The Technology Association of Iowa & LWBJ Financial Announce 2011 Prometheus Award Winners
Des Moines -- The Technology Association of Iowa (TAI), in conjunction with LWBJ Financial, today announced the winners of its prestigious Prometheus Awards. The awards recognize outstanding accomplishments of high-tech businesses and individuals across the state.
This year marks the sixth anniversary of the awards presentation. Leann Jacobson, TAI President, said that the high-tech sector is helping Iowa’s economy continue to recover and grow. “Iowa provides a welcoming and nurturing environment for high-tech startups,” she said. “The startups are creating new jobs and generating new products that are re-invigorating our economy.”
Because technology is embedded in every other industry, this sector holds the greatest promise for driving economic recovery throughout the state, Jacobson said. “The Prometheus Awards provide the opportunity for shining a light on Iowa’s ever-evolving, fast-growing tech sector, and to celebrate the remarkable innovations created within it.”
The awards were presented this evening at a sold-out ceremony at the Meadows Events Center in Altoona. The event is co-sponsored by LWBJ Financial, which also sponsors the “Investing in Iowa’s Future” Prometheus Award.
Major sponsors were Applied Art and Technology, the Entrepreneurial Development Center, and Merit Resources. BrownWinick; McKee, Voorhees & Sease, PLC; and Renew Rural Iowa participated as Excellence Sponsors.
2011 Prometheus Award Winners:
Best User of Technology: GCommerce in Des Moines, Steven Smith, President and CEO. This award honors a company that has made dramatic business improvements or increased market advantage through innovative application of products or services. GCommerce provides Software-as-a-Services (SaaS) procurement solutions designed to streamline distribution supply chain operations.
Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the Year: Jason Popillion, GCommerce in Des Moines. This award recognizes a CIO for his or her innovation and creativity, future IT goals, management philosophy, and service to the industry and community. Popillion has been chief technology officer of GCommerce since 2006, and has designed hardware/software architecture and implementation resulting in two patent filings for the company.
Software Company of the Year. This award recognizes a company with outstanding new products and significant revenue growth. Two awards were given, one to a small- to medium-size company (annual revenues under $10 million), and one to a large company (over $10 million in annual revenues).
Small to Medium Software Company: Submittal Exchange, LLC in Des Moines, Matt Ostanik, CEO. Submittal Exchange is a collaborative online system for exchanging, reviewing and archiving construction submissions, RFIs and other construction communications.
Large Software Company: WebFiling in Ames, Matthew Rizai, CEO. WebFilings develops and markets an integrated, cloud-based solution dedicated to meeting SEC reporting requirements.
IT Service Provider of the Year: Alliance Technologies in Des Moines, Mike Lang, President and CEO. Alliance Technologies is a full-service technology provider, supporting businesses with everything from technology support and maintenance to custom-created software.
IT Innovation in Health: Iowa Health Home Care in Urbandale, Phyllis Stadtlander, President and CEO. This award honors an innovation that improves the delivery, quality and cost of healthcare. Iowa Health Home Care, a home health care company within Iowa Health System, recently launched the Video Telehealth Program, which allows selected chronically ill patients to have more frequent interactions with providers in the comfort of their own home, with the help of video monitoring units.
Clean Technology Company of the Year: PowerFilm, Inc. in Ames, Tim Neugent, CEO. This award recognizes a company that manufactures environmentally sound products or solutions that reduce consumption, waste or pollution. PowerFilm, Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of thin, flexible solar modules based on a proprietary low-cost production process. The company targets the building integrated solar power market. It supplies products for selected portable and remote solar power applications.
Best Use of Innovation in Teaching: East Marshall High School in LeGrand, Rex Kozak, Principal. This award recognizes a school’s use of technology to create exciting learning opportunities and to support educators’ professional development. East Marshall is home to a successful Virtual Reality project that allows students to advance their education in STEM fields, has given teachers opportunities for development, and has helped support at-risk students.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Year: Bruce Lehrman, CEO, Involta in Marion. This award honors the CEO whose leadership, innovation and creativity inspires excellence in his or her staff. Involta provides full-service data storage facilities. Last year, under Lehrman’s leadership, Involta raised $8 million to finance two new data storage centers.
Student Innovation of the Year: Book Hatchery in Cedar Falls, Nick Cash, Founder. This award honors a student entrepreneur who has turned a passion for technology into an innovative product or service. The brainchild of founder Nick Cash while he was a junior at the University of Northern Iowa, Book Hatchery is a user-friendly, self-publishing system that takes digital books and publishes them across all e-reader platforms.
Investing in Iowa's Future Award: Steven Carter, Iowa State University Research Park. This award honors Steve Carter, who is responsible for the development and operation of Iowa State's 220-acre research park and incubator, which provide space and services to over 60 companies. He also serves as director of Iowa State's Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship, providing business development assistance and education to students, faculty, entrepreneurs, and the business community
Lifetime Achievement Award: Sunnie Richer, Doextra Corporation. This award recognizes Ms. Richer for her outstanding contributions to Iowa's business community and a successful career in the technology industry.
Breakout Company of the Year: BodyViz in Ames, Curt Carlson, CEO. This award recognizes a company that has achieved a major milestone in 2010, and is poised for further growth in 2011. BodyViz is a virtual-reality, medical imaging company.
Life Sciences Company of the Year: Diamond V in Cedar Rapids, John Bloomhall, President and CEO. This award recognizes a company’s ideas, products or services, growth, and new market generation. Diamond V provides nutritional fermentation products for livestock, poultry, equine and pets.
Outstanding StartUp Company of the Year: Dwolla in Des Moines, Ben Milne, Founder and President. This award honors businesses fewer than five years old, with less than $1 million in annual revenue. Companies were judged on both their business concept and products or services. Dwolla provides a free web-based software platform that allows users to send, receive and request funds from any other user.
Technology Company of the Year. This award recognizes a company’s business strategy, its products and services, its mission and its market potential. Awards are given both to a small- to medium-size company and to a large company.
Technology Company of the Year (Small/Medium): Involta in Marion, Bruce Lehrman, CEO.
Technology Company of the Year (Large/Enterprise): Diamond V in Cedar Rapids, John Bloomhall, President and CEO.
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