EY Announces Burns & McDonnell Chairman and CEO Greg Graves Is an EY Entrepreneur Of The Year(TM) 2014 Award Winner in the Central Midwest

Award Recognizes Entrepreneurial Excellence in Engineering Category


KANSAS CITY, MO--(Marketwired - Jun 23, 2014) - EY today announced that Burns & McDonnell Chairman and CEO Greg Graves has received the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ 2014 Award in the Engineering category in the Central Midwest. The award recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Graves was selected by an independent panel of judges, and the award was presented at a special gala event at the Sheraton Overland Park hotel on June 19.

"I'm honored to receive this recognition, not for myself but for the other 4,500 employee owners at Burns & McDonnell and what we are building together," Graves said. "Even though we are 116 years old, we are a company that demonstrates an entrepreneurial spirit every day and it's all because of our employee owners."

Burns & McDonnell provides engineering, architecture, construction, environmental and consulting services to thousands of clients throughout North America and abroad. Founded in 1898, Burns & McDonnell is 100-percent employee-owned and is currently ranked as the 18th largest engineering design firm by Engineering News-Record magazine. Burns & McDonnell also is currently ranked 14 on the Fortune magazine list of 100 Best Companies to Work For.

Now in its 28th year, the EY program has honored the inspirational leadership of such entrepreneurs as Howard Schultz of Starbucks Coffee Company, Pierre Omidyar of eBay, Inc., and Mindy Grossman of HSN. Recent US national winners include Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn; Hamdi Ulukaya, founder of Chobani; and 2013 winner Hamid Moghadam, CEO and Chairman of Prologis.

As a Central Midwest award winner, Graves is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2014 national program. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California, on November 15, 2014. The awards are the culminating event of the EY Strategic Growth Forum®, the nation's most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies.

Sponsors
Founded and produced by EY, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are sponsored in the United States by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and SAP America.

In the Central Midwest, sponsors include Lockton Companies, Enterprise Bank and Trust, Armstrong Teasdale, Stinson Leonard Street, Merrill Corporation, Smart Business and CommonGround.

About EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™
EY Entrepreneur Of The Year is the world's most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs. The unique award makes a difference through the way it encourages entrepreneurial activity among those with potential and recognizes the contribution of people who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. As the first and only truly global award of its kind, Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses, recognizing them through regional, national and global awards programs in more than 145 cities in more than 60 countries.

About EY's Strategic Growth Markets practice
EY's Strategic Growth Markets (SGM) practices guide leading high-growth companies. Our multidisciplinary teams of elite professionals provide perspective and advice to help our clients accelerate market leadership. SGM delivers assurance, tax, transactions and advisory services to thousands of companies spanning all industries. EY is the undisputed leader in taking companies public, advising key government agencies on the issues impacting high-growth companies and convening the experts who shape the business climate. For more information, please visit us at ey.com/us/strategicgrowthmarkets, or follow news on Twitter @EY_Growth.

About EY
EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

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Contact Information:

For more information, contact:
Roger Dick
Burns & McDonnell
816-822-3339