Below is a press release from Ernst & Young LLP:
WILMINGTON, MA — Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) proudly announces the winners of the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2026 New England Award, honoring visionary leaders of high-growth companies driving innovation, growth and prosperity for future generations. For more than four decades, EY US has celebrated ambitious entrepreneurs who are transforming industries, impacting communities and creating long-term value.
Regional winners were selected by an independent panel of past winners, top CEOs and business leaders. Judges evaluated candidates on long-term value creation, entrepreneurial spirit, purpose-driven commitment, and significant growth and impact.
“The Entrepreneur Of The Year 2026 New England Award winners are founders reshaping their industries and redefining what it means to lead as entrepreneurs,” said Lisa Kelly, Entrepreneur Of The Year New England Program Co-Director. “Through their vision, focus and commitment to growth, they are building companies that move markets forward, create opportunities for their teams and strengthen the communities around them.”
The Entrepreneur Of The Year program honors many different types of business leaders for their ingenuity, courage and entrepreneurial spirit. It celebrates original founders who bootstrapped their business from inception or who raised outside capital to grow their company, transformational CEOs who infused innovation into an existing organization to catapult its trajectory and multigenerational family business leaders who reimagined a legacy business model to strengthen it for the future.
Among the Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 New England Award winners is Elden Lainez, CEO of the Wilmington-based Boston Lab Services.
Boston Lab Services (BLS) partners with research organizations to enhance efficiency and support scientific innovation. Their mission is to provide flexible lab operations tailored to each client while fostering the growth of dedicated professionals committed to advancing new medicines. Backed by experienced leadership, BLS is a trusted provider for startups and major life sciences companies in Massachusetts, ensuring seamless lab management so scientists can focus on research. They also champion diversity, investing in talent development to shape the future of life sciences.
These regional award winners will now move on to be considered for the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Awards, set to be presented in November at the annual Strategic Growth Forum, one of the nation’s most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies. The National Overall Award winner will move on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in May 2027.
Entrepreneur Of The Year Award winners become lifetime members of a global, multi-industry community of entrepreneurs. They receive exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of program alumni and other ecosystem members in more than 60 countries — all supported by vast EY resources.
Learn more about the winners at Entrepreneur Of The Year New England | EY – US
About Entrepreneur Of The Year
Founded in 1986, Entrepreneur Of The Year has celebrated more than 11,000 ambitious visionaries who are leading successful, dynamic businesses in the US, and it has since expanded to nearly 60 countries and territories globally.
The US program consists of 17 regional programs whose panels of independent judges select the regional award winners every June. Those winners compete for national recognition at the Strategic Growth Forum in November where national finalists and award winners are announced. The national overall winner represents the US at the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year competition. Visit ey.com/us/eoy.
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