ATLANTA – Arnold Silverman, president of Silverman Construction Program Management, was named Atlanta’s 2006 Small Business Person of the Year today as the Annual Small Business Person of the Year Awards celebrated its 20 th year.

The event, which for two decades has honored one outstanding small businessperson every year for their contributions to Atlanta's civic and business community, is co-hosted by the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

“Arnold was chosen because he represents everything it takes to be a successful entrepreneur and community servant – leadership, intelligence, dedication and courage,” said Michael Kogon, chair of the Chamber’s Small to Mid-Size Business Council and CEO of Definition 6. “We count on those qualities in Atlanta.”

“In fact, nearly two-thirds of job growth here is from small businesses,” Kogon continued. “So as we celebrate 20 years of the Small Business Person of the Year Awards, I congratulate Arnold, the other finalists -- and all the small businesses that are the backbone of Atlanta’s economy.”

Small businesses are a critical sector. Of the more than 130,000 total businesses in metro Atlanta, 94.8 percent employ fewer than 50 people.

Founded in 1995, Silverman’s firm specializes in construction management services for nonprofit and community organizations. Clients include the Atlanta Union Mission, the Piedmont Park Conservancy, the Center for the Visually Impaired and DeKalb County’s Senior Center.

Silverman CPM has received numerous awards, including: the PED Award (2005), the Best Overall Project Achievement Award from the Southeast Atlantic Chapter Construction Management Association of America (2003), and the Project Achievement Awards from the Southeast Atlantic Chapter Construction Management Association of America (2002, 2004 and 2005).

Among the organizations to which Silverman devotes time are the Carter Center Board of Councilors, Park Pride, the City of Atlanta’s Mayor’s Task Force for Parks and Greenspace, GlenCastle Constructors and Paideia School.

Other finalists for the 2006 Small Business Person of the Year Award were:

• Dan Campbell, CEO, Hire Dynamics
• Tammy Cohen, president and chair, InfoMart
• Sharon Quaintance, CEO and co-founder, LawDocsXpress
• Joe Snowden, president, McRae Communications

To qualify, nominees were required to be a primary owner or a major shareholder of a business that has been locally established for at least three years with gross annual revenues not exceeding $40 million. They were also required to be a member in good standing of the Chamber and an active member of the community.

This year’s sponsors included AirTran Airways, Bank of America, BellSouth, WABE-FM 90.1, WPBA-TV 30 Public Broadcasting Atlanta, IBM and Exact Target, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Monster.com.

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