1871 and The Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center to recognize Aon’s contributions to the technology community.
CONTACT:
J Blaszczykiewicz
Director of Marketing, 1871
j@1871.com
CHICAGO (August 24, 2020) – 1871 and The Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center (CEC) announced that it will name Aon as Corporate Champion at The 13th Annual Momentum Awards. The Corporate Champion award recognizes a company that actively and consistently supports the growth of the Illinois technology industry through defined and actionable community-focused efforts, leadership, and/or collaboration.
“It is our great honor and privilege to recognize Aon as this year’s recipient of our Corporate Champion Award. Chicago thrives from established institutions like Aon that fuel the City’s economy with top-tier talent, innovation and civic leadership. Aon has a long and distinguished history of commitment to Chicago as a technology hub by creating jobs and mentoring the next generation of talent through its apprenticeship program and rolling out an innovative approach to making intellectual property solutions accessible to startups. We are grateful for their advocacy and dedication to Chicago’s technology community, and we are fortunate to be able to partner with them.” – Larry Eppley, CEC Board Chairman and Sheppard Mullin Chicago Office Managing Partner.
“Helping our clients address their greatest challenges requires talented colleagues and an ongoing commitment to innovation,” said Greg Case, CEO of Aon. “We value the strong spirit of partnership we’ve found with other innovative organizations in Chicago as we join together in learning from each other and creating new opportunities.
While Aon has always been a staunch supporter of Chicago’s technology and innovation community, in this past year they have gone above and beyond to lift up and advise others. Through their Trade Secret Registry and efforts to make IP protection accessible to entrepreneurs, Aon has displayed their long-term commitment to and enthusiasm for both Chicago and Illinois’ potential as a technology hub.
“Aon serves as a model for innovation and growth for others to learn from. Our longstanding partnership with Aon has made it clear that they share the same objectives as 1871 when it comes to developing talent and providing education and advocacy to the Chicago and broader Illinois innovation community,” said Betsy Ziegler, CEO, 1871. “We are honored to recognize their impact and their ongoing commitment.”
In addition to the Corporate Champion Award, 1871 will be presenting six other awards at The 13th Annual Momentum Awards on October 1, including the Chicagoness Award Industry Disrupter Award, the Outstanding Tech CEO Award, the CityLIGHTS Award, the Momentum Award, and the Rising Star Award. Several awards have been added or changed this year to reflect the merger between 1871 and the Illinois Technology Association (ITA) and the subsequent fusion of The Momentum Awards with ITA’s annual CityLIGHTS Awards.
The event will be attended virtually by Chicago’s best and brightest tech innovators, corporate leaders, and civic supporters. It is the largest gathering of the tech community annually and the primary fundraiser for CEC, which supports the activities and operations of 1871.
More information about this year’s awards is available at https://1871.com/events/momentum/.
About Aon
Aon plc (NYSE: AON) is a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions. Our 50,000 colleagues in 120 countries empower results for clients by using proprietary data and analytics to deliver insights that reduce volatility and improve performance.
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About 1871
1871 is Chicago’s technology hub and the #1 ranked private business incubator in the world. It exists to inspire, equip, and support founders, growth-scalers and innovators in building extraordinary businesses. 1871 is home to ~450 technology startups, ~400+ growth stage companies, and ~1,500 members, and is supported by an entire ecosystem focused on accelerating their growth and creating jobs in the Chicagoland area. The member experience includes virtual and in person access to workshops, events, mentorship, and more. The nonprofit organization has 350 mentors available to its members, alongside access to more than 100 partner corporations, universities, education programs, accelerators, venture funds and others. Since its inception in 2012, more than 650 alumni companies are currently still active, have created over 11,000 jobs, and have raised more than $1.65 billion in follow-on capital.
