Page 11 - 914INC - Q2 - 2013

10
Q2 2013
INC.LINATIONS
Don’t Act Your Age
If I told you that, within our business community, we have a founder of a nonprofit organization which has raised enough money to send 32 girls in impoverished countries to school, a research engineer who is spearhead- ing a project that will save PepsiCo several hundred million dollars on packaging costs, and a physicist at IBM who is part of a team perfecting a new generation of computer chips capable of data transfers more than 1,400 times faster than our current 4G networks can muster, you would probably find all of that pretty impressive, yes? Now, what if I told you that the founder of the nonprofit is 16 years old, the research engineer is 27, and the physicist is 26—and went to college at 13?
When you’re finished lifting your jaw off the floor, you can turn to page 56 and learn more about them, and all 26 of this year’s crop of Westchester’s Wunderkinds. For the third year in a row, we are pleased to present 914INC.’s annual roundup of some of the best and bright- est business minds under the age of 30. Just reading about all of their accomplishments and achievements at such a young age—from founding 8,000-square-foot digital arts centers to operating 2,000-megawatt nuclear reactors—is inspiring (and humbling).
If all this talk of teens and 20-somethings has you feeling, well, old, I have the perfect antidote for you. Check out our photo essay on 100+-year- old businesses in the County on page 80, and I guarantee you’ll be feeling younger again, by comparison. To see so many businesses, big and small, survive and thrive for that long is a testament both to sound management and to the ability to keep reinventing oneself for the times.
The key for any business to stay open a year, much less a century, lies in its ability to successfully sell its product or service. On page 88, we chat with a handful of the County’s top sales pros for their insights on what makes for a winning sales strategy. And I would be remiss in my duties if I didn’t sell you on our next 914INC. event. On May 21, we are hosting a cocktail party at Benjamin Steakhouse in White Plains to honor this year’s Wunderkinds. For more info, or for tickets, visit westchestermagazine. com/wunderkinds. Our annual Wunderkinds reception is always a great business networking opportunity, whether you’re a 25-year-old up-and- comer or the septuagenarian owner of a 110-year-old business. No matter your age, I hope to see you there.
Robert Schork
Executive Editor