CEO of Rogue Valley Microdevices Entrepreneur Of The Year®

EY Announces Jessica Gomez of Rogue Valley Microdevices as an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2020 Award Winner

For Immediate Release- October 8, 2020
MEDFORD, OREGON (Oct. 8, 2020) – Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced that Jessica Gomez, Founder & CEO of Rogue Valley Microdevices, was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2020 Pacific Northwest Region 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. Jessica Gomez was selected by an independent panel of judges. The award was announced through the program’s first-ever virtual awards gala, hosted by Deborah Norville, anchor of Inside Edition, on Tuesday, October 6, 2020.

“I am immensely honored to be chosen as Entrepreneur of the Year,” said Jessica Gomez. “When my husband, Patrick Kayatta, and I, founded Rogue Valley Microdevices in 2003, we could not anticipate how challenging it would be to build a successful company. Looking back, it feels like a small miracle that we have reach this point in our journey. We are proud to represent our industry as the first and only microelectronics manufacturing facility in Southern Oregon.”

Rogue Valley Microdevices is a full-service precision MEMS foundry that specializes in MEMS device fabrication and silicon wafer services.

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. Jessica Gomez 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.

The Entrepreneur Of The Year program has honored the inspirational leadership of entrepreneurs such as:

Raj Singh, Accolade
Chad Robins and Harlan Robins, Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation
David Wasielewski, Din Tai Fung Restaurant
Jessie Woolley-Wilson, DreamBox Learning
Brian Mariotti, Funko
Kyle Stavig, Myers Container
Madeline Haydon, nutpods
Ally and Scott Svenson, MOD Pizza
Matt Oppenheimer, Remitly
Jill Nelson, Ruby Receptionists
Werner Nistler, Touchmark

As a Pacific Northwest Region award winner, Jessica Gomez 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 Rogue Valley Microdevices and Jessica Gomez

As founder and CEO of Rogue Valley Microdevices, Jessica Gomez has created a world-class precision MEMS foundry in the heart of Southern Oregon. Ms. Gomez practices a business philosophy of offering best-in-class process technology and R&D expertise to customers, to help them achieve the highest quality and reliability in their products.

Ms. Gomez honed her experience in semiconductor processing and production management through positions at Standard Microsystems Corporation, Integrated Micro Machines, and Xponent Photonics. She is a board member of the prestigious SEMI Board of Industry Leaders, and the first executive selected for Spotlight on SEMI Women, which honors accomplished women in the global microelectronics industry.

Ms. Gomez is also chairman of the Oregon Institute of Technology Board of Trustees, is a board member of Oregon Business Development Commission, is a board member of Center for Women’s Leadership, is a board member of the STEM Investment Council, and is vice-chair of the State Workforce Investment Board.

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.

About EY Private

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