The Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and the Nashville Entrepreneur Center have announced the finalists for the fourth annual NEXT Awards. These awards recognize excellence in business and entrepreneurship in Middle Tennessee.

The NEXT Awards honor companies and individual entrepreneurs in five business categories that are vital to the Middle Tennessee economy: health care, technology, digital media and entertainment, social enterprise and sustainability, and products and services.

Individual awards will also be given for Entrepreneur of the Year and Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

A finalists’ celebration will be held Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Nashville Entrepreneur Center. Winners will be announced during the NEXT Awards celebration Thursday, Nov. 20, at the War Memorial Auditorium.

2014 NEXT Award Finalists by Category:

Entrepreneur of the Year:

• Mark Cleveland, Swiftwick, LLC
• Roe Frazer, Cicayda
• Tammy Hawes, Virsys12
• Jim Lackey, EnableComp
• Turner Nashe, Innertainment Delivery Systems
• Tim Ozgener, Oz Arts, Inc.

Young Entrepreneur of the Year

• Tim Downey, Picd.us
• Ben McIntyre, Internpreneur
• Channing Moreland, What’s Hubbin’

Digital Media & Entertainment

• Startup: Make It Pop Creations, Proof, Talkapolis, Wheelhouse Marketing Advisors, LLC

• Growth: DWP Live, Paramore | the digital agency, REACH, LLC, Snapshot Interactive LLC

Health Care

• Growth: Applied Health Analytics, LLC, Change Healthcare, EnableComp, LLC, Sitters Etc.

• Startup: Aspire Health, Inc., Bernard Health, InvisionHeart Inc., MedCycle Management, LLC

• Market Mover: Cumberland Pharmaceuticals LLC, emids, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Products & Services

• Startup: 6th Man Movers, Dan’s Gourmet Mac & Cheese, Music City Pizza, Pfeffer Torode Architecture

• Growth: Hamilton-Ryker IT Solutions, LLC, Inova Payroll, Swiftwick, LLC, TechnologyAdvice

• Market Mover: Avenue Bank, EHD Corporation, Interior Design Services, Reliant Realty

Social Enterprise and Sustainability

• Startup: Good.Must.Grow., Nisolo, OZ Arts, Inc., PRO Employment, a social enterprise by Project Return

• Growth: Future Vision Energy, Operation Stand Down Tennessee, PM Environmental, Inc.

• Market Mover: Belmont University, Project Preserve, an initiative of Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee

Technology

• Startup: Checkd.in, Cicayda, DePalma Studios

• Growth: Entrada Inc., NSG, VendEngine, Inc., Virsys12

• Market Mover: Bedroc, ForceX, Inc., LPS Integration, Inc., Peak 10

Lipman Group selects Exum as managing broker

Exum

The Lipman Group Sotheby’s International Realty has hired Gloria Exum as managing broker.

As a native Nashvillian, Exum has served the Middle Tennessee area for more than 28 years. Her expertise encompasses new home construction and sales, residential and commercial sales and property management. She also has experience in interior design, staging and remodeling.

Prior to joining The Lipman Group, Exum was a broker with Benchmark Investors Group.

Battle of Franklin Trust hires coordinator

Pace

The Battle of Franklin Trust has hired Hope Pace as community relations coordinator.

Pace will oversee event sponsorships, group ticket sales, social media and group tours for the Trust. She brings eight years of professional experience in sales and human resources from her work at national companies, including Dell Inc. and Enterprise Holdings, where she consistently exceeded sales goals.

Before joining the Trust, Pace served as a senior sales representative at Service Source where she also spent time as a career counselor to students.

Tennessee Grocers name board members, officers

The Tennessee Grocers & Convenience Store Association has named its 2014-15 board of directors. They are:

• Chairman: John Edd Wampler, Family Brands International, LLC – Lenoir City
• Chairman elect: Randy Stepherson, Stepherson’s Food Stores – Memphis
• Vice chair: Terry Roberts, Associated Wholesale Grocers – Goodlettsville
• Treasurer: John Jones, K-VA-T Food Stores – Knoxville
• President: Rob Ikard, TGCSA, Nashville
• Past chairman: Tony Barham, Best Wade/Litco Petroleum – Ripley
• Toney Collier, Mitchell Grocery Co. – Pleasantview
• Scott Dennis, United Grocery Outlet/Bargain Barn – Shelbyville
• Bryant Davis, Pepsi Beverages Company – Nashville
• David Fulmer, Publix Super Markets – Brentwood
• Joey Hays, Dyer Food Group – Dyer
• Toney Miller, MAPCO Express – Brentwood
• Jimmy Nichols, Houchens Industries – Bowling Green, KY
• Dave Shelek, Coca Cola Refreshments – Knoxville
• Gary Pickett, Charles C. Parks Co. – Gallatin
• Chris Smith, Kroger – Nashville
• Jeff Tietgens, Tietgens Super Rama Foods – Mt. Pleasant
• Joe Wolf, Alliance Retail Group – Goodlettsville

Pinnacle adds employees downtown, in Lebanon

Smiley

Terri Smiley and Vicke Wilson have joined Pinnacle Financial Partners and are based at its downtown Nashville office at Pinnacle at Symphony Place.

