Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal

Transcription

NOW
THE
2012
PRESE
NTING
~ 40 UNDER FORTY | MARCH 2012 ~
Jessica Bo
de
Gina Bren n
Michael C nan
agu
Kate Cim in
Katie Clar ino
Gary Col k
li
Scott Cumns
Mike Der mings
h
Paul Dzubeim
nar
Jonathan F
letcher
A nders Fo
lk
Wade Ge
J. Sven Gu rten
sta
Tara Harr fson
Monte Hil is
lem
Bill Hoffm an
an
LaToshia
Ja
c
k
son
Rebekah
Kent
John K
Brandon Mriesel
Jennifer M aves
e
Nicole Midlin Miller
d
Dan Mille endorf
Luis Morer
Kermit Na no
sh
Matt Norm
Julie Perr an
Bryant Pfe us
if
Sara Ratn fer
Clint Rob er
Brian Rob erts
i
Zack Rud nson
e
A my Salm rman
Todd Sen ela
sponsored by
g
Josh Stow er
Louis Sua ers
r
John Taueez
r
Michele V
ig
Brad Von
B
Lee Walla ank
ce
A2
40 Under Forty
Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal | mspbj.com
Editor’s Note
No spirit bears were harmed in the making of this publication.
see right here, or on page A6: There’s Todd Senger’s spirit
Y oubear,canhappy
as a clam — or as happy as a clam would be if it
were a grizzly.
Each year, we generally ask our 40 Under Forty honorees — a select
crew of the Twin Cities’ top young business and community leaders
— to fill out a question-and-answer survey. In past editions, we’ve
asked the typical professional-interview queries: What’s their fiveyear plan, etc. And we did this year, too, because it’s worth knowing. These people tend to hit what they’re aiming at, after all.
But in an effort to get to know our honorees a bit better, we
added some curveballs to our Q&A. Questions like, “What’s
your spirit animal?” elicited some great responses: We’ve got
plenty of bears, both grizzly (M&I Bank’s Senger) and panda
(Jennifer Melin Miller of Minnetonka Moccasin). Big cats were
also popular (J.C. Penney’s Brian Robinson picked lion, as did Gina Brennan of Corporate Car & Coach and Luis
Moreno of the Twin Cities Peer Business Network).
Tara Harris may have been the most specific, picking the indri, a large type of lemur. But she works for the
Minnesota Zoo, so she has an advantage. Kermit the Frog was actually cited twice: by Kate Cimino of the Humphrey
School of Public Affairs and by Gray Plant Mooty Partner Kermit Nash, who seemed to figure it was
preordained.
We also included a fill-in-the-bank entry, “the coolest thing I ever found was _____,” which
yielded answers ranging from the curious (a lot of honorees found really weird snakes) to the
reflective.
And we tried to break through the famous Minnesotan modesty by asking honorees to name, flat out, something they’re better at than anybody else they
know. And most did: Amy Salmela of Patterson Thuente noted her skill at
throwing theme parties, while Louis Suarez of Colliers International takes
pride in his trivia knowledge.
It makes for some great reading, and some great picture-taking, too. Our designer Derek Thomson and photographer Nancy Kuehn were able to use these
answers to help generate some great portraits of our honorees — who, to their
credit, happily went along. You’ll be able to see a behind-the-scenes video of
our 40 Under Forty photo shoot on our website at mspbj.com, along with the
full surveys and additional photos of all the winners.
To all our honorees this year, a very hearty thank you for participating, and
congratulations!
— Mark Reilly, managing editor (a crow, if you’re wondering)
March 16, 2012
333 South 7th Street, Suite 350 • Minneapolis, MN 55402
(612) 288-2100 • fax (612) 288-2121
Web: mspbj.com • Email: [email protected]
Publisher
Tammy Mencel (612) 288-2135, [email protected]
Editorial
Editor: Dirk DeYoung (612) 288-2111, [email protected]
Managing editor: Mark Reilly (612) 288-2110, [email protected]
Assistant managing editor: Kim Johnson (612) 288-2114, [email protected]
Senior reporter: Sam Black (612) 288-2103, [email protected]
Real estate, manufacturing, food industry, economic development
Staff reporters:
Katharine Grayson (612) 288-2106, [email protected]
Health care, medical technology, venture capital, tech, clean tech
Jim Hammerand (612) 288-2138, [email protected]
Banking & finance, courts, professional services
Reporter/Broadcaster: John Vomhof Jr. (612) 288-2101, [email protected]
Retail, restaurants/hospitality, sports business, advertising/P.R./media
Web producer: Ed Stych (612) 288-2107, [email protected]
Staff photographer: Nancy Kuehn (612) 288-2127, [email protected]
Research editor: Tom Smith (612) 288-2102, [email protected]
Researcher: Mary Zenzen (612) 288-2105, [email protected]
Editorial interns: Taylor Selcke (612) 288-2112, [email protected] Justin Horwath (612) 2882109, [email protected]
Design
Production director: Carole Kroening (612) 288-2145, [email protected]
Art directors: Eric Johnson and Derek Thomson
Advertising
For advertising information call: (612) 288-2134
Director of advertising: Kathy Payton (612) 288-2134, [email protected]
Account manager: Kayla Picciano (612) 288-2123, [email protected]
Account executive: Rian Heaslip (612) 288-2132, [email protected]
Administration
Business manager: Kris Andree (612) 288-2137
Accounting assistant: Jeanne Bott (612) 288-2146, [email protected]
Director of events & special projects: Jessica Dixon Disch (612) 288-2129, [email protected]
Advertising & marketing coordinator: Kaitlin Miesen (612) 288-2125, [email protected]
Audience Services
For address changes and other audience services, call: (612) 288-2100
Audience development director: Maureen Tubbs (612) 288-2139, [email protected]
Audience development manager: Lee Tyree (612) 288-2147, [email protected]
Audience development coordinator: Nada Jones (612) 288-2150, [email protected]
Audience development account executive: Wendy Blomseth (612) 288-2148, [email protected]
Audience development representative:
Sean Stevenson (612) 288-2122, [email protected]
To subscribe, call (612) 288-2100. For information about reprints, plaques or use of the Minneapolis/St.
Paul Business Journal’s material on the Web, contact Todd at Quality Resource Group at (763) 398-6417.
Or visit our website at mspbj.com and click on “Buy”, then “Reprints”.
Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal is a publication of American City Business Journals Inc.,
120 West Morehead Street, Suite 400, Charlotte, N.C. 28202, (704) 973-1000.
Whitney Shaw, President & CEO • Ray Shaw, chairman (1989 to 2009)
©2012 CityBusiness/Twin Cities Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal is a registered trademark of CityBusiness/Twin Cities Inc. No information
expressed here constitutes a solicitation for the purchase or sale of any securities.
CONGRATULATIONS
ON MAKING THE MINNEAPOLIS
ST. PAUL BUSINESS JOURNAL'S
40 UNDER FORTY!
40 Under Forty
Table of
Contents
Jessica Boden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A19
StoneArch Creative
Gina Brennan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A18
Corporate Car & Coach
Michael Caguin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A19
Colle+McVoy
Kate Cimino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A18
Humphrey School of Public Affairs,
University of Minnesota
Katie Clark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A18
Minnesota Trade Office
Dr. Gary Collins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A18
HealthPartners/Regions Hospital
Scott Cummings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A17
Accenture
Mike Derheim. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A17
The Nerdery
Paul Dzubnar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A16
Green Mill Restaurants
Jonathan Fletcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A16
Alatus
Anders Folk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A16
Leonard, Street and Deinard
Wade Gerten . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A16
8thBridge Inc.
J. Sven Gustafson . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A15
Stonewood
Tara Harris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A15
Minnesota Zoo
Monte Hilleman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A15
St. Paul Port Authority
Bill Hoffman. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A15
Best Buy Co. Inc.
LaToshia Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A14
Bremer Bank
Rebekah Kent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A14
BioBusiness Alliance of Minnesota
Jennifer Melin Miller . . . . . . . . . . .A13
Minnetonka Moccasin Co.
Nicole Middendorf. . . . . . . . . . . . .A12
Prosperwell Financial
Dan Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A12
Mulberrys Garment Care
Luis Moreno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A13
Twin Cities Business Peer Network
Kermit Nash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A9
Gray Plant Mooty
Matt Norman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A9
Dale Carnegie Training
Julie Perrus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A8
Larkin Hoffman Daly & Lindgren
Bryant Pfeiffer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A8
Major League Soccer
Sara Ratner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A8
Prime Therapeutics
Clint Roberts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A7
One Simple Plan
Brian Robinson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A7
J.C. Penney Co. Inc.
Zack Ruderman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A6
General Mills Inc.
Amy Salmela . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A6
Patterson Thuente
Todd Senger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A6
M&I Bank (part of BMO Harris)
Josh Stowers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A6
Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle
Louis Suarez . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A5
Colliers International
John Tauer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A5
University of St. Thomas
Michele Vig. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4
Caribou Coffee Co. Inc.
Brad Von Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4
Rêve Consulting
Lee Wallace. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A3
Peace Coffee
MARY M. LYDON
mary.lydon@midwest
financialsearch.com
John Kriesel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A13
Minnesota Legislature
Brandon Maves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A12
McGladrey
A3
Lee Wallace
38
CEO, Peace Coffee
Hometown: Troy, N.Y.
Family: Partner Rachel Speck,
Dixie the dog and 3 wild cats
taking the helm of Peace
S ince
Coffee, Lee Wallace has built the
“I wanted to be
an astronaut when
I grew up.”
company with an eye toward sustainable growth, for the business and the world.
Peace Coffee specializes in fair trade coffee focused
on small-scale farms and minimal environmental
impact.
Wallace’s growth strategy has struck a chord with
customers. The company now posts revenue of $5
million and double-digit growth. It doesn’t hurt
that the coffee’s pretty good, too. Peace Coffee was
named the Twin Cities’ best by City Pages in 2011,
and its first retail outlet gets kudos as a place to
both sip and learn more about coffee.
