The ELO Entrepreneurial Leaders Award (ELA) recognizes the track record of a person who is an inspiration to Christian marketplace and entrepreneurial leaders around the world. Nominees come from various sectors, whether the business, nonprofit, or academic sectors. In many instances, nominees have an impact in one or more of the sectors.
In 2024, we highlighted 3 renowned entrepreneurial and marketplace leaders that participated in ELO events this year, whether that be our Oxford Leadership Program or our ELO Forums held across Canada in Vancouver, Winnipeg, and Toronto.
In July, we awarded the ELA to Dr. John Lennox, Professor Emeritus, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. John Lennox is an internationally renowned speaker on the interface of science, philosophy and religion. He regularly teaches at many academic institutions, is Senior Fellow with the Trinity Forum and has written a series of books exploring the relationship between science and Christianity. He studied at the Royal School Armagh, Northern Ireland and was Exhibitioner and Senior Scholar at Emmanuel College, Cambridge University from which he took his MA, MMath and PhD. He worked for many years in the Mathematics Institute at the University of Wales in Cardiff which awarded him a DSc for his research. He also holds an MA and DPhil from Oxford University (by incorporation) and an MA in Bioethics from the University of Surrey. He was a Senior Alexander Von Humboldt Fellow at the Universities of Würzburg and Freiburg in Germany.
In November, we awarded the ELA to Dr. Kim Tan, Chairman, Springhill Management, London, UK. Springhill Management is private fund management company specializing in biotech and social venture capital investments. Dr. Tan has been a pioneer of social impact investing for over 20 years and is a partner of several social impact funds including Inqo Investments (South Africa), Novastar Ventures (Kenya) and Garden Impact Investment (Singapore). He is an advisor to Johnson & Johnson Impact Ventures. He is the co-founder of the Transformational Business Network and a trustee of the John Templeton Foundation and the Templeton Religion Trust. Dr. Tan was also one of the presenters in the ELO Oxford Leadership Program 2024.
In December, we awarded the ELA to Ronald (Ron) Blue, Founder, Ron Blue Institute, Indianapolis, IN, USA. Ron Blue founded Ronald Blue & Co, a CPA firm, that transitioned into Blue Trust, which serves over 10,000 clients and manages over US$16 billion in assets. He founded or co-founded the National Christian Foundation, which disburses over $1 billion per year to evangelical causes; Kingdom Advisors, which trains thousands of Christian financial advisors to integrate biblical wisdom into their financial advice; and most recently, The Ron Blue Institute, dedicated to transforming how people think, act, and communicate about money and possessions by providing biblically based financial wisdom.
These leaders will join the growing list of the award’s recipients, with those such as:
- Pat Williams, Co-Founder and Senior VP, NBA Orlando Magic, Orlando, FL
- John Maxwell, one of the world’s premier leadership experts, Atlanta, GA
- Bobby Gruenewald, Founder & CEO, YouVersion Bible App, Tulsa, OK
- Lord Robert Edmiston, Chairman, IM Group, and Founder, Christian Vision, London, UK
- Mark Burnett, Television & Film Producer, & Roma Downey, Producer and Actress, Malibu, CA