Today, the College of Business celebrated leadership excellence in the local business community at the annual Business Leader of the Year awards ceremony and breakfast. Since 1991, the Business Leader of the Year award has highlighted the extraordinary accomplishments of Florida leaders and their impact on the overall business environment. This year’s honoree was Colin Brown, chairman and CEO of JM Family Enterprises, Inc.

Headquartered in Deerfield Beach, JM Family is a $14.9 billion automotive corporation with approximately 4,200 associates and is ranked No. 21 on Forbes’ list of “America’s Largest Private Companies.” JM Family has been a pillar of the South Florida community for a half-century, and has thrived under Colin’s leadership for the past 15 years. In addition to being a strong business leader, Colin clearly cares very much about the South Florida community, through his service to a number of nonprofit organizations, including the Florida Council of 100, United Way of Broward County and Habitat for Humanity.

In addition to raising funds for student scholarships, the Business Leader of the Year event is always a wonderful opportunity for me to catch up with our friends from the local business community and share FAU’s recent successes. Kudos to the College of Business for hosting another world-class event and congratulations again to Colin Brown.