FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas is encouraging nominations for a large, diverse pool of potential honorees for the 2015 Arkansas Business Hall of Fame. The submission deadline is June 1, 2014.

A committee of business leaders from around Arkansas reviews the nominations and selects up to four honorees for induction each year. The committee is encouraging nominations to establish a group of potential honorees that embodies the diversity in background, race, gender and accomplishment represented by the best in Arkansas business.

Those wishing to recognize a business leader as one of Arkansas’ best should complete and submit the form found on the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame website or send a letter of nomination including pertinent and compelling information that illustrates to the selection committee why the nominee deserves recognition. Nominations can be submitted electronically to abhf@walton.uark.edu or by mail to the Office of External Relations at the Sam M. Walton College of Business, Business Building 117, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701-1201.

The selection committee is most concerned with “why this person should be honored as a member of the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame.” Nominees can be living or deceased. All living inductees shall be at least 60 years of age at the time of their selection, and nominees are to be Arkansans by birth or by choice.

Equal consideration is given to nominees born in Arkansas whose business achievements have been outside of the state and to nominees whose accomplishments have been based primarily in Arkansas. Nominations are not limited to University of Arkansas graduates.

The selection committee considers three main areas in choosing honorees:

1. Business – the nominee has displayed outstanding leadership in establishing, building or running a business.

•          Nominees are recognized primarily as a business leader and for managerial success.

•          The preponderance of weight is given to such accomplishments as starting and building a business and leading an established business to significantly greater achievements.

•          Among the factors to be considered are industry recognitions, being an industry pioneer or leader and recognition by others for achievements.

2. Community – the nominee has played an important role in improving his or her community.

3. Ethics – the nominee has displayed the highest level of ethics in his or her business. The 2015 Arkansas Business Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held Feb. 13, 2015, at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock. The Arkansas Business Hall of Fame is permanently housed in the atrium of the Donald W. Reynolds Center for Enterprise Development on the University of Arkansas campus.

The Walton College established the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame in 1999 to recognize outstanding business leaders born in Arkansas or those who have chosen to build their businesses in the state. The Arkansas Business Hall of Fame’s purpose is to honor, preserve and perpetuate the accomplishments of business leaders who have brought lasting recognition to Arkansas.

A listing by year of previous inductees is available at the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame website.