Martinsburg Veteran-Owned Company Named as 2008 Small Business of the Year
(l-r) Stephanie Watkins, SBA Region III Administrator; Nancy Ferner, Business Analyst, Small Business Development Center of Blue Ridge Community and Technical College; Harry M. Siegel, HMS Technologies, Inc.; Judy McCauley, director, SBA West Virginia District Office during National Small Business Week in Washington D.C. on April 22.
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. – Judy K. McCauley, director of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s West Virginia District Office recently announced Harry M. Siegel, PhD, president and CEO of HMS Technologies, Inc. in Martinsburg as the 2008 West Virginia Small Business Person of the Year.
Siegel will be recognized for the development of an outstanding, growing business at the annual Small Business Week Awards Celebration on Thursday, June 5 at the State Cultural Center Grand Hall in Charleston, W.Va. He will also be honored for his hard work, innovative ideas and dedication to the community at the event, sponsored by the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce and being keynoted by Governor Joe Manchin, who will also present the award.
“The SBA is very excited to recognize HMS Technologies and Harry Siegel as West Virginia’s top small business,” said McCauley. “Harry has done an outstanding job taking his company to tremendous heights in just five short years. He is an excellent representative of entrepreneurship in West Virginia.”
Siegel, along with representatives from all 50 states, received national recognition at the SBA’s National Small Business Week event held in Washington, D.C. and New York City the week of April 21. The celebration included a visit to the White House to meet with President George Bush.
“I am both pleased and honored to receive such an esteemed award,” said Siegel during the national event. “While I’m dedicated to ensuring HMS Technologies performs at the highest level possible, the strength behind it is not just one man but a team of good professional employees, people and clients willing to work to get each job done, and done well.”
HMS Technologies, Inc. is an Advanced Information Systems Integrator with business lines in: technology integration, business process optimization, and enterprise solutions. Incorporated in 2003 as a certified Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB), HMS is built upon the principles of duty, honor, and commitment to excellence. The company has grown over 2000 percent in just five years and is engaged in multiple government and commercial contracts. HMS Technologies entire executive staff is composed of veterans from the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
Adding to the numerous awards and commendations received by Siegel and HMS, the company sponsors an annual college scholarship for the child of an American service member who has served overseas, paid for “messages home from the front” for service members stationed overseas, and sponsored local sports teams for youth leagues. The corporation always lends a hand on all major fund raisers from the Boys and Girls Clubs or Shriners’ Children’s hospital drive and to local Chamber of Commerce charity events.
HMS was also recently recognized by DiversityBusiness.com, the nations’ leading multicultural internet site, in three Top Small Business categories.
· 2nd among the Top 100 Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Businesses in the state of West Virginia.
· 24th among the Nation’s Top 100 Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses in the U.S.
· 467th among the Nation’s Top 500 Small Business List in the U.S.
In addition to Siegel, also being recognized at the June 5 celebration are: Stephanie Ellingson, Commercial Banking Officer, Huntington Bank, Morgantown, as Financial Services Champion; Meena Ahluwalia, owner and president of Padgett Business Services, Morgantown, as Minority Small Business Champion; April Kaull, Statewide News Coordinator/News Director, WBOY-TV, Morgantown, as Small Business Journalist; Jeanne Mozier, owner of the Star Theatre, Berkeley Springs, as Women in Business Champion; and Joshua F. Pearson and Brian D. Canterbury, president and vice president of Mountaineer Packaging, LLC, Dunbar, as SBA Young Entrepreneur’s.
We will additionally honor the top SBA lenders in West Virginia for 2007. Huntington Bank will be recognized as top small business lender in West Virginia; First State Bank as the number one Community Bank; and Superior Financial Group at the top Community Express lender.
The event will begin at 11:00 a.m. Cost will be $30 per person with seating limited to the first 150 registered guests. Visit the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce website at www.wvchamber.com or contact Kim Nelson at (304) 414-2474 (email: knelson(at)wvchamber.com) to register.
SBA’s participation in this cosponsored activity is not an endorsement of the views, opinions, products or services of any cosponsor or other person or entity. All SBA programs and services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Co-sponsorship Authorization # 08-0390-73.