Young entrepreneurs increase uptake in business awards
An increasing number of young South Australian businesspeople have thrown their hats into the ring for InDaily’s 40 Under 40 awards, despite a shorter nomination period than 2020.
Photo: Jessica Clark
Independent South Australian media publication InDaily received 630 referrals and 230 completed applications in the fourth year of its 40 Under 40 event.
While more local businesspeople under the age of 40 nominated themselves or someone else than ever before, the nomination period was shorter than last year when the nomination period was extended and the award ceremony was delayed due to coronavirus restrictions.
SA Venture Capital Fund Portfolio Manager and 40 Under 40 Chair David Rohrsheim will lead a panel representing the South Australian business community in judging the nominees against the selection criteria, with the winners to be announced at a gala dinner on June 10 at the Adelaide Convention Centre.
He said he was delighted by the influx of diverse young leaders keen to have their achievements celebrated and voices heard.
“I’m delighted we’ve got a bigger number of nominations than last year, when the doors were open for six months, while this year the process was only open for one month and it’s only my second year involved in the awards,” Rorsheim said.
He said the flood of uptake in nominations was aided by the growing group of alumni who he labelled as one of South Australia’s most “powerful tools”.
“We put a call out to our alumni to spread the word and I think that really contributed to the growing number of people who entered,” he said.
Rorhsheim is now faced with the prospect of whittling the nominations down to the top 40 young South Australian entrepreneurs for 2021 – a formidable task – and one that he says will be both time-consuming and deeply gratifying.
“When you’re reading the stories of people who are sharing their lives it’s really rewarding,” he said.
“We’ve asked people some serious questions this year, which I think will show that things aren’t always as perfect as they look on LinkedIn.”
Tickets to the 2021 40 Under 40 Award Dinner are now on sale. Click here to book.