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Entrepreneur of the Year Award
Frequently Asked Questions


What doES UMSL ACCELERATE do with the APPLICATION/nomination materials?

  1. The application/nomination materials you provide are the primary basis for selection. The materials are also used to profile your company at the recognition event and in the follow-up to the event. You should not submit any materials that you do not want disclosed either verbally or in print.

How much financial information must we disclose?

  1. There is no need to disclose proprietary information. Instead, we are looking for general benchmarks of financial growth and success. Percentages are often used (e.g. "the company grew by over 200% in the last five years and expects sales to exceed $25 million in 2020").

Why should our company participate in this awards program?

  1. The awards provide a significant public relations opportunity and lets the honorees' entire companies share in their success. We anticipate that honorees will be profiled in UMSL news and social media as well as in local, regional, and/or national press. Additionally, honorees will be able to send out their own press releases to interested media, post their honors on their company web pages, and insert copies of related news articles in their sales kits. Honorees will also have the opportunity to meet other successful entrepreneurs who are being honored.

Who does the judging and what are they looking for?

  1. The UMSL Accelerate Entrepreneurship of the Year Awards Committee conducts the judging. They are looking for a diverse group of honorees (e.g. industry, organization, business model, background). Our goal is to select a representative sample of entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and advocates who are successful in our community.

What is the recognition event like? Who should attend?

  1. We anticipate that approximately 250 people will attend the awards ceremony. The ceremony will begin with a reception, followed by a keynote speech, an introduction to the honorees, and a distribution of the awards. During the reception, ceremony sponors and nominees will be provided the opportunity to have exhibit tables. We anticipate that honorees will invite colleagues, co-workers and/or family members.