Profits from Peace Coffee are shared with the
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, the local
nonprofit that owns the company and promotes
sustainability.
— Taylor Selcke, staff writer
What’s your biggest achievement?
Getting Peace Coffee’s first retail coffee
shop open. Along with a host of volunteers
and artists from the neighborhood, we
spent countless hours creating a space that
reflects our vision, values and personality.
Once I found _____. It was the coolest thing
I ever found.
A small office building in rural Ethiopia
packed floor to ceiling with coffee
that had been stashed for safekeeping. We eventually bought
that coffee and it was amazing.
I am, hands down, one of the best
____ I know.
Magazine hoarders. It’s a wonder I can find my coffee table.
MARY &
PAUL
know
PAUL BEES
paul.bees@midwest
financialsearch.com
March 16, 2012
Banks & Bankers
Midwest Financial Search Inc. finds smart, capable candidates and
introduces them to leading commercial banks.
We specialize in banking and financial services placement.
We offer employers hands on experience in banking and recruiting.
We offer candidates access. Our recruiting professionals have long-standing relationships with decision makers in the banking community.
WE SPECIALIZE IN BANKING PROFESSIONALS
■ COMMERCIAL LENDER ■
COMMERCIAL CREDIT ANALYST
■ SENIOR LENDER/TEAM LEADER ■ CREDIT ADMINISTRATION ■ CHIEF CREDIT OFFICER
■ PRIVATE BANKER ■ BRANCH MANAGER ■ MARKET MANAGER ■ BANK PRESIDENT
2314 UNIVERSITY AVENUE, SUITE 16 • SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA 55114 • (P)651.690.4050 • www.midwestﬁnancialsearch.com
A4
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
Brad Von Bank
39
Co-founder, Rêve Consulting
Hometown: Minnetrista
Family: Wife Kristen Pardue; sons
Connor, 11 and Tyler, 8
Ideas. Owned.
north side of Minneapolis has had its share of chalT helenges
recently. Brad Von Bank, co-founder of strategy
Patterson Thuente IP is
patently
proud
and technology consultancy Rêve Consulting, is looking beyond the challenges for the opportunities.
Rêve itself is based in the heart of the north side, and includes an
out-of-school academy program to build career paths for local
students in the digital-marketing field. As a board member of the
Patchwork Quilt, Von Bank helps provide opportunities for kids to
develop their social, educational and employment skills.
Formerly a marketing director at Target Corp., Von Bank also is
graduate of the Humphrey Policy Fellow program and is a partner
at Social Venture Partners, which pursues socially oriented entrepreneurial ideas that better the community.
to congratulate our partner,
Amy Salmela,
a 40 Under Forty honoree!
— Henry Breimhurst, contributing writer
If you weren’t in the career you’re in, what would you be doing?
Coaching high school or college football/education leadership.
I know it’s a good day when …
It is filled with invigorating challenges and harmonious balance
(work, academy and family)
“ I trust her judgment and would not wish
for anything more in a patent attorney.”
Dr. M arie Johnson | aUM C arDiovasCUlar
“ I am impressed with Amy’s knowledgeable, diligent,
straightforward and practical approach.”
DoUg DUChon | Celleration, inC.
PATTERSON
THUENTE
CHRISTENSEN
“Hanging out
with my parents
is cool again”
Where can you be found online?
The intersection of business and technology has been a central theme
to my professional career and nothing has enabled more disruptive innovation than social media.
I wanted to be _____ when I grew up.
A professional athlete
PEDERSEN, P.A.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN | BROOKINGS, SD | WWW.PTSLAW.COM
Patterson_Forty Ad rev2.indd 1
Starting Rêve Consulting and
Rêve Academy at the same time
with my amazing wife and business
partner Kristin Pardue (and staying
married through it all).
3/7/12 9:32 AM
Michele Vig
38
CONGRATS
JENNIFER MELIN MILLER!
Senior director of retail marketing,
Hometown: Coon Rapids
Family: Husband Dan Mueller;
children Julia, 7, Owen, 3
a branding and strategic expert in the retail sector,
A sMichele
Vig has helped establish (and re-establish) two
of the Twin Cities’ top restaurant brands.
Vig is currently senior director of retail marketing for
Caribou Coffee Co. Inc., where she oversees marketing and
strategy for the company’s growing chain of coffee houses.
CEO Michael Tattersfield credits Vig for taking a lead role
on some of the chain’s highest-profile gambles in recent
years. Her projects included the adoption of real chocolate
in Caribou’s drinks and the company’s 2010 rebranding.
Prior to Carbiou, Vig spent four years as senior director
of marketing for Buffalo Wild
Wings Inc., as that company
“I absolutely do
was beginning an explosive
growth period that continues
not want to live
to this day. There, she manwithout yoga.”
aged the chain’s first national
sponsorship with ESPN.
— Mark Reilly, staff writer
If you weren’t in the career you’re in, where would you be?
I would own a retail shop at 50th & France.
What gets you excited about work?
I get most excited when I am working on big business challenges that need to be solved quickly.
I achieve what I believe and set out to accomplish at the
beginning of the day.
WE’RE ALL JUMPING FOR JOY THAT YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED AS A
40 UNDER FORT Y HONOREE. WE’RE PROUD OF YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS
AND APPLAUD THE WORK YOU DO FOR MINNETONK A AND THE COMMUNIT Y.
My biggest personal achievement is giving birth to two
healthy children. My biggest professional achievement was
selling in and launching Buffalo Wild Wings’ first-ever national media campaign with ESPN.
Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest and shopping.
March 16, 2012
John Tauer
Academic All-American as
A aformer
student athlete at University of St.
Thomas, John Tauer returned to the school in
a dual staff role and continues to excel.
As an associate professor of psychology, he’s
an oft-cited expert on the effects of competition and cooperation on performance, with articles of a range of psychological impacts, from
scarcity to slam dunks to snowstorms.
He’s also the head coach of the highly successful men’s basketball team, which won 30
A5
working toward something greater than ourselves. In our individualistic culture, it’s rare to
get a chance to chase superordinate goals on a
daily basis.
39
Head men’s basketball coach/associate professor of
psychology, University of St. Thomas; president, Johnny
Tauer’s Championship Basketball Camps
Hometown: St. Paul
Family: Sons Jack, 9, and Adam, 6
40 Under Forty
What’s the best compliment you’ve received?
One came from parents of players last year
after we won the national championship
who said their sons’ growth and development were far more important than a national
championship.
“I wanted to
be a professional
basketball player
when I grew up.”
consecutive games
in 2008-09 and
last year won the
Division III National
Championship.
Tauer has used his
on-court and offcourt skills to help develop players in his own
basketball camp, which he’s run for 17 years.
Louis Suarez
36
Member, National Steering Committee, Colliers International Healthcare Services Group
Hometown: Appleton, Wis.; St. Paul
Family: Engaged to Erin Sunder
F
rom the restaurant scene in Rochester to a vacant bookstore in St. Paul to earthquake-ravaged soccer fields in Haiti,
Louis Suarez has transformed the world around him, and left
it better than before.
Suarez is a member of the National Steering Committee
for Colliers International Healthcare Services Group, but
he’s had plenty of local impact, as well.
His metro-area projects include
the purchase and conversion of
a former Borders Books store on
University Avenue into a future
home for a HealthEast clinic, and a
new Veterans Administration clinic
to be built in Maplewood.
Suarez got his start in business in the
late 1990s, when he helped friends launch
Victoria’s Restaurant. He’s still a part-owner of
Victoria’s Ristorante & Wine Bar, which has grown
into a local fixture.
Outside of work,
Suarez is involved
in the nonprofit
“Kids in Haiti need
Serving Our Troops
indestructable
and has traveled on
earthquake-relief
soccer balls”
missions to Haiti.
There, after watching children play
soccer on streets filled with broken glass, he arranged to procure “indestructible” soccer balls that won’t pop. He’s now
working to develop similar soccer deliveries to other thirdworld countries.
He’s also a board member for the St. Paul Area Chamber of
Commerce political action committee and a past member of its
economic development committee.
If you weren’t in the career you’re
in, what would you be doing?
My aptitude tests always told
me to go into finance or actuarial
science.
That every day we have the opportunity to
make a positive impact on people’s lives while
I go to sleep and the day has gone by so
quickly I am amazed 18 hours just went by, my
sons Jack and Adam are sound asleep, and the
house is quiet for a few minutes to reflect on all
of our blessings.
I wanted to be ______ when I grew up.
A professional basketball player
Pick one: Morning/noon/night:
Night
You deserve a team that will bring you brilliant
ideas coupled with strength, capacity, and a
high level of ser vice. Oppor tunities abound.
We will help you make them happen.
Nick RichaRdsoN
and dave PeteRsoN
are members of
Minnesota Bank
& trust’s expert
commercial
banking team.
I would be working for the State Department in a foreign embassy.
There is something very special about seeing an idea that I
envisioned being executed from the ground up.
I get a chance to discuss the problems of the world with my father.
Plan to grow
:: A TEAM FOR TODAY
Helping my incredible partners Sid and Natalie Victoria get a new restaurant up and running. It
was an absolutely crazy and stressful time in my life, but I loved every second of it.
Once I found _________. It was the coolest thing I ever found.
This abandoned mining camp and hidden lake up near the summit of a mountain ridge while
hiking in the Rocky Mountains with my brother
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received?
Javahre, my little brother from Big Brothers Big Sisters, and I were playing basketball at the park.
After he completely schooled me on the court, we sat and talked about his future plans. He told
me, “Louis, I want to go to college and work in business, just like you.”
My spirit animal is …
A bull. Much like a bull, I can be strong-willed and stubborn; but, when I face a challenge, I will
not quit until the job is complete.
7701 France Ave. S. : : Suite 110
Edina : : 952 - 841 - 9300
www.mnbankandtrust.com
MEMBER FDIC
EQUAL HOUSING LENDER
A6
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
Josh Stowers Todd Senger
34
35
Managing director of commercial banking, M&I Bank (part of BMO Harris)
Hometown: Aberdeen, S.D.
