Entrepreneur competes for prestigious award

Matthew, who is a former pupil of Wallace High School, is the Director of Connect Telecom, which is based on Lisburn Road in Belfast.

He will be amongst 24 finalists from across the island of Ireland who will gather, along with their guests and other luminaries of the entrepreneurial community next Thursday (October 25), at a celebratory Entrepreneur Of The Year banquet to be broadcast to a worldwide audience via RTE Television and online.

The overall winner will then go forward to represent Ireland at the World Entrepreneur Of The Year finals in 2013, where he or she will compete with over 55 country winners for this prestigious global title.

Matthew said he has thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the Entrepreneur of the Year Programme. “Being part of the EOY programme has been a real privilege,” he said.

“It has been fantastic meeting fellow business owners and understanding their challenges and learning from their experiences and expertise.

“It has been brilliant meeting people with the same entrepreneurial spirit.”

Frank O’Keefe, Ernst & Young Partner-in-Charge of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Programme, re-iterated the importance of business awards, such as these, and spoke of the immense value that is being created by Ireland’s innovators as they continue to push the boundaries of possibility in order to ignite the long-term economic recovery of this island.

“Despite the numerous economic and social challenges currently facing our island’s economies, the culture and spirit of enterprise in Ireland remain strong with a genuine and positive predisposition towards entrepreneurship,” he said.

“Through their participation in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards Programme, entrepreneurs, such as Mathew, Stuart and Russell, have been introduced to an environment that champions innovation, nurtures entrepreneurial progression and challenges finalists to be at the cutting edge of international business and innovation.”

He continued: “As participants in an increasingly-buoyant export sector who are capitalising upon the presence of a highly-skilled workforce and an open economy, it is their stellar achievements, global ambition and unrivalled vision that will continue to stimulate economic growth and create an exciting new vista of prosperity and hope for our island in the years to come. ”

Since their inception in Ireland in 1998, the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards have gone from strength-to-strength to become the most eagerly-anticipated event on the Irish business calendar.

In this, the 15th anniversary year, the incredible achievements of the 24 awe-inspiring entrepreneurs and innovators who have risen to the intensive challenge of this prestigious business awards programme will be publicly celebrated on Thursday night as they join a global network of entrepreneurs that fosters collaboration, provides unrivalled business opportunities and generates a sense of collective pride in each other’s achievements.

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Gala Awards Ceremony will be broadcast via RTE One Television and Online on October 25 at 10:40pm.