ForeSee CEO Larry Freed (fifth from left) and ForeSee employees accept AnnArbor.com Business Review's 2011 Deals of the Year Company of the Year award from presenter and Michigan Economic Development Corp. CEO Michael Finney (fifth from right).
AnnArbor.com file photo
The event is taking place the evening of Nov. 2 at Eastern Michigan University’s Student Center.
In 2011, more than 400 people attended the ceremony, including high-level business executives, nonprofit leaders from throughout Washtenaw County and Gov. Rick Snyder.
Awards from the 2011 Deals of the Year event
AnnArbor.com file photo
Business Review is seeking nominees for both Executive of the Year and Company of the Year, as well as the deals, announcements or transactions that fit seven sectors that lead the local economy:
- Health care
- Retail
- Technology
- Research
- Commercial real estate
- Nonprofits
- Construction and development
The public can submit nominations on the Deals of the Year website by Sept. 14. The “Deals” year runs from Oct. 1, 2011, to Sept. 30, 2012.
Three nominees will then be revealed in each of the seven sector categories during the last week of September, and the winners are announced at the event on Nov. 2. Nominees are not announced in the Executive of the Year and Company of the Year categories.
The Ann Arbor Business Review — whose brand was absorbed by AnnArbor.com when it launched in summer 2009 — created the Deals of the Year event in 2005.
In 2011, Ann Arbor-based customer satisfaction firm Foresee won Company of the Year, while Michelle and Aaron Crumm of Adaptive Materials Inc. together were awarded Executive of the Year.
Other past winners of Company of the Year include: Zingerman's (2010), Arboretum Ventures (2009), HealthMedia (2008), NSF International (2007) and Google (2006).
Other past winners of Executive of the Year include: Serial entrepreneur Jeff Williams (2010), Esperion Therapeutics CEO Roger Newton (2008), former Pfizer site leader David Canter (2007), McKinley CEO Albert Berriz (2006) and Ann Arbor venture capitalist and now Gov. Rick Snyder (2005).
In 2009, instead of an Executive of the Year award, an overall Deal of the Year honor was given to the University of Michigan for acquiring the ex-Pfizer site.
Tickets for the 2012 Deals of the Year are now available for $95 per person or $850 for a 10-person table. Tickets can be ordered here.
Click here to see the full list of winners at the 2011 Deals of the Year event.
Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.