UNL business college advisory board presents annual awards

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Business Administration Advisory Board honored three Nebraska business leaders and a corporation at its 28th annual awards luncheon April 15.

The board gave its Lifetime Achievement Award to Duane Acklie, founder and chairman of Crete Carrier Corp.; its Business Leadership Award to JoAnn Martin, president and CEO of Ameritas Life Insurance Corp.; its Business Excellence Award to Joe Petsick, co-founder and CEO of Proxibid; and its Corporate Leadership Award to Tenaska.

"The three business leaders and the corporation we honored during the awards luncheon are true pillars in the state of Nebraska and the world," said Donde Plowman, dean of the College of Business Administration.

Acklie was honored for his outstanding leadership, and time, energy and guidance provided throughout his career. Acklie graduated from NU with a bachelor of science and law degree. He served in the U.S. Army as a counter-intelligence officer in Europe and later returned to Lincoln to practice law before purchasing a small, struggling motor carrier company. Today Crete Carrier is one of the three largest privately owned trucking companies in North America and the Acklie Cos. employ more than 6,000 people. A recipient of the U.S. Department of Defense Service Medal -- the highest civilian award for public service given by the Department of Defense, Acklie generously contributed to a new addition at the NU College of Law in 2009. The new addition was named the Duane W. Acklie Classroom Wing.

The Corporate Leadership Award recognizes excellence in Nebraska-based companies that are successful, dynamic and have a high level of commitment to their communities, customers and employees. Beginning as a start-up company in 1987 in Omaha with the goal of developing and constructing a power plant to generate and sell electricity as an independent generator, the privately held Tenaska is one of the largest independent energy companies in the United States. Ranked as high as 16th by Forbes magazine among the largest privately held U.S. companies, Tenaska-affiliated companies manage 37,000 megawatts of generating assets, including 17 power plants in 11 states. Tenaska's natural gas marketing affiliate ranks among the top 10 largest marketers of natural gas in North America. Known for its innovation in several areas, Tenaska is committed to ethical principles and practices and its owners and employees are consistently recognized for their commitment to community service. Respected in the independent power industry, company chairman Howard Hawks was selected to be the first independent power representative on the Board of the North American Electric Reliability Council. Tenaska has also awarded more than 500 scholarships to college-bound students.

The Business Leadership Award recognizes individuals who are outstanding examples of successful leaders in their respective fields, including business ethics, community service and overall business ethics. Martin became manager in 1984 of the audit division at Bankers Life Insurance Co. of Nebraska, which later became Ameritas Life Insurance Corp. In 2005, she was elected president and CEO of the company. Four years later, she also became president and CEO of UNIFI Cos., which offer a wide range of insurance and financial products and services. Martin earned her degree in business administration with an emphasis in accounting at UNL. She is very active in the Lincoln community and was inducted into the UNL School of Accountancy Hall of Fame in 2004 and won the Alumni Achievement Award from the Nebraska Alumni Association in 2002.

The Business Excellence Award recognizes those with an entrepreneurial spirit and growing business acumen, who maintain the high values of ethics and community service. As the first company to bring live auctions online, Proxibid has seen more than $2 billion in sales over the last eight years. A UNL graduate with a degree in economics and finance, Petsick oversees Proxibid's finances and builds better cash flow management practices. He has also been devoted to helping experienced companies expand and building new ideas into successful businesses.

The UNL College of Business Administration serves nearly 3,500 students with nine undergraduate majors, six master's programs with eight specializations and three joint programs, and is the only Ph.D.-granting business college in Nebraska. With 79 full-time faculty and more than 30,000 alumni, the College of Business awards $500,000 in scholarships annually. Established in 1913, the college was founding member of and accredited by the AACSB.

WRITER: Sheri Irwin-Gish