Tellabs Chairman Michael Birck praised entrepreneurs for setting an example for others as The Business Ledger honored 25 of them Sept. 19 at the 8th Annual Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards reception.

“It’s an honor to be recognized by your peers and by the press and your community as someone who has made a contribution,” he said. “In my perspective, entrepreneurs make contributions they don’t even know they’re making because they serve as examples to people to keep trying when things don’t always work.”

Birck spoke of his own company’s beginnings in 1974 with “three partners around the kitchen table” who had cashed in savings and mortgaged homes for an ambitious and risky venture that would become Tellabs.

“We had no MBAs, we weren’t schooled in the principles of business, we just knew that we wanted to start a company. The lesson that I learned from that start-up was that a team is a lot better than an individual.

“We did one thing that I think was appropriate for any business, particularly start-ups,” he said. “And that is ask your customers what they want, and then give it to them if you can. Pay attention to your customers. Get to know them and understand their problems.”

Birck noted that some in the audience may have been “serial entrepreneurs.”

“You have seen some failures, and we all do that, and have had some successes,” he said. “That’s the story of entrepreneurism as far as I’m concerned.”

The value of a mentor to an entrepreneur should not be underestimated, Birck said.

“I’ve always thought that a mentor is an essential ingredient for a young person in any path of life, whether it’s business or technology or anything else. You need someone who kind of points the way and says here’s how to do things.”

Birck ended with three simple pieces of advice for entrepreneurs: tell the truth, do the right thing and do the best that you can.

“There come times in the development and evolution of a business or the development and evolution of an individual when if they do the best they can, they’re going to be a success,” he said. “It’s impossible to do better than that.

“If you do the best you can, if you tell the truth and if you do the right thing, you’re going to have a pretty happy life and you’re going to have a pretty good foundation for developing a business.”

The award recipients, by category, were:

Early Stage Award: David Contorno, U-Build It, Mokena; Alyse Lasser and Colleen Buck, Insight Executive Search Partners, Inc., Oak Brook.

Growth Award: Jennifer Didier, Directions Training Center, Oak Brook; Carolyn Gerard, Gerard Design, Inc., Warrenville; Doug & Bryan Grane, Central States Trucking, Bensenville; Russ & Tina Hoefer, Chicago Windy City Guide Magazine, Northbrook; Bruce Leon, Tandem Professional Employer Services, Oak Brook; Tom Walter, Tasty Catering, Elk Grove Village.

Innovation Award: Vincent Camporeale, Orin USA, Inc., Roselle; Brian Clark & Arthur Zards, XNet Information Systems, Lisle; Greg Jiede, Synergistic Networks, Inc., Elmhurst.

Lifetime Achievement: Jack Mensching, Itasca Bank & Trust Co., Itasca; Michael Williams, Williams Architects Ltd., Carol Stream.

Minority Entrepreneur Award: Johnny Campbell, Speak On It! LLC, Carol Stream; Michele Hoskins, Michele Foods, Inc., Calumet City.

Regional Spirit Award: Sandra Westlund-Deenihan, Quality Floatworks, Schaumburg; William Winston, Living Word Christian Center & Joseph Business School, Forest Park.

Service to Entrepreneurs: Bill Bartlett, Corporate Strategies & Solutions, Naperville.

Today’s Young Entrepreneurs: Kevin Clark, Quintessential Retirement Services, Inc., Lockport; Kim Kleeman, Shakespeare Squared, Glenview; Natasha Lehrer, Esther’s Place, Big Rock.

Diamond sponsors for the awards program were AT&T and Selden & Fox. Gold sponsors were Pepper Group, Tasty Catering, WIND News Talk 560AM and B. Gunther & Company, Inc. Marketing partners were the College of DuPage Foundation, the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and the Illinois Small Business Development Centers.

A special section profiling the award recipients will be published with The Business Ledger of Oct. 29.