DAVIE – Seminole Gaming CEO and Hard Rock International Chairman Jim Allen will be inducted into the Entrepreneur and Business Hall of Fame at Nova Southeastern University’s H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship in Davie. Allen is one of three business leaders who will be honored in a live virtual program Oct. 26. The other inductees are Dan Doyle Jr., CEO of DEX Imaging, Inc, and Kristin Johnson, co-founder and CEO of Hotwire Communications.

“It is my privilege to congratulate these world-class entrepreneurs and business leaders and welcome them to the Huizenga College’s Hall of Fame,” Dr. George Hanbury, NSU’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “These individuals have made significant contributions to not only their respective businesses, but their communities as well while emulating NSU’s Core Values.”

Allen has more than 40 years of experience in the gaming industry. He has guided the Seminole Tribe of Florida’s gaming, entertainment and hospitality operations since 2001 while building Seminole Gaming/Hard Rock into a global powerhouse.

Under Allen’s leadership, Hard Rock has expanded its presence from 46 to 76 countries since its 2007 acquisition by the tribe, and grown from 125 cafes to 211, nine hotels to 32 and from four casinos to 13. In 2019, Seminole Hard Rock debuted a multi-billion-dollar expansion of its Hollywood and Tampa properties, including the world’s first guitar-shaped hotel, known as The Guitar Hotel.

In 2016, Hard Rock secured the naming rights for 18 years to Hard Rock Stadium – home of the Miami Dolphins and University of Miami football. Since the venue became Hard Rock Stadium, it has hosted the Super Bowl, WrestleMania and prominent concerts, including the Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. It is home to the Miami Open tennis tournament and will host this season’s college football national championship game.

In 2016, Allen was honored with the Casino Marketing Lifetime Achievement Award.

“He’s an MVP in our industry, no doubt about it,” Casino Journal Executive Editor Charles Anderer said in 2016. “With the Hard Rock, he’s been so smart about how they have leveraged that brand and they’ve done it perfectly. He has an intrinsic understanding of branding and also customers. You’ve’ got to keep the Hard Rock entertainment brand strong but the gaming product has to be just as prestigious, and he has kept the product mix right.”

Now In its 31^st year, the Entrepreneur and Business Hall of Fame honors the lifetime achievements of outstanding business people in the South Florida community. The selection committee for the honor is comprised of current hall of fame members.

Click here to register for the live virtual program, which will include a pre-show at 6:30 p.m., induction ceremony at 7 p.m. and panel discussion with the inductees at 8 p.m.

For more information contact Kathy Eggleston at (954) 262-5179 or email specialevents@nova.edu.