Entrepreneur Hall of Fame Inducts Three Business Leaders

(From left) Michael Fields, Ph.D., dean of the H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship, with the 2010 inductees into the Entrepreneur Hall of Fame: Don Taft, Mitchell Berger and Mike Jackson.

NSU’s H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship celebrated the 21^st year of its Entrepreneur Hall of Fame with the induction of three local business leaders – Mitchell Berger, Mike Jackson and Don Taft – at a ceremony on Apr. 14 at the Signature Grand in Davie.

NSU’s Entrepreneur Hall of Fame honors the achievements of outstanding business people in the South Florida community. The selection committee for this prestigious honor is comprised of current Hall of Fame members.  Berger, Jackson and Taft were recognized for their success as entrepreneurs and for their contributions to philanthropic organizations. Each honoree was presented with an engraved crystal bowl. Fellow Hall of Fame members Arthur Falcone, Wayne Huizenga, and Ronald Assaf presented the honorees with their awards. Guests saluted the honorees after learning of their exceptional stories through video presentations.

Berger is the founder and chairman of Berger Singerman, a full-service commercial law firm that has grown to 70 lawyers with offices in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Tallahassee and Boca Raton since its founding in 1985.  Berger has practiced law for nearly 30 years, representing several Fortune 500 companies in commercial disputes. He was named “Co-Lawyer of the Year” by The National Law Journal in 2000 and was recently named one of the “Top 10 Lawyers of the Decade” by The South Florida Legal Guide. 

“Thank you to the people who have chosen me to be among their colleagues – the true leaders of our community,” Berger said in his acceptance speech. “To be considered to be among them is a humbling experience. This is unbelievable.”

Jackson is the chairman and chief executive officer of AutoNation, America’s largest automotive retailer. Based in Fort Lauderdale, AutoNation has 207 stores in 15 states with 17,000 employees and annual revenue of approximately $14 billion. Prior to joining AutoNation in 1999, Jackson served as president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, Inc.  He was named “Industry Leader of the Year” by the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2003 and received the Excalibur Award from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in 2006, which is given to the South Florida business leader of the year.

“It’s a thrill and honor to receive this recognition. It’s the most meaningful award I’ve ever received,” Jackson said. “The peer group that I joined is truly remarkable and one that I have admired for over a decade.”

Taft has spent more than 50 years as a leader in business having founded, owned, and managed both private and publicly traded companies, including involvement with the Funnel Cake Factory and the New York Style Bagel Chip company. He was also a principal in various entities in the entertainment industry, including management and representation of actors, writers and directors. Taft’s extensive philanthropy includes serving as a board member of Special Olympics Broward County. A gift from the Taft Foundation to NSU in 2009 resulted in a permanent home for Special Olympics Broward County on NSU’s main campus and the naming of NSU’s University Center in Taft’s honor.  This January, NSU awarded Taft the Chancellor’s Community Award, the highest honor bestowed by the university.

“I’m savoring this to the hilt,” Taft said. “Thank you for the honor.”

More than 500 people attended the Entrepreneur Hall of Fame induction ceremony, including distinguished guests such as NSU’s President Emeritus Abraham S. Fischler; NSU Board of Trustee members and Entrepreneur Hall of Fame members H. Wayne Huizenga, Rick Case, Ronald Assaf, Arthur Falcone, Alan Levan, and Albert Miniaci; NSU Board of Trustee members Tinsley Ellis, Silvia Flores, Nell Lewis, Joe Millsaps, Sam Morrison, Paul Sallarulo and Martin Press; and Entrepreneur Hall of Fame members Shaun Davis, George Dean Johnson Jr., James Dunn, Miles Austin Forman, Steve Halmos, Keith Koenig, Michael Maroone, Ralph Marrinson, Thomas Miller, Charlie Palmer, Garth Reeves, Ramon Rodriguez, Jack Smith, Terry Stiles and Jordan Zimmerman.