ETC's Fred Foster receives Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' 2013 "Seize the Day" AwardETC CEO Fred Foster received the 10th annual Ken Hendricks Memorial "Seize the Day" Award at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference, June 4, held in Middleton, Wisconsin. The award celebrates entrepreneurial leaders who have been crucial to Wisconsin's economic growth and is named in honor of late entrepreneur Ken Hendricks. The award is not given for technical innovation but for innovative leadership -- the ability to transform business opportunities into successes. "Fred Foster epitomizes what it means to literally work out of your garage as a young entrepreneur and to build a successful company," said Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. "His persistence and vision has helped put Wisconsin on center stage in the entertainment technology world." To fulfill the award's five-part criteria, winners must demonstrate vision (recognizing opportunities where others do not); courage (vigorous, dedicated pursuit of opportunities in the face of risk and skepticism); adaptability (rapid and repeated reinvention in response to changing markets); persistence (maintaining optimism and effort in the wake of setbacks); and resourcefulness (overcoming obstacles and finding ways to fund growth). The award recipient is selected by the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference steering committee. While studying at the University of Wisconsin - Madison in the 1970s, Fred Foster and his brother Bill Foster, Gary Bewick, and James Bradley developed and marketed a groundbreaking lighting-control system for theater. Since ETC was founded in 1975, Foster has performed many roles within the company -- from inventor and engineer to industrial designer, tech support, salesman, marketer, president, and CEO. Over time, ETC's products have ranged from lighting consoles to incandescent and LED light fixtures, dimming and power control systems, and stage rigging. Foster has been ranked among the top 10 "Most Powerful People" in the entertainment-technology industry by Live Design Magazine. The Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference is produced by the Tech Council, the independent, non-profit science and technology advisers to the governor and the legislature. Past winners of the "Seize the Day" award have included Ken Hendricks (who also won Inc.'s Entrepreneur of the Year award); Bill Linton, Promega, Madison (2010); Bob Hillis, Direct Supply (2011); and Kay Koplovitz, USA Network (2012). A video of the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference is available from WisconsinEye at the URL below. 
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