YPSILANTI — The Eastern Michigan University College of Business held their second annual Michigan Business of the Year Awards Luncheon on April 10 at the McKenny Hall Ballroom on the EMU campus.
Students from the College of Business nominated 30 companies and selected winners in ten categories. Among the winners were SPARK for the Social Enterprises category, Bluewater Technologies for the Information Systems category, and Talmer Bank and Trust for the Alumni-Owned Business category, led by CEO and EMU alumnus David Provost.
Businesses were judged on several factors, including profitability, strategic execution, and level of social responsibility.
The event also featured keynote speaker Jason Stoicevich, EMU alumnus and head of Fiat brand in North America. “When you graduate, how will you brand yourself?” he asked EMU students.
The categories and nominees included:
- Small/Medium Enterprise: Zingerman’s (winner), The Taubman Centers, and Yeo & Yeo CPAs.
- Social Enterprise: SPARK (winner), Beyond Basics, and SOS Community Services.
- Accounting: Deloitte (winner), Baker Tilly, and Rehmann.
- Financial Services: Comerica Inc. (winner), Fifth Third Bank, and United Shore Financial Services.
- Human Resources: Enterprise Car Rental (winner), Impact Management Services, and Rapid Global Business Solutions.
- Marketing: Team Detroit (winner), Onset Marketing, and Lowe Campbell Ewald.
- Supply-Chain: Delphi Automotive (winner), Universal Truck Services, and RPM Freight Systems.
- Information Technology: Bluewater Technologies (winner), Altair Engineering, and Tata Technologies.
- Manufacturing: General Motors (winner), BorgWarner, and MASCO.
- Alumni-Owned Business: Talmer Bank and Trust (winner), Menlo Innovations, and Technology Solutions.
