LIVONIA, Mich., Valassis, one of the nation's leading media and marketing services companies,announced today that Alan F. Schultz, Valassis Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Michigan and Northwest Ohio region. Schultz received the award on Thursday, June 9, 2011 as part of the 25th anniversary celebrations of the Entrepreneur of the Year program. Recognized globally, the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year is the world's most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs, and honors outstanding entrepreneurs who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. The program has expanded to recognize business leaders in more than 140 cities and more than 50 countries throughout the world. As the Michigan/Northwest Ohio winner in the Turnaround category, Schultz is now a candidate for the National Entrepreneur of the Year award, which will be announced at the annual Ernst & Young awards event in November 2011 in Palm Springs, California.

"It has been my privilege to serve the more than 7,000 Valassis employees who have created our unique culture that makes this award possible," said Alan F. Schultz, Valassis Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). "Like everything we do at Valassis, we are all in it together. We have created a culture that values innovation, risk-taking and provides more value to consumers than anyone in the world."

Schultz values an employee-focused, inclusive culture. Valassis won 12 culture awards in 2010, including InformationWeek 500 Top Technology Innovators, FORTUNE magazine's list of the "100 Fastest-Growing Companies" and numerous "top workplace" designations. In addition, Valassis has a culture of "giving back" to the community. Through a 26-year-partnership with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), the company has donated over $450 million in media with our "Have You Seen Me?" program featuring photos of missing children on our products. Over 43,000 leads have been generated and of the more than 2,400 children featured in our photo program, more than 1,300 have been recovered through this and other efforts.

Schultz has been Chairman, President and CEO of Valassis since 1998. Under his leadership, Valassis has nearly quadrupled revenues, significantly diversified its customer base and product portfolio and evolved into a $2 billion plus global marketing services powerhouse. Today, the company offers blended media solutions to over 15,000 advertisers in a wide-variety of industries. In 2007, Schultz led the company through a $1.2 billion acquisition and integration of ADVO, Inc., the nation's leading direct mail media company. The successful integration and significant improvements to this business have contributed greatly to the company's strong financial performance.

Schultz currently serves on the Board of Directors of DexOne, Business Leaders For Michigan, and The University of Michigan - Dearborn College of Business Board of Advisors, and previously served on the Board of Directors for The Ad Council and The American Advertising Federation. He is regarded as an industry pioneer in building convergence among the promotion and advertising industries. A native of Michigan, Schultz currently resides in Northville, Michigan with his wife, Eva; they have two sons and three grandsons.