Family: Wife Laura; daughters Olivia, 3, and Gwyneth, 6 months
Principal, Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle
Hometown: Minnetonka
Family: Wife Carrie, daughter Sadie, 4;
son Charlie, 2; Jake the Border Collie
Senger joined M&I Bank eight years ago with a slim-toT odd
none portfolio, and orders to grow it.
youngest principal at the award-winning
T hearchitecture
and interior design firm of Meyer,
Mission accomplished: Senger has steadily built his roster of
commercial clients into one of the largest and most profitable portfolios at the bank. Recently promoted to managing director, he supervises commercial lenders and manages more than $1 billion in
assets.
He’s had similar success in developing relationships within
the company. Last year, he was charged with rebuilding a
team that had suffered turnover
problems. Officials at M&I credit
“My spirit
him with working with younger
bankers to develop their skills and
animal is
a recruitment effort that
the bear.” launching
filled the team within months.
Outside of the office, Senger is a
volunteer for Catholic Charities and has been a board
member for Walker Methodist Health Center.
Scherer & Rockcastle, Josh Stowers also is spearheading one of the highest-profile renovations in the Twin
Cities: the makeover of 3M Co.’s headquarters.
The project, which involves a new entrance for
3M’s executive building and a great hall and collaboration spaces for employees, is the company’s most ambitious renovation since the campus was created in 1955.
But Stowers has a history of success with major corporate redesigns. His work renovating a
100-year-old Philadelphia shipyard into Urban
Outfitters’ new headquarters earned Stowers
and his MS&R team a 2009 American Institute
of Architects (AIA) Honor Award.
If you weren’t in the career you’re in, what
would you be doing?
I would own a hardware store and a bait
shop. You need both because you cannot
make it with one business living in northern
Wisconsin.
I would definitely go into sports
broadcasting, but I guess there
can only be one Kirk Herbstreit.
The opportunity to improve the way
people do their work through architecture.
“I wanted
to be a ski
bum when
I grew up.”
What gets you excited about
work?
I enjoy the pursuit and
the excitement of finding a
“new deal” for the bank.
I can go home and relax with the family.
Someone once told
me that I have a sense of
purpose for my life.
Once I found _______. It was the coolest
thing I ever found.
A mid-century modern house, I have
been restoring it to its original glory for
the past five years.
I absolutely do not
want to live without …
Us Weekly
Amy Salmela Zack Ruderman
34
Partner,
Patterson Thuente Christensen Pedersen
Hometown: St. Paul
Family: A cat with her own European passport
I
n the male-dominated field of intellectual property law, Amy Salmela climbed to the top early
in her career as the youngest woman ever to be
named partner at her firm. She’s represented clients
on both sides of the Atlantic and for the past year
has worked to launch the LegalCORPS Inventor
Assistance Program — a first-of-its-kind effort that will
offer pro bono legal assistance to inventors.
Salmela’s now serving as procedures committee chair
on a national task force working to build similar patent
pro bono programs across the country.
In addition, Salmela volunteers for Cornerstone — a nonprofit working to prevent domestic abuse — and is an active
member of Minnesota Women Lawyers and vice chair of the
American Bar Association
Section Pro Bono
“Cats can have Property
Committee.
passports too.”
—Taylor Selcke | staff writer
Travel writer.
39
Director, Box Tops for Education, General Mills Inc.
Hometown: Southfield, Mich.
Family: Wife Marcia; daughter Gabi; son Max
three degrees from Michican State University and one from
W ith
Harvard University, it’s clear that Zack Ruderman places a high
emphasis on education. That passion for learning and desire to succeed
has carried over to his job at General Mills Inc., where he is director of
Box Tops for Education.
In Ruderman’s first year with the program, contributions grew by
$10 million — a 22 percent increase, which will impact millions of
students in 75,000 schools across the country. Enrollment has grown
by 5,400 schools, many from diverse and lower-income areas.
“I know it’s a
Ruderman also created eBoxgood day when Tops to further advance the program with a ‘virtual currency’.
I laugh a lot”
The Box Tops program is just
Ruderman’s latest success at
General Mills. Previously, he was responsible for successful product launches for chocolate chip struesel muffins and a redeveloped corn muffin line that successfully took on a stronger rival.
Paying my own way through college and earning three separate
bachelor’s degrees, in four years, with high honors
I have the privilege of learning about new inventions every day from
the people most excited and passionate about them: the inventors.
Once I found a ____. It was the coolest thing I ever found.
Rainbow colored caterpillar in my yard (which I later identified as a
cecropia moth caterpillar)
I know it’s a good day when _________
My inbox is full first thing in the morning with e-mail from my clients
in Europe.
Name something you thought was cool, then thought was lame and
now think is cool again.
Being almost 40
I absolutely do not want to live without ___________.
My passport.
I am, hands down, one of the best _____________ that I know.
Theme-party-thrower. Last year’s highlight was my royal wedding
party; this year I’ll have to do something for the London Olympics.
LinkedIn
An inventor
Recently I crossed ______ off my bucket list.
Speaking Spanish at the Panama Canal
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
A7
Brian Robinson
t’s hard to imagine innovating within
a concept and brand as successful as
Target, but Brian Robinson did just that. As
director of Design Partnerships, Robinson
managed the retailer’s team-ups with fashion
designers and boutiques around the country.
He’ll now take on a similar role at J.C. Penney,
where he was recently named vice president
for collaborations.
At Target, Robinson had a hand in several
high-profile design partnerships, including
last year’s offering of limited-edition Missoni
goods and the new Shops at Target concept.
That newly announced effort brings exclusive
goods from boutiques to the mass market
through special “store within a store” displays.
Outside the office, Robinson volunteers
with organizations including Open Arms
Minnesota and The Aliveness Project.
would you be doing?
Broadway
sa
’
I
“It
Vice president, collaborations, J.C. Penney Co. Inc.
Hometown: Shreveport, La.
Family: Partner Adam Larson
It’s always a good day.
The man I have become as a result of my
family, friends and co-workers.
You’ll never quite know the impact you’ve
had.
Name something you thought was cool, then
thought was lame and now think is cool again.
Tears for Fears
Recently
I
crossed ________
off my bucket list
Hang gliding
lwa
y
ay
.”
37
d
d
o
o
sag
Book/e-reader/TV:
TV, really bad TV
Morning/noon/night:
Morning bird: chirp, chirp, chirp
Talk/Text:
See Morning Bird: talk, talk, talk
I absolutely do not want to live without …
Pencils and Post-it notes
I wanted to be _______ when I grew up
A politician
I am, hands down, one of the best
_____________ that I know
Drivers, at least in my mind.
Nothing is more important than experience and financial
wisdom when you are making strategic business decisions.
But, you don’t want to miss new technologies and ideas that can
Lion, ROAR
help you grow your business. Mike Collins, Senior Lending Officer,
Clint Roberts
33
Founder and president, One Simple Plan
Hometown: Walcott, Iowa
Family: Wife Lisa; daughter Mae, 10 weeks
& Gary Ingle, Assistant Vice President, work together at our
Minneapolis office to help you maximize your resources and take
advantage of new opportunities for your business.
a stint in the music industry — during which time he
A fter
managed musicians such as Soul Asylum and Tim Mahoney
— Clint Roberts launched marketing firm One Simple Plan out of
his home in 2007.
Each year since, the firm has seen double-digit growth, and
Roberts notched a major public policy win last year when he took
on the established liquor industry as part of a legislative campaign
by client Surly Brewing Co. The resulting “Surly Bill” helped
change the game for Minnesota craft breweries.
He also serves on committees for the Lymphoma
Research Foundation and Faith Lodge, a retreat for
parents and families facing the serious illness or
death of a child. Additionally, Roberts used his connections in the music industry to help build Music
in Mears, a free summer concert series in
downtown St. Paul.
—Taylor Selcke, staff writer
“I am, hands
down, one of
the best ping
pong players
that I know.”
If you weren’t in the
career you’re in, what
would you be doing?
Something
in
politics, or perhaps
something in the
music
business.
They are alike in
many ways, only
one lacks harmony.
That my day’s list of
to-dos needs to be written in
pencil, because it’s all over the place.
My daughter smiles at me before I leave for work, and
my wife smiles at me when I arrive home from work.
That I’d be the most successful of my three siblings,
although I think my mom told all of us the same thing.
I just realized that like five years ago.
Financial Wisdom
Cutting Edge Insight
MIKE COLLINS
Senior Lending Officer / Minneapolis
GARY INGLE
Assistant Vice President
Visit any of our offices to put our combination of seasoned
senior executives and smart young leaders to work for you.
Minnesota craft beer
77 Broadway Street NE
Minneapolis • 612- 379 - 8811
I wanted to be _____ when I grew up
A band manager
3989 Central Avenue NE
Columbia Heights • 763- 788 - 9351
200 Coon Rapids Boulevard
Coon Rapids • 763 -784 - 3533
MEMBER FDIC
EQUAL HOUSING LENDER
www.northeastbank-mn.com
A8
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
Sara Ratner
36
Chief compliance officer, Prime Therapeutics
Hometown: Edina
Family: Daughter Ellison, 6
Ratner has been at the forefront
S ara
of health care innovation for years,
from a health specialist at Leonard, Street
and Deinard, to an executive at benefits administrator Fiserv to the first general counsel for retail health pioneer MinuteClinic.
She’s now chief compliance officer at Prime
Therapeutics, a pharmacy benefits manager,
overseeing ethics and compliance across the
company and its 66,000 pharmacy partners.
Ratner also penned a book about risk management for retail clinics and was appointed to the
National Governors’ Association Health Care
Practice Task Force. She participates as a member of the Minnesota State Bar Association’s
Health Law Section Governing Council.
As a teenager, she founded Sojourn Shelter,
an organization that provides refuge to abused
women and children. She’s now on the board of
directors for the YMCA, SuperSibs, Minnesota
Children’s Museum and NeoPath Health.
