As Northwood University prepares to host the Outstanding Business Leader (OBL) Awards Gala, students, faculty, staff and friends recently had the opportunity to learn from the OBL Class of 2015 as they participated in an afternoon forum held at Northwood University Florida’s Countess de Hoernle Student Life Center.Serving as role models for Northwood University students, the six-member panel shared anecdotes relating to the obstacles and challenges they’ve encountered, as well as remedies relating to how they overcame them while on their personal road to success. And the crowd gained sound advice relating to the importance of young leaders ‘failing often in a comfortable and safe environment,’ in order to learn from their mistakes, the importance of surrounding oneself with honest and trustworthy people, identifying problems and market needs as opportunities, and more.
The nationally known group will also share insight at the annual Outstanding Business Leader awards gala held Saturday, February 7th, 2015, at The Breakers, Palm Beach, Florida. For high resolution photos, biographies, and individual press releases, please visit the: Outstanding Business Leader Online Newsroom.
The six honorees in the Class of 2015 are:
Jim Hallett
CEO, KAR Auction Services
Carmel, Indiana
Steve M. Madincea (MI ’82)
Founder & Group Managing Director, PRISM
Surrey, England
Rollie Massimino
Head Coach, Northwood University Men’s Basketball
1985 NCAA Champion, Villanova University
Tequesta, Florida
Sonu Ratra
President, Akraya Inc.
Santa Clara, California
John Rotche
President, TITLE Boxing Club
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Melissa Spickler
Managing Director, Merrill Lynch – The Spickler Group
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
Northwood University annually recognizes a select group of men and women for their business achievements and for their support and exemplary leadership of the communities in which they live and work. In the 35 years since the program’s founding, more than 300 business leaders from more than 30 states and several countries, representing dozens of industries and fields of business expertise, have received the Outstanding Business Leader Award.
