Reston, VA  – Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced that Jared Shepard, Founder & CEO of Intelligent Waves LLC, was named an  Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2020 Mid-Atlantic Award winner. The Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards program is one of the preeminent competitive awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. The award recognizes those entrepreneurial leaders who are excelling in overcoming adversity; financial performance; societal impact, and commitment to building a values-based company, innovation, and talent management. An independent panel of judges selected Jared Shepard. The award was announced through the program’s first-ever virtual awards gala, hosted by Deborah Norville, anchor of Inside Edition, on October 8.  

Jared Shepard’s Intelligent Waves LLC (“IW”) is a leading-edge trusted IT systems integrator that delivers high-impact transformational IT solutions to Government’s most mission-critical challenges in austere and demanding environments. The firm is strategically committed and focused on investing, developing, deploying, and ensuring that our nation’s cybersecurity and defense systems and networks are protected by next-generation innovation and rapid-deployment solutions that will keep our military safe anytime, anywhere, on any network.

Jared Shepard commented, “I am humbled by this national recognition and honored to be counted among this peer group of exceptional leaders and accomplished entrepreneurs that have been presented with this prestigious award,” commented Shepard. “Since the very beginning, my focus has been on taking the valuable lessons I’ve learned during my military service, and as a Veteran, finding ways to give back to the community through technological innovation to keep our warfighters safe and bringing trusted innovation to the front lines of defense. Then, leverage our businesses success to give back to those who put their lives on the line for our country by supporting Veteran causes.” 

Jared Shepard founded the Reston-based Intelligent Waves in 2006, turning his daily life experiences as a soldier, and as a civilian advisor to the Department of Defense (DoD) in Iraq and Afghanistan, into an impactful and innovative company focused on the defense and intelligence communities of the government. Under Shepard’s visionary leadership, Intelligent Waves has experienced exponential growth in contract awards and plans to create hundreds of new high-tech jobs in Northern Virginia. As of now, Intelligent Waves is projecting an additional $300 Million in new business wins in 2020. Recently, Intelligent Waves was honored as an Inc. 5000 company for the second time in a row. Intelligent Waves has also been selected as a top ten “best companies for veterans” by Monster and Military.com for the last three years in a row. At times, the company was the only business under $1 Billion in revenues to make the prestigious list.

As an accomplished Defense IT thought leader, a proud Army Veteran, and an avid philanthropist, Jared Shepard fervently gives back to veterans and disadvantaged children through STEM and sports. He founded Warriors Ethos, a nonprofit organization supporting wounded service members, veterans, and their families with transition assistance.

Since 1986, EY US has honored entrepreneurs whose ingenuity, spirit of innovation and tenacity have driven their companies’ success, transformed their industries and made a positive impact on their communities. Jared Shepard will go on to become a lifetime member of the esteemed multi-industry community of award winners, with exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of fellow alumni and other ecosystem members in over 60 countries — all supported by vast EY resources.

As a Mid-Atlantic regional award winner, Jared Shepard is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2020 National Awards. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner, will be announced Thursday, November 19, during a virtual awards gala. The awards are the culminating event of this year’s virtual Strategic Growth Forum®, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies. The Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner will then move on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Award in June 2021. 

About Intelligent Waves LLC

Intelligent Waves LLC is a service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB). The business provides enterprise systems engineering, cloud computing and managed services, cyber and security architecture, mobility, and operations and intelligence analytics. 

For more information, visit www.intelligentwaves.com.

About Entrepreneur Of The Year® 

Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world’s most prestigious business awards program for unstoppable entrepreneurs. These visionary leaders deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world. The program engages entrepreneurs with insights and experiences that foster growth. It connects them with their peers to strengthen entrepreneurship around the world. Entrepreneur Of The Year is the first and only truly global awards program of its kind. It celebrates entrepreneurs through regional and national awards programs in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries. Winners go on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ title. ey.com/us/eoy

About EY

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, strategy, transaction and consulting services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In doing so, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

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