Name something you
thought was cool, then
thought was lame and now
think is cool again.
My parents
“I wanted to be
Pat Benatar when
I grew up.”
I absolutely do not want to live
without …
My family and friends. There
is nothing else that is more
important.
If you weren’t in the career you’re in,
what would you be doing?
I’d be a competitive triathlete, while
intermittently participating in Peace
Corp volunteer weeks.
I wanted to be _______
when I grew up.
A rock star (specifically Pat
Benatar)
I love working in the health care industry. It is complex, but ultimately fulfilling.
My spirit animal is
__________.
Definitely the honey
badger!
It has great resilience
and fighting ability,
strength and speed, and
is a pretty good strategic
thinker — at least for
an animal.
I can effectively be a good mother, colleague, daughter and friend.
This is still pending since I don’t think I’ve
had a “biggest achievement” yet. Competing
in Ironmans has been a challenging feat for
me though.
“You’re the best mommy ever.”
Pick one: Morning/noon/night:
All
Bryant Pfeiffer
39
Vice president, club services, Major League Soccer
Hometown: Woodbury
Family: Wife Julie; children Lizzy, 8, Bryce and Lindsay, 6
starting his career as an intern with
S ince
the Minnesota Timberwolves (he was
promoted within a week) Bryant Pfeiffer has
steadily posted off-the-court achievements in
pro sports.
He’s now vice president of club services for
Major League Soccer, where he runs a team
that counsels Major League Soccer clubs on
building business and sales acumen.
Since Pfeiffer got involved, Major League
Soccer sales have increased by 7.2 percent and
his techniques have been adopted as industrywide best practices.
In the community, Pfeiffer sits on the board
of the Sanneh Foundation, which uses sports
to help build leadership and opportunity for
disadvantaged youth. He’s also heavily involved in Edina Youth Basketball and soccer
associations as a coach.
—
Taylor Selcke, staff writer
If you weren’t in your career,
I would love to be involved in
a startup. Also, there was a time
when I played very competitive
racquetball, and it would have
been interesting to see if that
could
have ever led to a professional career.
I love to compete in everything I do — both
with colleagues and personally — and this industry satisfies that need.
Once I found _________.
Three Michael Jordan rookie cards in a box
of basketball cards I purchased for $15. Today
the cards are worth approximately $1,200 each.
The Timberwolves roster. Being a former
“I once found
three Michael
Jordan rookie
cards.”
employee and
big fan during
the KG era, the
last couple of years
were difficult. How
can you not like Ricky
Rubio and Kevin Love?
The best compliment you’ve received?
As a kid: “Your sense
of humor is just like
your dad’s.”
As an adult: “Dad,
you’re weird!”
I absolutely do not
want to live without
___________.
Optimism
Julie Perrus
36
Attorney, Larkin Hoffman Daly & Lindgren
Hometown: Rockford, Ill.
in and out of the office, Julie Perrus
B oth
is a specialist in the fields where busi-
ness and government intersect.
At law firm Larkin Hoffman Daly &
Lindgren, Perrus is a regulatory and government affairs attorney and has written extensively on green-building design
and environmental review. One of only
a handful of Minnesota attorneys with
Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design certification, she’s been repeatedly
honored by the local LEED chapter for
“I absolutely
service.
In the community,
do not want to
Perrus serves on the
live without
zoning committee of
the St. Paul Planning
books.”
Commission and was
elected to the board of
directors of the Minnesota Land Trust in 2010.
Perrus also has been general counsel and
policy director for the National Association to
Prevent Sexual Abuse of Children.
would you be doing?
Teaching outdoor education, which is what I
did (and loved) before politics
I get to hike, bike, snowshoe, camp, canoe or
kayak.
Self-acceptance
Once I found_______.
An Eastern Hognose snake while out on a
hike. No, I didn’t take it home with me.
My spirit animal is…
Could be a bear, mountain lion or butterfly,
which has really made me question the legitimacy of online quizzes.
A lawyer
What is your favorite song?
Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here”
March 16, 2012
40 Under Forty
Matt
Norman
A9
Congratulations
LaToshia Jackson
35
President, Dale Carnegie Training
Hometown: Eden Prairie
Family: Wife, Kari; twin 4-year-old
boys
age 35, Matt Norman is one of the
A tyoungest
and top-performing franchise
presidents at Dale Carnegie Training, where
he leads the North Central U.S. division of the
executive coaching and training firm.
His family has worked with Dale Carnegie
through three generations and 42
years, though Norman himself
started his career as a consultant for Accenture, a
product manager at
CCBN.com
and
a director at
Thomson
“Recently I crossed
Reuters before stepping
canoeing in the
into a leadership
Boundary Waters
role in the family
business.
Canoe Area with my
He also serves on the
kids off my bucket list.”
board for Volunteers of
America and is a former member of the
Rotary Club of Minneapolis.
Nearly 70 years ago, Bremer Bank’s Founder, Otto Bremer,
created a company built on the belief that “To serve our
clients, we must also serve the community.”
LaToshia Jackson has spent her career meeting the needs of both her
clients and community.
Thanks to the efforts of employees like LaToshia, Bremer is a $8 billion
financial services company, sharing its profits with its primary owner,
the Otto Bremer Foundation. Leveraging the dividends from the bank,
last year the Foundation gave nearly $30 million in grants to meet the
needs of our communities.
Without the passion and dedication of employees like LaToshia,
these community investments would not be possible. Congratulations
LaToshia on your well deserved honor.
LaToshia Jackson
Market Manager
I accomplish what is urgent, invest in what is important and make it home on time for dinner.
Marrying up.
Name something you thought was cool, then thought was lame and now think is cool again.
Our minivan.
I am, hands down, one of the best _____ that I know
Minnesota craft beer fans
Minnetonka • 952-474-3281
1-800-908-BANK (2265)
Bremer.com
Member FDIC
CongratsJackson.indd 1
2/29/12 10:19 AM
Kermit Nash
38
Partner, Gray Plant Mooty
Hometown: A farm somewhere between
Galchutt and Colfax, N.D.
Family: Wife Angie, four
(extremely active) children,
ages 8, 6, 4, & 2.
a specialist in entrepreneurial
A slegal
issues, Kermit Nash has become
a go-to guy for companies just getting off the
ground.
A principal at Gray Plant
Mooty, Nash has counseled
“I am, hands down,
clients on multimillion-dollar
one of the best
fundraising efforts, mergers
and partnerships. His backWiffleball players
ground includes advising the
that I know.”
formation of venture capital
funds worth more than $150
million and a $10 million financing round for a health-care software
company.
He’s also an adjunct professor at Northwestern College and has
become an expert in linking Scandinavian companies to the U.S.
Nash serves on the board of directors and advisory boards for
organizations such as the Institute for Biblical Archaeology, North
Dakota State College of Science Nanotechnology and the NorwegianAmerican Chamber of Commerce.
A slight detour years ago took me into law as opposed to banking.
I’ve always wondered …
CONGRATULATIONS
W. Anders Folk
Your 40 Under Forty recognition comes as no surprise
to your clients and colleagues. You set lofty standards
for work quality and client service. Just as important,
you’re a great guy to have around. We look forward to
many more achievements in the years to come.
Interaction with clients. It’s why we’re in the service industry, and I
love it.
I wanted to be ______ when I grew up
An archaeologist
You’re probably expecting me to say “a frog…”
A Professional Association
Law Offices in Minneapolis, Mankato, St. Cloud, Bismarck, Washington, D.C .
www.leonard.com
A10
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
PRESENTING THE 2012 40
Congratulations to all of this year’s honorees!
You can find their profiles throughout this issue, with more information online at mspbj.com.
Kate Cimino
Matt Norman
Humphrey School of Public Affairs,
Dale Carnegie Training
Tw
Michael Caguin
Paul Dzubnar
Major League Soccer
One Simple Plan
Gina Brennan
Amy Salme
Wade Gerten
Corporate Car & Coach
Patterson Thuent
8thBridge Inc.
Zack Ruderman
Katie Clark
Anders Folk
General Mills Inc.
LaToshia Jackson
J.C. Penney Co. Inc.
Bremer Bank
Nicole Middendorf
Kermit Nash
Gray Plant Mooty
Unable to attend the photo shoot…
John Kriesel
Minnesota Legislature
J. Sven Gustafson
Stonewood
M&I,
Scott Cummings
Accenture
Michele Vig
Prosperwell Financial
Bill Hoffman
Best Buy Co. Inc.
To
Minnesota Trade Office
Leonard, Street and
Deinard
Brian Robinson
Mike Derheim
The Nerdery
Colle+McVoy
Bryant Pfeiffer
Clint Roberts
Green Mill Restaurants
John Tauer
University of St. Thomas
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
A11
UNDER FORTY...
Jennifer Melin Miller
Josh Stowers
Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle
Sara
Ratner
Luis Moreno
Jonathan Fletcher
win Cities Business Peer Network
Prime
Therapeutics
Alatus
Brad Von Bank
Rêve Consulting
ela
Brandon Maves
te
McGladrey
Jessica
Boden
StoneArch
Creative
Louis
Suarez
Dr. Gary
Collins
HealthPartners
Colliers
International
Lee Wallace
Peace Coffee
Dan
Miller
Mulberrys
Garment Care
Julie
Perrus
Larkin Hoffman Daly
& Lindgren
odd Senger
Monte Hilleman
a part of BMO Harris
St. Paul Port Authority
Rebekah Kent
Tara Harris
Minnesota Zoo
A12
40 Under Forty
Dan
Miller
36
Partner, McGladrey
Hometown: Iowa City is my adopted hometown. I was born on a
U.S. Army base in Stuttgart, Germany.
Family: Wife Sara, children Molly, 8, Jack, 6, Henry 2
audit partner at McGladrey, Brandon
A nMaves
specializes in construction, real
estate and public policy issues, with a client
list that includes some of the biggest names in
the metro.
