WRAL TechWire to launch lifetime service awards with virtual Hall of Fame

Five well-known leaders in North Carolina’s ever-evolving tech and life science industries will be the first choices for WRAL TechWire’s virtual Hall of Fame. The new awards will be among the highlights at our fifth TechAwards program on April 25 at Google Fiber’s new headquarters in Raleigh’s warehouse district.

Several members of the Triangle region tech committee advised WRAL TechWire on the selections of the initial inductees. And many significant leaders were on the recommendation list.

WTW will formally announce the choices with a series of profiles beginning April 10.

The virtual Hall of Fame will include profiles, photos, video and stories from our archives that have featured them over the past 15 years.

As a co-founder and the editor of WRAL TechWire from its launch, the establishing a HoF that focuses exclusively on the overall North Carolina tech/life science community from startup to international ventures has long been a personal goal, I have to confess.

Why a HoF and why these five? Each reflects a strong personal commitment to making North Carolina a better place for all of us to live.

Let me stress: That commitment was the overriding criteria for selection.

Not personal achievement. Not wealth. Not corporate success.

The choices also reflect the improving diversity of the tech/life science sectors’ leadership – a fact WTW is proud to endorse.

So, watch for the first name next week.

TechWire Awards update

This event promises to be the biggest to date with Cindy Whitehead, who sold Sprout Pharmaceuticals for $1 billion, delivering our first-ever keynote.

Of course, we also will be announcing our 12 TechWire award winners spread across six individuals and six companies.

And there will be some surprises with the Editor’s Choice awards.

The TechWire Awards balloting, which ended Friday, was very close across most of the categories with readership participation surging on the final days.

You can register for free tickets. But they are going fast, and the number is limited.

The final TechWire Awards candidates represent a diverse mix of the best technology talent across the Triangle region, from entrepreneurs to the executive suite.

Plus, the corporate and startup/emerging company nominees represent the best of the best.

More than 100 individuals and companies were nominated by WRAL TechWire readers. The finalists were selected after a review by a WTW awards committee based on nominations received.

Here are all the finalists:

STARTUP AWARDS

Fastest Growing Startup (most potential)

Eco-Site
Republic Wireless
Textivia

Most Steady Startup (delivering success consistently)

Adwerx
Republic Wireless
ArchiveSocial

Best Emerging Startup (fast-growing startup emerging from stealth mode)

Eco-Site
RewardStock
Roundtable Analytics

Top Startup Director (CEO/Chairman)

Scott Moody, Co-Founder and CEO, K4Connect
Todd Olson, CEO, Pendo.io
Chris Chuang, Co-Founder and CEO, Republic Wireless

Startup Executive Leader (top leader/executive, not necessarily CEO but a COO, CFO, CIO)

Kevin Barry, Founder and COO, FilterEasy
Tatiana Birgisson, Founder and CEO, MATI Energy
Nate Frechette, Co-Founder and CTO, Dropsource

Most Noteworthy Startup Founder or Investor

Chris Heivly, The Startup Factory
David Gardner, Cofounders Capital
Mark Easley, Goldhat Advisors

ENTERPRISE

Highest Achieving Enterprise (established companies)

Bandwidth
IBM Watson
Sageworks

Most Steady Enterprise (delivering success consistently)

MetLife Global Technology Operations
Red Hat
Bandwidth

Best Emerging Enterprise (perhaps with IPO or exit potential)

Pendo.io
Validic
Bandwidth

Top Enterprise Director (CEO/Chairman)

Allen West, President and CEO, Railinic
David Morken, Co-Founder, CEO and Chairman of Bandwidth
Jean Davis, President and CEO, MCNC

Enterprise Executive Leader (top leader/executive, not necessarily CEO but a COO, CFO, CIO)

Jesse Lipson, Corporate Vice President and General Manager, Cloud Services BU at Citrix
Tara Fitzgerald, President, Clinical Development Services at INC Research
Will Aycock, General Manager at Greenlight Community Broadband

Most Noteworthy Enterprise Founders or Investors