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Woodbridge, Va — June 23, 2026 — Daniel Coleman, founder and CEO of Principle Choice Solutions, was named an EY US Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2026 Mid-Atlantic Award winner. Coleman was selected among nearly 1000 program participants that included 592 finalists across 17 regions competing for the title.
Daniel Coleman: Leadership Background and Experience
Daniel Coleman is a seasoned healthcare and security leader with more than 26 years of experience spanning the healthcare industry and the national intelligence community. As a retired Air Force Medical Service Corps Officer and hospital administrator, he has led healthcare teams in both community and combat environments. Today, he leads a multidisciplinary team of healthcare and cybersecurity professionals, providing business support services to public and private-sector organizations.
Throughout his career, Coleman has been committed to addressing the rising costs of healthcare through disciplined financial, resource, and risk management strategies. He leverages data-driven insights to support executive decision-making while also advancing cybersecurity initiatives that help protect critical infrastructure. In addition to his operational leadership, he is an experienced educator and lecturer on leadership development and fiscal management.
Coleman is a board-certified Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, a certified Project Management Professional through the Project Management Institute, and an accredited Quality Improvement Associate through the American Society for Quality. He holds a Master of Hospital Administration from the University of Colorado and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Maryland.
Reflections on Recognition and Team Impact
". . . moments like this are hard for me, because an award like this puts one person in the spotlight for something that was never built by one person."
Following the award announcement, Coleman reflected on the recognition, noting that “moments like this are hard for me, because an award like this puts one person in the spotlight for something that was never built by one person." He shared that Principle Choice “began with a conviction more than a business plan,” grounded in the belief “that integrity and success can go hand in hand, even in a business world that often rewards the opposite.”
Coleman also spoke to the realities of building and sustaining an organization, explaining that “having a vision is actually the easy part,” and emphasizing the role of people in bringing that vision to life. He credited the company’s success to its team, adding, “this company is what it is because of you. Your resilience, your commitment, and your dedication to improving the lives of others are the real reason I’m standing here tonight.”
While his name is attached to the honor, Coleman underscored the collective nature of the achievement, stating that “this recognition belongs to the people who believed early, stayed when it was hard, and helped turn conviction into something real.”
About Principle Choice Solutions
Principle Choice Solutions, where Coleman serves as founder and CEO, is a 100 percent veteran-founded and veteran-owned healthcare organization providing consulting, customer service center operations, and administrative support to clients across the United States. In 2026, the organization surpassed 1,000 Associates nationwide.
The organization is focused on delivering healthcare, business, and digital solutions through a people-centered approach grounded in integrity, transparency, dedication, and long-term impact. Principle Choice Solutions partners with public and private organizations to navigate complex environments and support meaningful, sustainable outcomes for the patients, agencies, and communities they serve.
Now in its 41st year, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program honors business leaders for their ingenuity, courage and entrepreneurial spirit. It celebrates original founders who bootstrapped their business from inception or raised outside capital to grow their company, transformational CEOs who infused innovation into an existing organization to catapult its trajectory and multigenerational family business leaders who reimagined a legacy business model to strengthen it for the future.
Regional winners were chosen by an independent panel of past winners, top CEOs and business leaders. Judges assessed candidates on long-term value creation, entrepreneurial spirit, purpose-driven commitment, and significant growth and impact.
As a Mid-Atlantic award winner, Daniel Coleman will now be considered by the national judges for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2026 National Awards, which will be presented in November at the annual Strategic Growth Forum®, where high-growth CEOs, Fortune 1000 executives and investors converge to shape the future of business. The National Overall Award winner will move on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Award in May 2027.
EY US Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2026 Mid-Atlantic Award winners:
- Wahid Nawabi, AV
- Nick McCarter, Chartis Federal
- Melissa Drew, InSite BUILD
- Mark Jacobsen, IntraFi
- David Blair, LucyRx
- Neal Piper, Luminoah
- Dave Kaspary, Jr., MidPoint Technology Group
- Daniel Coleman, Principle Choice Solutions
- Anthony Brusco, South Mountain Creamery
- Stephen Raeder, Summit Ridge Energy
- Craig Dixon, The St. James
- Jocelyn Gailliot, Tuckernuck
The Entrepreneur Of The Year program has recognized the leadership of entrepreneurs such as:
- Jason McGowan, Crumbl Cookies
- Reid Hoffman | Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn Corp.
- Saeju Jeong, Noom
- Allison Ellsworth | Stephen Ellsworth, Poppi
- Jitendra Mohan | Sanjay Gajendra | Casey Morrison, Astera Labs
- Shelly Ibach, Sleep Number
- Howard Schultz, Starbucks Coffee Company
- Holly Thaggard | Amanda Baldwin, Supergoop!
- Jodi L. Berg, Vita-Mix Corporation
- Michael Happe, Winnebago Industries
- Arthur Blank, Atlanta Falcons, The Home Depot, Georgia Force
Sponsors
Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards include presenting sponsors PNC Bank, Cresa, LLC, Marsh Risk, SAP and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In the Mid-Atlantic, sponsors also include regional platinum sponsor ADP, regional gold sponsors Cooley and DLA Piper, and regional silver sponsor Stagedge.
About Entrepreneur Of The Year
Founded in 1986, Entrepreneur Of The Year® has celebrated more than 11,000 ambitious visionaries who are leading successful, dynamic businesses in the US, and it has since expanded to nearly 60 countries and territories globally.
The US program consists of 17 regional programs whose panels of independent judges select the regional award winners every June. Those winners compete for national recognition at the Strategic Growth Forum® in November where national finalists and award winners are announced. The national overall winner represents the US at the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ competition. Visit ey.com/us/eoy.
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