Maves, the growth leader for a team that
works with Ryan Cos. US Inc. and Mall of
America, among others, has helped steer the
firm through one of the roughest periods the
industry has ever seen. He also is a board member of the McGladrey Construction Real Estate
Alliance, a network of McGladrey professionals
who share industry-related knowledge.
Outside McGladrey, Maves chaired the
Associated General Contractors of Minnesota’s
political action committee and serves on the
board of the Building Jobs Coalition, an industry-focused public policy group.
Maves, an accomplished Eagle Scout, also
serves as a board member of the Northern Star
Boy Scout Council. He’s currently the chairman
of a steering committee instrumental in acquiring the old cavalry building at Fort Snelling
and converting it into an urban base camp.
The 1906-era building opened in October, and
it’s now home to rock-climbing walls, camping facilities and shuttles that serve the scouts,
companies for retreats and the general public.
— Justin Horwath, staff writer
would you be doing?
Politics. While politicians get a bad rap
(sometimes they earn it), most I know are trying to solve really big issues and help people.
I know it’s a good
day when …
I’m greeted at
home with big smiles
and lots of hugs. I
have very few bad
days.
“I loved Star Wars
as a kid and I’m
re-finding my
love through
my son Jack.”
Once I found_____.
It was the coolest
thing I ever found
A two-headed snake while hiking at
Philmont Boy Scout Ranch in New Mexico
I was once told I was a good husband and
father. I’ll let my wife and kids let you know if
it is true, but in my opinion this is the BEST
compliment any man can get.
Star Wars. I loved it as a kid and I’m re-finding my love through my son Jack.
I absolutely do not want to live without my
…
Smartphone. It broke once and my wife
swears I got the shakes. She might be right.
A race car driver
I am, hands down, one of the
best _____ that I know.
Bonfire makers. It helps to be an
Eagle Scout.
Where can you be found
online?
LinkedIn, but I rarely
use it. I find social networking intriguing, but prefer to
talk and meet with people.
Nicole Middendorf
36
CEO and financial adviser, Prosperwell Financial
Hometown: Minnetonka
Family: Son Parker, 3; daughter Gabrielle, 2
a career studded with honT hroughout
ors and awards, Nicole Middendorf has
steadily built a reputation as a go-to expert on
personal finance.
A former financial adviser at Morgan
Stanley, she launched Prosperwell Financial,
a Plymouth-based firm that serves individual
investors and companies. Middendorf also appears on WCCO-TV, hosts a weekly radio show
and authored Simple Answers: Life is More
than Just about Money, a question-and-answer
book that explains key finance issues.
Middendorf, a financial consultant and
certified divorce analyst, has made it her goal
to educate and empower women on money.
To that end, she’s developed a curriculum,
“Woman, Money, and Happiness,” a free workshop she hosts designed to educate women
about investment. And she has been recognized for her work by the National Association
of Women Business Owners, the Eden Prairie
Chamber of Commerce and the Minneapolis/
St. Paul Business Journal, which named her a
“Woman to Watch” in 2003.
She also serves on the board of BestPrep, a
nonprofit that helps kids with financial literacy.
would you be doing?
I can’t imagine doing anything else, except
adding a national TV or radio show.
March 16, 2012
Helping my clients get kids
to college, sell a business, get
divorced, deal with death of a
family member or job loss or
start a business
driving a race car
My kids
“King of Anything” by Sara Berielles
Recently I crossed _____ off my bucket list
Driving a race car
I wanted to be _____when I grew up
A teacher
Book/e-reader/TV:
Book
Once I found ________
A piece of the Berlin Wall.
Morning/noon/night:
Morning
founded Mulberrys Garment
D anCareMiller
with the dream of turning his
startup into the Starbucks of toxin-free dry
cleaning. Since its inception two years ago, the
company has grown quickly — it expected annual run rates of $3 million by the end of 2011
— while maintaining profitability.
Miller’s business focuses on a luxury and environmentally conscious dry cleaning, using
pressurized carbon dioxide rather than traditional dry-cleaning chemicals.
The idea has plainly caught on: Mulberrys
has increased its reach through new store
openings in Minneapolis and Edina, and currently has five locations and employs about
50 people. This year, Miller will seek to raise
equity financing with plans to launch his
company in Chicago. After that, he’s planning a national expansion of Mulberrys.
Miller also is a founding board member of The LEAD Project, which connects young professionals with nonprofit volunteer opportunities, and
also donates clothing and money to
the community through Mulberrys.
—Taylor Selcke | Staff Writer
If you weren’t in the career you’re in,
I’d love to start a venture
capital firm and invest in other
startups.
What gets you excited
about work?
I love the feeling of
having a vision and
then watching it come
to life.
Once I found
______.
A Tweety Bird pez
dispenser
I get a thank you note from someone
that I helped
Anything from the ’80s
CEO, Mulberrys Garment Care
Hometown: Minneapolis
What’s your biggest
achievement?
Creating over 50
jobs in the last 3 years.
Helping people feel more confident
and in control of their money
off my
What’s the best compliment
you’ve ever received?
A client asked if she could leap across my
desk and give me a hug for I had changed her
life.
32
bucket list.”
What’s your
five-year plan?
Have a national TV show
about money,
publish another book about
kids and money, be the top
female financial
adviser with my
broker dealer,
LPL Financial,
be an amazing
mom, friend,
daughter, financial adviser and
business owner.
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever
received?
Any compliment is
a great compliment.
Name something
you thought was cool,
then thought was lame
and now think is cool
again.
Member’s Only jackets.
I
absolutely do not
want to live
without …
Diet Coke
I wanted
to be _____
when I grew
up
A politician
“The coolest thing
I ever found was
a Tweety Bird pez
dispenser.”
I am, hands down, one of the best _____ that
I know
Seinfeld trivia guys
Avici-Levels. But it changes weekly.
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
A13
Luis Moreno
39
Co-Founder and Managing Director, Twin Cities Business Peer Network
Hometown: Cumaná, Venezuela
Family: Wife Yrma; sons Christian, 13, and Dylan, 8
marketing specialist and tireless netA worker,
Luis Moreno has led efforts to
connect business people wherever he’s been.
After starting his career as a consumer-products marketer in Venezuela, Moreno moved to
the United States in 1999 to pursue his MBA
at the Carlson School of Management. There,
was elected to the school’s Globe student organization for international business.
Subsequent corporate roles took him to
Ecolab Inc., where he was a product manager
for the company’s on-premise institutional
laundry business and launched EcoMondo, a
still-active organization for employees with international interests, and General Mills, where
he led new product development for Pillsbury
cookies and was also the chair of communications for the company’s Hispanic Network.
More recently, he worked as a marketing
manager for Land O’Lakes global dairy foods
ingredients unit.
He’s also the co-founder of the 850-member
Twin Cities Business Peer Network, an organization that helps students and professionals
learn about study choices and career opportunities, and is an active volunteer and adviser
with The BrandLab.
would you be doing?
I would like to be in government and politics. I’d like to be the first Latino mayor of
Minneapolis or St. Paul.
I know it’s
“Books can be like
a good day
an addiction.”
when …
Sales are
up and people are learning, growing, and having fun.
I once led a global multi-business launch,
by driving a project that included five business
segments in three countries. It went very well
and resulted in a division award for commitment to excellence, project leadership, and
cross-boundaries collaboration.
Once I found ______
A little pink ring I bought for my wife
I always loved to read books and used to
read one after the other. Then I stopped for a
while and I am back at it again.
My family. My wife and our two sons are the
most important thing in my life!
A doctor
I know.
Relationship builders
39
Director of international development,
Family: Husband David; step-children Jori, 27;
Maddy, 25; and Seth, 22; and Havanese dog Rocco
J
ennifer Melin Miller made the transition
from media to moccasins with apparent
ease. After a 12-year marketing career working
for various publishers in New York — such as
The New York Times, Time Inc. and News Corp.
— the Minnesota native returned to St. Paul
for a stint at Minnesota Public Radio. Before
long, though, she was director of international
development for Minnetonka Moccasin Co. In
the two years she has managed international
business for the footwear company, Miller
increased revenue for its international territory by 80 percent in 2010 and by 15 percent
in 2011.
She also lined up a partner in China that
has opened four Minnetonka Moccasin stores
in Beijing and Chongqing, with plans to open
dozens more in the next year countrywide.
There also will be new Minnetonka Moccasinbranded retail stores in Japan.
In the meantime, Miller is pursuing a master’s degree in public affairs at the University
of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public
Affairs, along with serving on the boards of the
Temple Israel Foundation, Graywolf Press and
the Cowles Center for Dance & the Performing
Arts.
would you be doing?
I would love to be a teacher.
I love learning about new international markets and each country’s unique culture, style
and shopping habits.
John
Kriesel
I have managed to get through all of the new
e-mails in my inbox.
What’s
your
biggest
achievement?
I have completed 12 marathons, and hope to do another one this year!
“I absolutely do
not want to live
without coffee.”
Being told that my work
helped to make my business partners more
successful
I absolutely do not want to live without
Coffee, The New York Times and my dog
Rocco
I wanted to be a ______ when I grew up.
Newscaster
I am, hands down, one of the best ______ that
I know.
List makers. I love organizing and making
lists.
Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” — it fires me
up!
The giant panda
Book/e-reader/TV: E-reader
Morning/noon/night: Morning
Talk/Text: Text
“I am the one of the
best Big Buck Hunter
game sharpshooters
that I know.”
30
State representative, Minnesota
House of Representatives
Hometown: Cottage Grove
Family: Wife Katie, sons Elijah and
Brody
I
n a political climate where partisans
increasingly move in herds, Rep. John
Kriesel (R-Cottage Grove) stands out as the
rare legislator willing to go against his own
party. As the Star Tribune’s Jon Tevlin wrote in
a profile last year, “Kriesel may be the only representative in the Minnesota Legislature who
believes two men should be able to marry each
other AND shoot someone who trespasses on
their property.”
