category. Ken Davis, Founder and CEO of TaskEasy accepted the award for Business Services, then Russell Brunson, Co-Founder and CEO of ClickFunnels won for Technology. Misty Kirby, Trent Kirby, Chani Reeve and Ryan Reeve, Founders of Paparazzi, LLC won in the Consumer Services category, and Jeff Pedersen, Founder and CEO of Cariloha accepted the final award of the evening for the Products and Logistics category.
Every winner graciously thanked the appropriate people in their lives and left the audience with inspirational words of wisdom while we all enjoyed our shrimp. You can hear the speeches for yourself here. Shrimp not included. Sorry.
See you next year when I see you from the stage, accepting my award for fourth year attending.
