Entrepreneur of the Year Semifinalists
Last Thursday I participated in the one-on-one interview process with the local Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year semifinalists. We met at the Hilton Torrey Pines for several hours. During that time, I had the opportunity to interview some very dynamic and successful local entrepreneurs. The companies represented by these entrepreneurs are very diverse, and I found the process to be interesting.
The categories we considered included consumer products, real estate, health, high tech, emerging technology, and others. The photos accompanying this blog post were taken during the one-on-one interviews. The first photo is of Irene Veca and me. Irene runs the Entrepreneur of the Year program here in San Diego. The second photo is of me interviewing one of the candidates along with Mindy Pawinski. On Wednesday the local judges met in the University City offices of E&Y to rank the candidates for each category. This will be used to determine the final awardees at the local Entrepreneur of the Year festivities in June.
Unfortunately, I was not at the judges’ meeting on Wednesday because I have come down with a case of walking pneumonia and have to stay at home for at least a week. Since I was one of the judges, however, I will be expected to present one of the awards, which I will do. The event is a big one in San Diego, and several hundred people attend, cheering for their companies.
ARCS Foundation Celebration
Last week I also attended the celebration for the ARCS Foundation. ARCS stands for Achievement Rewards for College Students. The mission of the organization is to help the best and brightest United States students by providing scholar awards in the natural sciences, medicine, and engineering. It is my understanding that the local ARCS chapter this year awarded $317,500 to 42 ARCS Foundation Scholars. Betty and I have supported this organization for 20 years, and they provide needed financial aid to the selected students, while promoting student interest in pursuing the sciences.
Scott McNealy’s Thoughts on Founding a Company
I recently read a provocative interview with Scott McNealy, who cofounded Sun Microsystems and served as the company’s chairman until January of this year. Although he had plenty to say about Larry Ellison and Steve Jobs — not all of it very nice — I found his perspective on what he would do differently in founding his next company interesting. According to McNealy, his next company “…must be private, never go public. There will be no upside investors other than me and the employees.” I like the way Scott thinks.
— Bob
