Finalists named for PYA’s “Tom Ballard Innovation Award”; presentation to be livestreamed on Friday

Posted on March 17, 2021 by Design in Design Innovation | 0 Comments

By Kailyn Lamb, Marketing Content Writer and Editor, PYA

Three finalists have been selected for PYA’s first “Tom Ballard Innovation Award.” The final placement of the winners will be announced at 10 a.m. on March 12 during the livestreaming of the award ceremony.

The link for the livestream can be found here.

Speakers at the event will include Marty Brown, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of PYA; Larsen Jay, PYA Director of Business Alliances; and PYA Chief Alliance Officer and teknovation.biz Publisher Tom Ballard for whom the award is named. Read Ballard’s reaction to having the award named for him in this teknovation.biz article.

Announced earlier this year, the award recognizes early stage East Tennessee companies that demonstrate great promise and an innovative focus. Award applicants were asked to present a business plan that optimized existing business operations by reducing costs, increasing revenues, and/or gaining new efficiencies, while demonstrating clear innovations to improve the business and empower the consumer.

In alphabetical order, the three finalists are:

Both Ascend and Eonix are companies in the “Innovation Crossroads” program, operated by Oak Ridge National Laboratory with support from TVA, which is bringing young tech-focused entrepreneurs to the region.

Judges for the award were Charlie Brock (Co-Founder of the Chattanooga Renaissance Fund and former President and CEO of Launch Tennessee), Brandon Bruce (Co-Founder of Startup Knox, start-ups Cirrus Insight and Uncat, and Chair of the Board of the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center), Amy Henry (Director of Transformative Innovation at TVA), Mike Odom (President and CEO of the Knoxville Chamber), and Mary Celeste Beall (Proprietor of Blackberry Farm luxury resort).