Ostrava, September 24, 2024 – EY, in cooperation with the Governor Josef Bělica and the Moravian-Silesian Region and with the support of the Moravian-Silesian Innovation Centre, announces the next edition of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year of the Moravian-Silesian Region competition. Three national winners have emerged in the competition, which is being held for the 25th time in the Czech Republic this year. As in other regions, nominees will also be able to succeed in the new category of the Czech Television Award for Sustainable Business. Applications and nominations for the competition can be submitted until 18 October 2024. The winner of the regional title will be announced in Ostrava early next year.
This year, the expert jury will be headed by Sotirios Zavalianis, founder of the AKESO healthcare holding company and holder of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2023 Czech Republic title. Together with him, other personalities, including those awarded in previous years, will decide on the winners of individual categories and then on the national winner.
“The past twenty-four editions of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year competition have shown how many strong and exceptional entrepreneurial stories are being written in individual regions of the Czech Republic. The award winners here are significantly supporting their local communities while at the same time not being afraid to be innovative and forward-thinking in their businesses. I am delighted that EY is honoured to spread awareness of their existence and activities. I believe that the 25th anniversary year of the competition will be no exception and will prove how many energetic and capable entrepreneurs our country has,” says Martina Kneiflová, EY Czech Republic Managing Partner.
“The private sector is key to the dynamic development of our region. All successful entrepreneurs contribute to it through their activities and often their courage. Often they find themselves at a crossroads where they have to decide whether to leave the certainty and venture into the unknown. Often they choose to take risks and invest in innovation or visionary projects. It is people like these who make a significant contribution to ensuring that our region continues to transform, evolve and offer people new opportunities and a great place to live. The Entrepreneur of the Year competition draws attention to such personalities,” says Josef Bělica, Governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region.
“I see the benefit of the competition, right from the start, in the opportunity to organise my thoughts about my business and my companies with the help of questions and the perspective of qualified, independent people – this is very inspiring. After winning the regional round and taking part in the final round, there are also opportunities to meet interesting people and their business stories, and hand in hand with this, of course, there are also various unexpected opportunities to promote our company in the media space,” says Jan Hasík, owner of HSF System and holder of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2023 title for the Moravian-Silesian Region.
“At the Moravian-Silesian Innovation Centre (MSIC) we support companies that are constantly working hard on themselves. Whether in terms of innovation, supra-regional ambitions or responsible approach to employees, society and nature. I am delighted that we are hosting a prestigious competition that makes exactly such business models stand out,” says Adéla Hradilová, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of MSIC, which is a partner of the regional round of the competition in the Moravian-Silesian Region.
Anyone can nominate an entrepreneur for the competition using the form at www.podnikatelroku.cz. Entrepreneurs who wish to participate in this year’s competition can also fill in an application form on this website. The deadline for applications and nominations is 18 October 2024. The final of the competition will take place on 4 March 2025 at the Žofín Palace in Prague.
Partners of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2024 competition
The official car of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2024 competition is BMW Czech Republic. The main partner of the competition is Česká spořitelna. The competition partner is SAP. The main co-organiser is the daily MF DNES and iDNES.cz. The main media partners of the competition are Czech Television and Forbes magazine, and the media partner is Seznam Zprávy. The competition is supported by the CzechInvest agency and the Corporate Social Responsibility Association. The competition is held under the auspices of the President of the Czech Republic.
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About the EY Entrepreneur of the Year competition
The EY Entrepreneur of the Year is the world’s most prestigious business competition that pays tribute to exceptional individuals. It aims to show the public outstanding personal examples of entrepreneurship that can serve as role models for young aspiring entrepreneurs. The EY Entrepreneur of the Year competition is designed to be international, so the criteria by which individual participants are judged are comparable in each country. As the only globally recognised competition of its kind, it is now regularly held in almost 60 countries on six continents. For more information, please visit www.podnikatelroku.cz.
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and business advisory services. Our knowledge of the issues and the quality of the services we provide contribute to building confidence in capital markets and economies around the world. Our exceptional human and professional potential enables us to play a significant role in creating a better environment for our employees, clients and the wider society.
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Source: EY Czech Republic. “Who will be the 18th EY Entrepreneur of the Year of the Moravian-Silesian Region?” (online), October 2024. Available from: https://www.ey.com/cs_cz/newsroom/2024/09/kdo-bude-osmnactym-ey-podnikatelem-roku-moravskoslezskeho-kraje.
Michaela Šedlbauerová, E-mail: Michaela.Sedlbauerova@cz.ey.com
