The shortlist for the 2022 EY Entrepreneur of the Year awards has been announced, with 29 people representing 25 companies nominated across three categories.
EY said the companies shortlisted for what will be the 25th year of the awards programme have generated annual revenues of more than €800 million.
Alongside the selection of an overall EY Entrepreneur of the Year winner in November and winners in each of the emerging, established and international categories, EY will for the first time present a sustainability award to the finalist who is deemed to have made the biggest contribution towards environmental sustainability through their business.
“Our entrepreneurs this year represent an impressive variety of industries, including consumer, healthcare, energy, banking and manufacturing,” said Roger Wallace, partner lead for EY Entrepreneur of the Year.
“From a company that has delivered Europe’s largest windfarms to a family-run tailor that’s been dressing some of Ireland’s most well-known names since the 1930s, to a business leveraging cutting-edge AI to unlock the value of data, the scope of the impact that these entrepreneurs have across the island is vast.”
Emerging entrepreneur
The finalists in the emerging category are: John Harkin of Alchemy Technology Services; Allan F Beechinor and Niamh Parker of Altada; Alan Carson of Cloudsmith; Caroline Dunlea of Core Optimisation; Helen Cahill of InvoiceFair; Stephen Nolan of Nutritics; Fionn Lahart and Christoph Hennersperger of One Projects, and Evelyn Kelly of Orphan Drug Consulting Ltd.
Industry entrepreneur
The finalists in the industry category are: Tom O’Connor and Kieran Cusack of Conack Construction Ltd; Harriet Dunne of ICE Comfort Slat Mats Ltd; Louis Copeland of Louis Copeland & Sons Ltd; Andrew Lynas of Lynas Foodservice; Michelle Daly of P&G Cards Ltd; Alan Browne of KOREC; Cathal Fay of PrePay Power, and Paul Stewart of MyBaggage.
International entrepreneur
The finalists in the international category are: Justin Lawless of Intact; John T O’Sullivan of BioAtlantis; Gregory Bradley of BLK BOX; Michael Dixon of Dixon International Transport Ltd; Jacqueline O’Reilly of KonFloor; Michael Slein of LED Group ROBUS; Jamie O’Rourke of Mainline; Martin McKay of Texthelp Ltd, and Aidan Corbett and Jack Pierse of Wayflyer.
Key motivators
“Harnessing the power of technology to empower businesses, customers and communities, to positively impact entire industries and to help change our future for the better is a key motivator for this year’s cohort of finalists,” Mr Wallace said.
“Each of our entrepreneurs is revolutionising their own industries and creating opportunities for Ireland and beyond.”
The judging panel for this year’s awards will be chaired by Anne Heraty, chief executive of CPL Resources, who won the overall award in 2006. She will be joined on the panel by Denis O’Brien, Edmond Harty, Joe Hogan, Mark Roden, Evelyn O’Toole, Harry Hughes, Richard Kennedy, Jenny Melia, Aimee Connolly, Michael Carey, Jerry Kennelly and Jeremy Fitch.