Kriesel’s impassioned speech against a proposed constitutional amendment barring
gay marriage, holding up the image of a gay
Minnesota soldier killed in Afghanistan as he
spoke, earned him plenty of criticism from
conservative circles — but it also earned him
the 2011 Person of the Year award by Lavender
Magazine.
He’s also broken with other Republicans
on budgetary and gaming issues. He introduced a bill last year to create a casino in
Minneapolis’ Block E.
A former Army National Guard staff sergeant, Kriesel lost both legs to a land mine
in Iraq, and was awarded the Purple Heart.
He continues to work as a private marketing
and advertising contractor to the Minnesota
National Guard.
I feel like I’m able to help make Minnesota a
better place for future generations.
Overcoming my injuries and finding a new
path in life that allows me to give back to my
community
President George W. Bush called me a hero
when he pinned me with my Purple Heart
Medal. I don’t think I’m a hero, but anytime the
president of the United States compliments
you, it is pretty cool.
Nintendo
Watching NFL football
A soldier
A14
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
Rebekah Kent
32
Vice president, medical technology cluster,
Hometown: Brainerd
Family: Husband Ben; son Samuel, 13 months
I
n the world of biosciences, growth is
the name of the game. And because of
Rebekah Kent, more life-sciences startups
have the tools and funding they’ll need to
grow up.
Kent is an executive at the nonprofit
BioBusiness Alliance of Minnesota, which
helps life-sciences firms flourish, adding 2,700
jobs to Minnesota in three years. She also helped
launch the Minnesota Angel
Network, which gives these
“I love to cook startups financial support.
When she isn’t helping busiand bake.”
nesses, Kent is teaching people.
From grade schools to grad
schools, she educates on the topics of bioscience and the
businesses behind it.
If you weren’t in your career, what would you be doing?
I love to cook and bake, and have always wanted to
go to culinary school. I don’t particularly want to own a
restaurant, I just want to know the techniques.
My “to do” list is shorter at the end of the day than at
the beginning.
Once I found _____
My husband, in London. Months after meeting him
I married him!
A cat. They are independent yet caring,
and they have their priorities straight!
LaToshia Jackson
33
Congratulations Monte!
Your age belies your
accomplishments
Minneapolis/St. Paul
Business Journal’s
2012
“40 Under Forty Winner”
Assistant vice president and market manager,
Bremer Bank
I
f your idea of a banker is someone who sits behind a desk,
LaToshia Jackson, assistant vice president and market
manager for Bremer Bank, is here to prove you wrong.
She’s been on the move since starting in the industry as a
teller in 1995. She joined Bremer as a personal banker in
2003 and now manages its Minnetonka branch, with $38
million in deposits.
Her branch’s growth — 125 percent of goal in 2010
— is matched by the growth of her projects outside
of work. Last year, she co-founded the West Metro
Women’s Networking Group, which has expanded
from 40 participants to more than 180 per event.
Jackson also finds ways to engage and improve her community, from her branch’s annual document shredding day to
working with Stork’s Nest, motivating low-income women to
get early, regular prenatal care.
If you weren’t in your career, what would you be doing?
I’d run a nonprofit focused on empowering women.
The sun is shinning!
“Super Mario
Brothers is
cool again.”
Name something you
thought was cool, then
thought was lame and
now think is cool again.
Super Mario Brothers
Book/e-reader/TV:
E-reader
The Saint Paul Port Authority
Creates quality job opportunities
Expands the tax base and
Advances sustainable development
Contact us at 651-224-5686 or by Email at [email protected]
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
A15
Monte Hilleman
Bill
Hoffman
38
“I wanted to
be a spy when
I grew up.”
Senior vice president,
consumer insights and strategy,
Best Buy Co. Inc.
Hometown: Harrisburg, S.D.
Family: Wife Gina; children Haley,
7, Jonah, 4, and Luke, 3
39
Vice president of redevelopment, St. Paul Port Authority
Hometown: Eden Prairie
Family: Daughter Ella Grace, age 6
an executive at the St. Paul Port
A sAuthority
and CEO of Vino Recordings,
Monte Hilleman manages to be a leader in development and on the dance floor.
At the Port Authority, Hilleman is vice president of redevelopment. There, he is shepherding the organization’s biggest project in 30
years: the brownfield redevelopment of the
former headquarters of 3M Co. into the Beacon
Bluff Business Center. When completed, the
61-acre project will bring back 1,000 jobs to a
disadvantaged part of the city.
In addition to lecturing regularly on public
policy and environmental issues at places such
as the University of Minnesota Urban Studies
Program, Hilleman has an entrepreneurial after-hours business as CEO of Vino Recordings
& Only A Moment Publishing. Hilleman
founded the label to showcase niche house
music and regularly hosts house-music events.
“The coolest
thing I ever
found was a
wild dwarf rock
python eating
its dinner.”
have
M innesotans
a long history of
taking pride in their environment. Tara Harris,
recently appointed director of conservation
at the Minnesota Zoo,
is helping to make that
one of our exports.
Her current initiatives include mountain zebra research
in Namibia, restoring
wild populations of
South China tigers to
would you be doing?
Still playing the “Great Game”
The people I work with and the opportunity
to help shape Best Buy’s bright future
Saturday morning cartoons
The people I love and my iPad 2
I am a digital native and on Twitter (@hoffwil), Facebook (facebook.com/hoffwil) and
LinkedIn entirely too much.
A spy
I know.
Cubs fans
Talk/Text: (txt)
“All I Do” by Stevie Wonder
My peers naming me Person of the Year for
Brownfield Renewal Magazine.
The intrigue. Every day and every project
is such a spiderweb of money and politics,
it’s fascinating. And knowing that I’m making
a difference for my daughter and for future
generations.
Director of conservation, Minnesota Zoo
Hometown: Lynchburg, Va.
Family: Husband, Kevin Potts
Once I found _____. It was the coolest thing I
ever found.
A Goose Island Bourbon County Stout
A truck driver
34
might be a stretch, but the senior vice president of consumer insights at Richfield-based
Best Buy Co. Inc. has taken the art of figuring
out what people want and connected it to the
science of making it happen.
A veteran of the CIA, Navy, McKinsey and
Gallup, Hoffman is skilled at gathering and
analyzing information, then using that to
inform business strategy.
In an innovative arrangement, Hoffman has
consumer insights-savvy representatives “forward deployed” and embedded in business
teams, where their knowledge can bubble up
to him, and the insights developed by his team
can filter down to the people who actually
make things happen.
Hoffman gives of himself to the community
as well, serving on the board of directors of the
Best Buy Children’s Foundation and working
with veterans home from deployment, helping them integrate into the work force.
Being able to marry the woman of my
dreams
would you be doing?
I think I’d still be involved in real estate in
some fashion, preferably doing local sustainable development projects.
Tara Harris
look at Bill Hoffman’s resume, you
T omight
think he could read minds. That
My kids tell me they love me.
“It’s a good
day when the
sale closes.”
their natural habitat and working with zoos
across North America as a coordinator for
the Tiger Species Survival Plan. Harris’ efforts
play close to home, as well: She head’s the
Minnesota Zoo’s Green Team, leading sustainable initiatives within the zoo itself. She also is
working with researchers at the University of
Minnesota on prairie butterfly reintroduction
and moose ecology research.
Before landing in Minnesota, Harris’ career took her from Yale University to Uganda
to Germany. She also worked with the
National Zoo and conducted research at the
Smithsonian Conservation and Research
Center in Washington, D.C.
Knowing that the work I do has a positive
impact on the world
I get to spend time on things that are meaningful and fulfilling.
Becoming Minnesota Zoo’s director of conservation and a senior manager last year
Once I found _____
A wild dwarf rock python eating its dinner
(in Namibia).
Hearing that something I’ve said or done
has inspired someone to get involved in
conservation.
Heavy metal music
I wanted to be _______ when I grew up.
A tornado chaser and a punk rock singer
I know.
Scrabble players
Anything off of The Rolling Stones’ “Exile on
Main Street” album
My spirit animal is an …
Indri (a species of lemur)
J. Sven Gustafson
38
President and owner, Stonewood
Hometown: Edina
Family: Wife Anna, daughter Harriet, 1
something is built to last, you know
W hen
it. J. Sven Gustafson, president and
owner of Stonewood, a builder specializing in
homes in the $2 million to $10 million bracket,
has built his reputation on the quality of the
homes he builds for Minnesota celebrities,
sports figures and business leaders. Those
around him also admire the effort he puts into
building relationships, trust and communities.
Gustafson’s homes have graced the pages
of magazines and received national honors —
Stonewood’s houses have won the Parade of
Home’s “Dream Home” designation more than
any other local builder — but ultimately he is
hired for the experience he gives his clients.
In addition to literally building parts of communities, Gustafson takes the success he has
achieved with Stonewood and turns it outward. In addition to fundraising activities and
donations to organizations such as the Heart
Hospital of Minnesota and Children’s Theatre
Co., Gustafson also marks the completion
of each multimillion dollar home by
building another for a family in need
in Guatemala.
Snowboard and ski guide/
missionary work
about work?
The process of dreaming with clients, and designing their new home
is a lot of fun.
heli-skiing off my
bucket list.”
There’s a George Will article in the paper.
received?
My father once told me how impressed
he is with the homes I’ve built. He mentioned that they were nicer than anything
he’d ever built.
I absolutely do not want to live
without …
My Apple products. Can’t
leave the house without them.
And if I do, I need to turn back
and get them.
I wanted to be ______ when
I grew up.
A homebuilder, like my
father
I am, hands down, one of the
best ______ that I know.
Coffee drinkers
A16
40 Under Forty
Wade Gerten
39
Founder and CEO, 8thBridge Inc.
Hometown: Hugo
Family: Wife, Lisa; twin
girls, Emma and Ruby, 7
S
“Moon boots.
Seriously,
why don’t
we all wear
them?”
ure, we’ve all thought of inventing a new way to
shop. But Wade Gerten actually did it.
