NeuroFocus CEO Dr. A.K. Pradeep Named Finalist for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2011 Northern California Award

BERKELEY, Calif., June 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- NeuroFocus (www.neurofocus.com) today announced that company CEO and founder Dr. A.K. Pradeep is a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2011 Northern California Award. According to Ernst & Young LLP, the awards program recognizes entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Dr. Pradeep was selected as a finalist from more than 160 nominations by a panel of independent judges. Award winners will be announced at a special gala event on Saturday, June 25, at the Fairmont San Jose.

"I am extremely honored to be selected as a finalist for this prestigious award," said Dr. A.K. Pradeep, CEO of NeuroFocus, and author of business bestseller The Buying Brain.  Founded in 2005, NeuroFocus currently ranks as the world leader in the fast-growing neuromarketing research field and was recently acquired by Nielsen.

Dr. Pradeep was the recipient of the Advertising Research Foundation's Great Minds Award Grand Prize, which recognizes "an individual who brings excellence to advertising research in the category of research innovation" and was also named "2010 Person of the Year" by the USA India Business Summit for his "impressive innovations and achievements in the field of neuromarketing."

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Program celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. The program has expanded to recognize business leaders in more than 140 cities and more than 50 countries throughout the world.

Regional award winners are eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Award. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the Entrepreneur Of The Year overall National Award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California, on November 12, 2011. The awards are the culminating event of the Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Forum®, the nation's most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies, which will be held November 9–13, 2011.

Sponsors

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are pleased to have the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation as a national sponsor.

In Northern California, sponsors include ManpowerGroup, SAP, The Big Picture Film and Video Arts, Smart Business, ADP, RoseRyan, Scherzer International, and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.

About NeuroFocus

The world's leading neuromarketing firm, NeuroFocus brings advanced neuroscience knowledge and expertise to the worlds of branding, product development and packaging, in-store marketing, advertising, and entertainment. NeuroFocus clients include Fortune 100 companies across dozens of categories. Headquartered in the U.S. and operating globally through offices and NeuroLabs in the UK and Europe, the Asia/Pacific region, Latin America, and the Middle East, the company leverages Nobel Prize caliber and Doctorate-level credentials in neuroscience and marketing from the University of California at Berkeley, MIT, Hebrew University, Harvard, Oxford, Columbia University, and other leading institutions, combined with executive business management and consulting expertise.  NeuroFocus is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nielsen. For more information, please contact [email protected].

About Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year®

Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world's most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs. The unique award 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 award 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 140 cities in more than 50 countries.

SOURCE NeuroFocus