JOSH LINKNER:






 
 
 
 
 
Founder and CEO, ePrize LLC. A pioneer in interactive marketing and promotions, Linkner has been involved in the development of hundreds of digital marketing strategies and e-commerce systems over the last 14 years. ePrize has produced an industry-leading 1,400-plus interactive promotions for clients including Coca-Cola, General Motors, The Home Depot, Yahoo!, Dell, Ford, Northwest Airlines, Procter & Gamble, and palmOne. An early Internet entrepreneur, Linkner founded and built a pioneering Web marketing agency, GlobalLink New Media, in 1995. The firm was recognized as a "Top 100 Interactive Agency" by Advertising Age in 1997 and 1998. In 1999, Linkner managed the sale of GlobalLink to a publicly held firm, delivering an 8,000 percent return to investors. He followed that company up with ePrize. He has won numerous design, technology and business awards, including the 2004 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and Crain's Detroit Business 40 under 40.


WHERE BORN: Detroit

MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS: “My grandmother, who passed away 20 years ago. Growing up, she always told me - and I've repeated this to my friends and my employees - that in every circumstance, somebody has to be the best, and it might as well be you. Through her nurturing, I grew up believing that I could be the best. She empowered me to think I could swing for the fences.”

LAST BOOK READ: “'Corporate MVPs,' by Margaret Butteriss and Bill Roiter. (Read as part of an ePrize book club that reads and discusses both fiction and nonfiction books.)”

WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ME: “Probably 'passionate' is a strong one - I'm usually pretty fired up. Hopefully 'creative.' And the last one I would say is probably 'intense.' That describes our culture here, too. We always say, this is not a place for everybody.”

WHERE MY FIELD/INDUSTRY IS HEADED: “We are in an amazing position right now. Promotion has eclipsed advertising in terms of dollars spent, and the fastest growing part of promotion is interactive. We are in a leadership role in a young and growing industry. The opportunity for us is enormous.”

FAVORITE TECHNOLOGICAL GADGET: “My Blackberry, or as my wife calls it, the 'Crackberry.'”

FAVORITE PLACE: “To travel, Napa Valley. I just love it.”

FAVORITE HOBBY: “Playing jazz music. I used to be a professional jazz musician. Guitar is my primary instrument, but I also play piano and sing. I keep a guitar and amp here in my office, so if I need to blow off steam I have an outlet.”

FAVORITE FOOD: “Red wine. I hope that counts.”

MY HIDDEN TALENT: “I actually have a pretty strong finance background. I come across more as a marketing guy but I am very much immersed in the back-end finance stuff. I'm really a finance geek.”

HOW I WANT TO BE REMEMBERED: “'Creative', not just in a work standpoint, but in improving the lives of those around me, creating an environment where people can be their best.”

Grant Thornton Website At the annual awards reception in April 2014, one Leader & Innovator from the previous 12 months will be selected as the Grant Thornton Leader & Innovator of the Year.