Firm honors region's outstanding entrepreneurs

Rocky Mountain News

Friday, June 23, 2006

Accounting firm Ernst & Young honored businesses and individuals Thursday night with its annual Entrepreneur of the Year 2006 awards in the Rocky Mountain region.

Rocky Mountain award winners are eligible for the national program. The winners are:

BUSINESS SERVICES

Karl Friedman, president and founder, NextAction

• Bio: An MBA professor once told Friedman, "We're not teaching answers, we're teaching questions." He has tried to instill that same spirit in all his employees and for more than one company. Co-founder of Abacus Direct, which went public in 1996 and was sold for $1.7 billion in 1999, he then founded what was to become Next Action.

EMERGING

I. Ben Joseph, chairman and CEO, Wireless Channels

• Bio: Joseph began his career at Motorola, and within five years he was named vice president. He decided the corporate world wasn't for him, and he started several companies, including Wireless Channels.

HEALTH CARE AND LIFE SCIENCES

Dr. Joel R. Montbriand, president, Gastroenterology of the Rockies/ Medamorph

• Bio: Montbriand led his company through a complete "technological transition," sacrificing paychecks for months and working "on call" every day for a year to afford computerizing the office.

Over the past 10 years, Montbriand has taken a practice of one physician in a single location to nine practitioners and three medical centers serving five counties.

REAL ESTATE

James Chaffin Jr., president, and James Light, chairman, Chaffin/Light Associates

• Bio: Chaffin and Light mortgaged their homes to acquire 3,000 acres in Snowmass Village. The company now owns developments across the country and five real estate brokerages. CLA has also created four environmental nonprofits funded by a real estate transfer assessment, a self-imposed tax on sales and resales.

RETAIL AND CONSUMER SERVICES

Elizabeth Isely, vice president; Heather Isely, vice president and secretary; Kemper Isely and Zephyr Isely, co-presidents of Vitamin Cottage

• Bio: The Isely children's love for the Vitamin Cottage began at a young age by working in the store bagging nuts and running the cash register. In 1999, the children purchased the nine-store business from their father and have expanded the business into 14 new store openings.

SOFTWARE

Perry Evans, CEO, Local Matters

• Bio: For Evans, the philosophy "You're only as good as the people you surround yourself with" is what helps him maintain a strategic edge on the competition. He believes that Local Matters' success is directly related to hiring smart, technical teams and continually building relationships with customers.

TECHNOLOGY

David Phelps, president and CEO, Merlin Technical Solutions

• Bio: After working years in the aerospace industry, Phelps founded Merlin in 1997 with $500 and homemade business cards. During the next nine years, relying on his own capital, he led the company to skyrocketing annual sales for 2003, 2004 and 2005.

TURNAROUND

H. Craig Clark, president and CEO, Forest Oil

• Bio: Clark was appointed Forest Oil's CEO in 2003 to restructure the company. He changed the culture and implemented a strategy that included acquisition management to costs and balance sheet management. Last year, Forest gave significant financial and personal time to assist those affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.