Engage! Cleveland is passionate about attracting, engaging and retaining emerging talent to Cleveland.

The 2025 Generation NEXT Awards.The community engagement organization focused on young professionals, emerging talent and business and community leaders who are passionate about making Cleveland a top destination for the next generation will be honoring those who do the same with the 5th Annual Generation NEXT Awards.

The Generation NEXT Awards at the Aviator Events Center and Pub on Wednesday, Sept. 23 will honor 21 exceptional individuals and companies across six categories: Mentor of the Year, Young Professional of The Year, Company of the Year, Program of the Year, Employer Member of the year, and the Lifetime Achievement award.

Each category has four winners, spanning non-profit and for-profit companies of various sizes. Additionally, a Lifetime Achievement award is given to one winner who has made outstanding achievements during his or her career.

"Engage! Cleveland is hardly alone in the work we do surrounding talent attraction and retention, and we are so impressed with this year’s honorees that are helping to engage local talent in their industries” says Engage! Cleveland president Ashley Basile Oeken. “These award winners are inspirational community members, mentors, and companies that make Cleveland a better place to work and live.”

The Generation NEXT winners were nominated by their peers and chosen by a selection committee for their dedication to attracting and retaining talent in Greater Cleveland while fostering a culture of belonging, engagement, and personal fulfillment among their colleagues.

This year's Generation NEXT Award Winners are:

• Mentor of the Year

• Non-Profit: Meenakshi Sharma, Acting President & CEO / Cleveland Museum of Natural History
• Small Company: Donyae James, President / International Cleaning Solutions
• Mid-Size Company: Ruth Barnum, Vice President, Marketing and Growth/Apex Skin (posthumous)
• Large Company: Marisa Darden, Lead, White Collar, Government Investigations & Regulatory Compliance Practice/Benesch

• Non-Profit: Andrianna Sheriff, Marketing & Communications Manager/Cleveland Public Library
• Small Company: Raviraj Patel, Chief Electrical Engineer / Emerald Built Environments
• Mid-Size Company: Lalaina McCue, Mechanical Engineer / Osborn Engineering
• Large Company: Hannah Dible, Senior Specialist, Early Talent / The J.M. Smucker Company

• Non-Profit: Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities
• Small Company: TRG Multimedia
• Mid-Size Company: Mars Electric
• Large Company: Oatey

• Non-Profit: Celebration of Integrity / Better Business Bureau
• Small Company: 12 Under 36: Members of the Tribe / Cleveland Jewish News
• Mid-Size Company: LAUNCH Internship Program / Corrigan Krause
• Large Company: Early Talent Program / Lincoln Electric

• Non-Profit: North Coast Community Homes
• Small Company: Ratliff
• Mid-Size Company: Arrow International Inc.
• Large Company: Union Home Mortgage

• SueAnn Naso, CEO / Staffing Solutions Enterprises