More accurately, Gerten’s Minneapolis-based company 8thBridge Inc. is at the forefront of what is called
“social commerce” and a close partner of Facebook
in developing ways to shop with your social network. Recent projects include Facebook apps for
Ticketmaster and Delta Air Lines Inc. that let you
share and plan events or trips.
The concept won the Minnesota Cup (an
award for innovative entrepreneurial ideas) and
led to additional rounds of venture-capital
financing (it’s raised more than $15 million) that have helped the company grow.
A veteran of Retek and then Oracle Corp.
(after it acquired Retek in 2005), Gerten has
deep roots in the local technology community. Gerten
also is working to invigorate Minnesota’s venture-capital
scene. 8thBridge has attracted national attention and financing to the region, and Gerten himself remains active
in the Minnesota Cup and the Minnesota High Tech Association.
What would you be doing if you weren’t in the career you’re in?
I’d probably be in prison (for real).
Creating something new and awesome
I wake up because something amazing happens everyday.
“You must be one of those creative types.” It wasn’t meant as a
compliment.
March 16, 2012
Anders Folk
35
Attorney, Leonard, Street and Deinard
Hometown: Hopkins
Family: Wife Angela
W
hether in the U.S. Marine Corps, the
U.S. Department of Justice or private
practice, Anders Folk has proven himself as
a sharp-minded lawyer excelling in highstakes legal cases.
Folk, a decorated trial lawyer and former Marine Judge Advocate, is now a
shareholder with the Minneapolis firm of
Leonard, Street and Deinard representing companies and individuals involved
in complex litigation and
investigations.
With the Marines, he
Second career
tried one of the first jury
choice: “Extreme
trials related to detainee
abuse in Iraq. With the
eating contests.”
U.S. Attorney’s Office in
Minnesota he obtained
convictions and guilty pleas from members of Al-Qaeda, AlShabaab and other international organizations.
Folk lectures on national security and counterterrorism law,
and also teaches students about citizenship through the YMCA
and American Legion. He also is chairman of the International
Education Center, a nonprofit that provides first-generation immigrants, refugees and their families with basic education.
It’s 11 a.m. and I am having my second large Americano with
extra espresso.
Serving as a U.S. Marine
That was a nice left. (Compliment delivered while surfing)
What’s your five-year plan?
Keep working hard.
Jonathan
Paul
Dzubnar
Fletcher
25
Vice president of marketing and sales, Alatus
Hometown: Hartford, Wis.
Family: Wife Abby; daughter Kaemi Lee, 3
I
f you drive to work in Minneapolis, there’s a good
chance you’re parked in Jonathan Fletcher’s
space.
Fletcher serves as the general manager for Alatus’
$64 million parking portfolio, which includes thousands of parking spaces downtown. He’s also a vice
president of marketing and sales for the developer, and working on the proposal for a Block E
casino.
Colleagues note that Fletcher is rarely doing just one thing. He’s launched seven different
businesses, some while still in school, and served on
a 13-month deployment in Iraq as a decorated U.S.
Army Sergeant.
Fletcher also serves on the boards of three nonprofits: The Bridge for Youth, a shelter for runaway
or homeless youth; the Urban Land
Institute Minnesota and the Heritage
“Grape soda Academy of Science and Technology,
alternative public school in
is cool an
Minneapolis’ Como Park that serves
immigrant populations.
Honestly, I’m doing exactly what I want to be doing — developing
businesses, working with highly motivated people and being a broker to help connect corporate resources and networks with community and nonprofit needs. Or I’d be a drill sergeant.
I get to talk with my Dad.
Once I found _____. It was the coolest thing I ever found.
A camel spider in the Kuwait desert
I don’t really have one, but my favorite pet was a red-bellied piranha named
Kitty that I had in college. [It was] calm, observant and loyal, but also ready to jump into action at a moment’s notice.
39
CEO, Green Mill Restaurants
Hometown: St. Paul
Family: Wife Jennifer; children Jack, 8;
John, 5; Isabella, 3
“I wanted to be a fireman
when I grew up.”
I
f you had to pick one food that says “community,” it’s hard
to beat pizza. It’s designed to be shared, universally liked
and an almost perfect metaphor for a whole that is more than
the sum of its parts.
Paul Dzubnar, CEO of Green Mill Restaurants, has achieved
something like that in his career with the venerable local Green
Mill pizzeria/restaurant/lounge, which has some 28 locations, including franchises throughout the Upper Midwest.
Since acquiring Green Mill Restaurants in 2010, Paul Dzubnar
has been working to refurbish and expand the 36-year-old chain of
casual restaurants — both with new Green Mills and the Crooked
Pint Ale House spinoff.
Dzubnar, an Air Force veteran, also has launched a communitygroup fundraising initiative called Green Mill for Good.
A lumberjack. I think there was another guy named Paul that was
pretty good at it.
The people and the relationships
I don’t have a schedule.
The coolest thing you ever found?
I’m still looking for it.
Mike
Derheim
“I’d like to be
reincarnated
as a cheetah.”
CEO and Co-founder, The Nerdery
Hometown: Minot, N.D.
Family: Wife Amanda; sons Tyler,
CEO of The Nerdery, the BloomingtonA sbased
interactive development compa-
ny, Mike Derheim has his hands full balancing
rapid growth with high standards for work and
workplace — not to mention managing more
than 300 notoriously independent-minded
“nerds.”
The Nerdery provides back-end development that powers interactive creative projects
by agencies and other companies. Derheim
stepped into his current position following the
2010 death of co-founder and partner Luke
Bucklin, but his success is the result of years of
effort, involvement and vision. He takes pride
in open communication and transparency.
The approach has paid off in business,
as well as in culture. In his role as chief financial officer before assuming the CEO
title, he helped lead the company onto the
Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal’s Fast 50
and Inc. 5000 lists, and almost doubled 2010
revenue to $29.3 million in 2011.
In addition to his business efforts, Derheim
supports the community in ways broad and
personal, from championing The Nerdery’s
pro bono work to serving on the board of The
Bucklin Family Foundation, founded by Luke
Bucklin’s widow, which helps families grow together through the power of technology.
A17
Scott
Cummings
38
Minneapolis local market program director, Accenture
Hometown: Roseville
Family: Fiancée Tracy Egan
could call Scott Cummings a people
Y ouperson.
A lots of people person. Through
35
40 Under Forty
March 16, 2012
his varied volunteering and organizing efforts, the local market program director for the
Minneapolis office of Accenture reaches and
guides thousands of people in their charitable
and community-building efforts.
His job at Accenture, a management and
technology consulting firm, helps connect
the 1,500 employees here to each other and
their surrounding community. Thousands attend networking and training events, and with
many expatriates in the Accenture work force,
he leads cross-cultural activities. He rallies
employees by the hundreds to aid job seekers who are out of work, has built a network
of more than 1,000 company alumni for business leads and as a hiring pool, and helped
build Accenture’s partnership with Junior
Achievement that led to a $65,000 grant and
pro bono aid for the nonprofit.
Outside of work hours, Cummings continues on the theme, having chaired the
17,000-member strong United Way Emerging
Leaders group for the past two years and serving on the board of Junior Achievement and
the Corporate Volunteerism Council of the
Twin Cities.
would you be doing?
I’d likely be some sort of travel agent, planning really cool vacations.
I am lucky enough to be in a role that allows
me to connect more than 1,500 employees to
volunteer opportunities, as well as drive development activities to expand the company’s civic presence and foster employee
engagement.
“Cool, then
I wake up and the lake is really calm,
and I don’t have an early morning meeting, so I can get a few quick waterski runs
before work.
lame, then
cool: Apple”
received?
My 8th-grade social studies teacher, Mr.
Hove, wrote on my report card that I was an
archetypal citizen and to keep it up.
Apple. I had an Apple IIe growing up, a Mac
in college, but then went PC until I got my
iPhone a few years ago.
My family and friends
Facebook to connect with friends. LinkedIn
to connect with colleagues. I started a
Minneapolis Accenture Alumni LinkedIn
group that has proven to be a great resource
and now has nearly 1,000 members.
I wanted to be _______ when I grew up
I think I wanted to be an architect. I recall a
few elementary
school
projects where
my
finished
product
involved
house
designs,
floor
prints, sketched
of houses — some
even with solar
panels.
I am, hands
down, one of the best ___________ that I
know.
I try really hard to be a good friend, I consider myself very loyal.
Recently I crossed ________ off my bucket list.
Hiking to Machu Picchu
Book/e-reader/TV:
TV
Morning/noon/night:
Noon
Meet Angela.
Cash Management Specialist
Collaborative Financial Strategist
would you be doing?
I’ve always enjoyed owning companies and
figuring out all of the associated problems that
inevitably come up. The opportunity to start
The Nerdery came out of the desire to be an
entrepreneur.
Wakeboard Enthusiast
That’s right, at North American Banking
Company, you bank with a real person.
Yes, we have all the high tech tools that
Once I found ______
A job at Minnesota Internet. I was failing out
of college, had no real qualifications and working at a diner. I had few prospects for the future, and that first real “job” was exactly what
I needed to figure out where my talents really
were.
help your business run more efficiently.
But we believe banking is about people
helping people.
Luke Bucklin once said that, “If you tell the
average person to move a mountain, they’d
immediately tell you it’s impossible. Mike
Derheim would probably tell you the same
thing, but he’d have to think about it for awhile
to make sure that he couldn’t find a way.”
Me. But I go back and forth quite a bit on that
one.
I wake up early, excited about what I’m going to accomplish for the day. I can only go so
many days in a row without waking up ready
to take on the world. If I have too many days
without that feeling, I start trying to figure out
the next challenge.
Great service, real-time by real people.
Angela Flannery
Cash Management Specialist
direct 651-714 - 6426
cell 651-245 - 9494
ROSEVILLE 651-636-9654
MINNEAPOLIS 612-45 5-1100
W WW.NABANKCO.COM
HASTINGS 651-480-6230
WOODBURY
MEMBER FDIC
651-714-6420
A18
40 Under Forty
Dr. Gary Collins
39
Department head, surgery and medical director of quality and safety,
surgical services, Regions Hospital
Assistant professor of surgery, University of Minnesota
Hometown: Lindstrom, Minn.