Smiley is a trust advisor assistant who brings 32 years of experience. Smiley was a trust officer in Regions’ Private Wealth Management Group and has served as a trust administrator and an administrative supervisor for its trust operations group.

Wilson

Wilson, with 10 years of experience, joins Pinnacle as a collections and recovery support associate. Prior roles were with Metro Action Commission as an eligibility counselor, Baptist Hospital as a patient accounts collector and AmSouth Bank as a collection officer and supervisor assistant.

Matheson

Nathan Matheson and Liz Thomas have joined Pinnacle Financial Partners’ West Baddour office in Lebanon.

Matheson, with eight years of financial services experience, is a senior vice president and financial advisor. He comes most recently from SunTrust Bank, where he was a vice president and business banker.

Thomas brings 11 years of experience to her role of service specialist. She comes from First Tennessee Bank, where she served as an operations manager.

Prior roles were with Carolyn Miller State Farm Insurance, where she was a bank representative, and Wilson Bank & Trust, where she served as a teller.

Stites & Harbison attorney named chair of counsel

Stites & Harbison, PLLC attorney Ken Bryant has been named chairman of the Conference of Freight Counsel (CFC). His term runs from 2014-16. Previously, Bryant was vice chairman of the CFC.

Bryant

CFC is composed of 120 transportation lawyers in the country who represent carriers, brokers and forwarders in cargo loss and freight claim matters in all modes of transportation.

Bryant is a partner at Stites & Harbison and focuses his practice on business litigation. He regularly represents a variety of businesses in the defense of class action litigation, non-compete and trade secret litigation, intermodal cargo damage and transportation litigation, securities litigation and arbitration, and general business litigation.

Metro teachers selected for Educator Fellowship

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education has selected 22 teachers, including six from Davidson County, for the first Tennessee Educator Fellowship.

The program gives educators an opportunity to learn and communicate about student-focused education policy issues.

The class includes teachers of nine different subjects who work in urban, suburban, and rural schools and traditional and charter schools across Tennessee.

The fellows will learn about and advocate for policies, practices, and systems that impact educator effectiveness and student achievement. They will have their first seminar on Sept. 19 – 20 in Nashville.

The 2014-15 Tennessee Educator Fellows from Middle Tennessee are:

• Jarred Amato, eighth-grade English teacher at Jere Baxter Middle School in Metro Nashville Public Schools

• Jonathan Bolding, grades 5-8 gifted education teacher at Robertson Academy in Metro Nashville Public Schools

• Jason Hilbelink, seventh-grade math and science teacher at W.H. Oliver Middle School in Metro Nashville Public Schools

• Kristian Dennison, seventh-grade math teacher at Wright Middle School in Metro Nashville Public Schools

• Ryan Murphey, grades 9-12 English teacher at Maplewood Comprehensive High School in Metro Nashville Public Schools

• Kayleigh Wettstein, third-grade teacher at J.E. Moss Elementary School in Metro Nashville Public Schools

BOHAN Advertising adds 5 employees

BOHAN Advertising, just named the “Small Agency of the Year, Southeast” by Advertising Age, has added five employees. They are:

Tony Gerstner, account supervisor for the Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism and the City of Pigeon Forge accounts. He previously was senior marketing manager at Logan’s Roadhouse and has more than nine years of experience in retail and service marketing.

Sherry Talley, creative services manager. She most recently was manager of Tractor Supply Company’s in-house creative and print services department.

Barbara Pritchett, account executive for the O’Charley’s casual dining restaurant account. Before BOHAN, Pritchett worked for Phase 3 Marketing and Communications in Atlanta for clients such as FATZ Café, American Tombow and Quorum Health Resources.

Abby Hackett, digital project manager. She is a recent graduate of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where she majored in marketing, social media and sales.

Clayton Kast, assistant engagement buyer/planner. Kast recently earned an advertising degree from the University of Tennessee.