Technology leaders honored for redefining network architectures with revolutionary approach to software solutions
PALM SPRINGS, Calif/PRNewswire/ -- Jayshree Ullal, President and CEO, and Andy Bechtolsheim, Founder, Chief Development Officer and Chairman, of Arista Networks have been named the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2015 National Overall Award winners. Arista Networks delivers software-driven cloud networking solutions for large data center storage and computing environments. The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Award, one of the world's most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs, recognizes visionary business leaders who demonstrate innovation, financial success and commitments to their communities as they create and build world-class companies.
Arista Networks has become the leader in its field. Arista not only redefines network architectures, but also brings extensibility to networking and dramatically changes the price/performance ratio of data center networks. The company is best known for the development of EOS, the core of its platform, which is an advanced networking operating system that enables third-party development. Ullal and Bechtolsheim, who also won in the Technology category, were honored at the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year National Awards gala, the culminating event of the EY Strategic Growth Forum® in Palm Springs, California. The Forum is the nation's premier gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies.
The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners are selected by an independent panel of judges from more than 250 regional award recipients. Awards for entrepreneurial excellence were given in 11 categories.
"To be an entrepreneur is to be a game changer," said Mike Kacsmar, EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Americas Program Director. "Jayshree Ullal, Andy Bechtolsheim and the Arista Networks team embody all of the characteristics we value in entrepreneurship. They have successfully challenged industry norms and redefined the industry standard."
Two leaders paving the way
Bechtolsheim is one of the original founders of Arista Networks. As a serial entrepreneur, he is credited with shaping some of the most notable companies in the history of Silicon Valley, such as Sun Microsystems and Granite Systems. In 2004, Bechtolsheim began his journey to start Arista Networks. The company disrupted the long-standing method of legacy network switching to adopt software-driven cloud networking, marking a bold departure from traditional industry standards.
In 2008, Ullal left Cisco after more than 15 years to join Bechtolsheim and tackle the challenge of leading and building Arista's business in software-driven cloud networking. Ullal has been widely lauded by analysts, the media and her contemporaries as an innovative and influential figure in Silicon Valley.
People and culture first
Ullal and Bechtolsheim are industry veterans with decades of experience. The pair has managed to create a bold but stable culture over the past 11 years, one that has carved a new path in the industry and cultivated a sense of pride among Arista workers. Following "The Arista Way," the 10 core tenets of the company's culture, employees endeavor to make Arista a highly desirable place to work. Arista workers are also active in the community, donating both time and dollars to charitable causes in the Bay Area. The Santa Clara and San Francisco offices are both LEED Gold-certified, a designation awarded by the US Green Building Council. The award is based on the properties' use of sustainable materials, water and energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, location and transportation, and overall innovation.
EY Entrepreneur Of The Year National category winners
Additional awards were presented in 11 categories, honoring a number of exceptional entrepreneurs for their innovation and leadership.
"Our category winners and finalists have all pushed boundaries, demonstrated new ways of thinking and most importantly created extraordinary models to follow," Kacsmar said. "We believe these individuals will help foster entrepreneurship in the US and continue to raise the bar for others."
By category, they include:
Distribution and Manufacturing
Award winner: Berto Guerra, CEO & Chairman - Avanzar Interior Technologies, LTD, San Antonio, TX
Finalists:
Andrew Philipp, Jeremy Rincon, Robby Whites - Clarus Glassboards, LLC
Scott C. Mueller, Dean Mueller - Dealer Tire
Jason Luo - Key Safety Systems
Emerging
Award winner: David Royce, Founder & CEO - Alterra, Provo, UT
Finalists:
Ilia Papas, Matt Salzberg, Matthew Wadiak - Blue Apron
Adam Hepworth - Jamberry
Jeff Church - Suja Juice
Energy, Cleantech and Natural Resources
Award winner: Eric Dee Long, CEO - USA Compression, Austin, TX
Finalists:
John B. Walker - EnerVest, Ltd.
Donald Young - Hoover Group, Inc.
M. Kevin McEvoy - Oceaneering International, Inc.
Family Business
Award winner: Andrew D. Peykoff II, President & CEO - Niagara Bottling, LLC, Ontario, CA
Finalists:
Lou Gentine, Louie Gentine - Sargento Foods Inc.
Robert M. Beall - Beall's, Inc.
Edward Weisiger, Jr. - CTE
Financial Services
Award winner: Alfred P. West, Jr., Chairman & CEO - SEI, Oaks, PA
Finalists:
Jonathan Steinberg - WisdomTree Investments, Inc.
Kenneth Lin - Credit Karma
Noah Breslow - OnDeck
Life Sciences
Award winner: John-Jacques Bienaime, Chairman & CEO - BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Novato, CA
Finalists:
James Dunlop, Charles Dunlop - Ambry Genetics
Mike Mussallem - Edwards Lifesciences
Tim Walbert - Horizon Pharma
Media, Entertainment and Communications
Award winner: Maggie Wilderotter, Chairman & CEO - Frontier Communications, Stamford, CT
Finalists:
Frank Addante - Rubicon Project
Chris DeWolfe - SGN
Sean Eugene Reilly - Lamar Advertising Company
Real Estate, Hospitality and Construction
Award winner: Adam Neumann, Co-Founder & CEO - WeWork, New York, NY
Finalists:
John Kilroy - Kilroy Realty Corporation
Zeke Turner - Mainstreet
James Michael Appling, Jr. - TNT Crane & Rigging, Inc.
Retail and Consumer Products
Award winners: Reade Fahs, CEO, and Bruce Steffey, President and COO - National Vision, Inc., Duluth, GA
Finalists:
John Foraker - Annie's, Inc.
Marla Malcolm Beck - Bluemercury, Inc.
Jamie Lima, Paulo Lima - IT Cosmetics
Services
Award winner: Y. Michele Kang, Founder & Chief Executive Officer - Cognosante, McLean, VA
Finalists:
Lawrence Janesky - Basement Systems Inc.
Abhi Shah - Clutch Group
Dr. Setul G. Patel - Neighbors Health System, Inc.
Technology
Award winners: Jayshree Ullal, President & CEO, and Andy Bechtolsheim, Founder, Chief Development Officer and Chairman - Arista Networks, Santa Clara, CA
Finalists:
Keith Krach - DocuSign, Inc.
Keith R. Dunleavy, MD - Inovalon
Marcus Ryu - Guideware Software, Inc.
Sponsors
Founded and produced by EY, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored in the US by SAP America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
About EY Entrepreneur Of The Year®
EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world's most prestigious business awards program for entrepreneurs. The program 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 awards program 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. ey.com/eoy
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