A
t 39, Dr. Gary Collins is the chief of surgery for Regions Hospital,
holds an MBA from the University of St. Thomas and lobbies federal
lawmakers to reduce health care costs for surgical care and issues affecting
trauma centers.
He developed an acute-care surgery service at Regions that gets patients
care faster — and will save about $340,000 for the hospital this year. He also
developed a “time-out-towel,” a simple technique that warns surgical teams
not to proceed with surgery unless all safety procedures have been followed.
His work on patient safety was singled out by U.S. Secretary of Health and
Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, who toured the hospital last year and declared that the rest of the country should be paying
attention to Regions’ innovative work.
You don’t have to be in surgery or Washington,
D.C., to see Collins at work: He also takes requests at the dueling piano nightclub Shout
House.
Espresso
“If I weren’t a surgeon,
I would play cabaret
piano gigs full-time.”
I wanted to be _______
when I grew up.
A chemistry professor
about work?
Seeing patients’ lives
improve
Meeting Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and
giving her a tour of our innovative and nationally recognized operating
room safety procedures at Regions. The highlight was spending time with
the secretary discussing the implementation of challenging portions of the
Affordable Care Act, how to address population health and even our mutual
love of jazz music.
I am, hands down, one of the best ____ that I know.
Advocates
Kate Cimino
35
Assistant director, Center for the Study of Politics
and Governance, Humphrey School of Public Affairs,
Hometown: Buffalo, N.Y.
Family: Husband Matt
T
he University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public
Affairs has established itself as a bastion of civil political debate. And as the assistant director for the school’s Center for the
Study of Politics and Governance, Kate Cimino is integral to the
shaping of those discussions.
Cimino, who holds a master’s degree in public administration, also is responsible for managing the Humphrey School’s
Policy Fellows program. The program connects leaders from
the state’s business, government and nonprofit sectors to propose solutions to policy challenges — from recidivism rates to
aquatic species invasions.
Cimino doesn’t just focus on political harmony. She’s also a
bassoonist in a woodwind trio and is a member of the marketing committee for the MacPhail Center for Music.
— Justin Howath, staff writer
“Can Kermit
the frog be a
spirit animal?”
If you weren’t in the career
you’re in, what would you be
doing?
Neuropsychology, arts administration or something at a nature/forest preserve
I’ve laughed a lot, and crossed most of the stuff off my to-do list.
Most of my job involves connecting amazing people with other
amazing people, and helping them become even better at what
they do and how they do it. It’s hard not to get excited about that.
Learning how to get my nose out of the details, look ahead and
see the big picture and the larger-scale impact of my work
Once I found ______. It was the coolest thing I ever found.
The bittersweet chocolate cookie at Rustica. Unbelievable.
March 16, 2012
Katie
Clark
31
Executive director, Minnesota
Trade Office, state of Minnesota
Hometown: Janesville, Wis.
Family: Fiancé Dave Sieben
businesses look overseas for new customers,
W hen
or foreign leaders arrive in the state on trade mis-
sions, Katie Clark is likely to be helping them.
As executive director of the Minnesota Trade Office, she’s
working with businesses and cities to help Minnesota sell
more goods abroad. She’s also leading efforts to increase foreign investment in the state.
Within months after being named to the position at age 30, Clark
rallied her staff in the face
of plans by legislators to
kill the office outright. After
“Gov. Dayton said
the state government shutI’m one of the most
down, Clark and her team
remained standing.
determined people
Clark also is chief of prohe’s ever met.”
tocol for Minnesota, hosting meetings with heads of
state and foreign dignitaries, and is an advisory board member for the Center for International
Business at the University of Minnesota and is a founder of the
Science Museum of Minnesota’s Young Professionals Board.
— Justin Howath, staff writer
Teaching. I believe we all have a responsibility to empower, educate
and share what we learn with the next generation.
Name something you thought was cool, then thought was lame and now
think is cool again.
Colored denim
Too many to count! I sing a mean “Black Velvet,” by Alannah Myles,
for karaoke.
Gina Brennan
39
CEO, Corporate Car & Coach
Hometown: Durand, Wis.
Family: Husband Jay, two
stepdaughters, 18 and 21
Brennan is on the move. And thanks to her
G ina
business acumen, so are more and more of
her clients.
Annual revenue for her company, Corporate Car
& Coach,, more than doubled to $2 million after she
acquired River City Limousine in 2009. Since then,
Brennan has expanded to
Rochester and signed bighitting clients like Medtronic
“I wanted to
Inc., General Mills Inc. and
be an X-ray
3M Co.
The Women’s Business
technician when
Enterprise National Council
I grew up.”
awarded Corporate Car &
Coach a certification as a
woman-owned business —
the first in Minnesota to receive the certification in the
luxury transportation industry. For two years, Brennan also
has been active in helping promote women in business as
the executive fundraiser for the Minneapolis chapter of
Executive Women International.
If you weren’t in the career you’re in, what would you be
doing?
I was in human resources and would go back to that in a
heartbeat, because I love working with people.
I find myself whistling.
Overcoming the challenges of a family-operated
business — and still getting invited to Thanksgiving.
What’s your five-year plan?
I want to make sure my 40s are just as successful as
my 30s. And nap on a beach on Kauai.
March 16, 2012
40 Under Forty
A19
Jessica Boden
Michael
Caguin
39
39
Executive creative director, Colle+McVoy
Hometown: Lutherville, Md.
Family: A very understanding wife, two
wonderful children and one beast (Great
Dane/labrador mix)
A
s executive creative director for Colle+McVoy, Mike
Caguin has helped transform the agency from a regional ad shop to a national player, with a client list that includes ESPN, Yahoo! and a slate of outdoorsy brands.
Under his leadership — and despite a gloomy economic
backdrop — the agency has experienced six consecutive
years of growth. It’s also won numerindustry awards, from the local
“S’mores ous
The Show honors to the national
are cool Webbys and Effies.
Caguin’s 15-year career includes
again.” the creative rebranding of Caribou
Coffee and a national effort to boost
bicycle infrastructure. He’s a bicycle
enthusiast himself and has completed several marathons and triathlons. He also has volunteered for Free
Arts Minnesota and is mentor for BrandLab, a program
that builds paths to the marketing industry for students.
The results show that we’ve made a difference.
My spirit animal is a …
Dog. The extra large kind.
Creativity is a powerful weapon in business today, even beyond marketing, advertising and interactive. The ability to be creative for a living
is a dream.
Once I found ______
My wedding band after it had been lost playing fetch with
our dog in the middle of winter. Several months after the
snow had melted, a neighbor posted a flyer and I reclaimed it.
President, StoneArch Creative
Hometown: Ventura, Calif.
Family: Husband Tom; son Nicholas, 4
Jessica Boden was promoted to
W hen
president of StoneArch Creative in
January, it was just the latest step in a career
that’s been on a steady upward trajectory for nearly
18 years.
Boden hails from California, where she rode
the wave of the dot-com bubble before moving to
Minnesota in 2000.
Boden found a place in StoneArch Creative, which specializes in marketing for medical device and health care
firms. Within three years she was executive creative director,
while amassing awards and sales milestones for the agency.
Boden also has driven the
agency’s pro-bono initiatives for
the Minnesota Ovarian Cancer
“I am the
Alliance, the Children’s Cancer
best Scrabble
Research Fund, BestPrep and the
Make-A-Wish Foundation. She
player I know.”
also is a member of Minnesota’s
Executive Women’s Roundtable.
It’s a toss-up: running an adventure-travel business or selling
pineapples on Maui.
The potential for “what’s next”
I come into the office and you can feel that intangible buzz in the air. The
energy is up.
Personally, my family and my faith. Professionally, becoming president of
my company.
Morning/noon/night: Night
TV/Book/eE-reader: E-reader
Reaching higher.
BMO Harris Bank congratulates our own Todd Senger on being named one of the Minneapolis/St. Paul
Business Journal’s “40 under Forty.”
BMO Harris BankSM is a trade name used by BMO Harris Bank N.A. Member FDIC.
2012_141_Minneapolis Bus Journal.indd 1
getmorebank.com
3/6/12 8:55 AM
Congratulations
to the 40 Under Forty honorees for 2012!
Something I
thought was cool ,
then thought was
lame and now
think is cool again
.
is Star Wars
— Brandon Maves
I wanted to
be an astronaut
when i grew up.
— Lee Wallace
Jessica Boden
Gina Brennan
Michael Caguin
Kate Cimino
Katie Clark
Gary Collins
Scott Cummings
Mike Derheim
Paul Dzubnar
Jonathan Fletcher
Anders Folk
Wade Gerten
J.Sven Gustafson
Tara Harris
Monte Hilleman
Bill Hoffman
LaToshia Jackson
Rebekah Kent
John Kriesel
Brandon Maves
Nicole Middendorf
Dan Miller
Luis Moreno
Kermit Nash
Matt Norman
Julie Perrus
Bryant Pfeiffer
Sara Ratner
Clint Roberts
Brian Robinson
Zack Ruderman
Amy Salmela
Todd Senger
Josh Stowers
Louis Suarez
John Tauer
Michele Vig
Brad Von Bank
Lee Wallace
Event Sponsor
Event Partner
I absolutely do not want
to live without books .
— Julie Perrus
My spirit animal
.
is a bear
— Todd Senger

Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal

Transcription

Similar documents

our event flyer (pdf 1.61 MB)

Event Invitation/Agenda

Straight Arrow Motorcycle Trail System

James Rice Widder AIA LEED

November, 2005 - World Population Balance

What will rise from the ruins of Minneapolis Water Works?

Build It Up Street Date: 8/19/08 Genre: Alternative

and share the Save-the

Influence Conference Minneapolis