I read an interesting blog post this spring: the author, Aaron Renn of Indianapolis, talked about a changing of the guard in civic leadership, as the corporate sector ceded influence to the nonprofit sector (“How American Cities Lost Their Movers and Shakers”). He pointed to itinerant Fortune 500 CEOs who often didn’t live in the city or won’t put down roots, layered with the growing role the nonprofit sector plays in civic life.

We’ve seen a similar evolution here. This phenomenon has left MSP with a CEO corps reluctant to speak up during the siege and a nonprofit sector demanding solutions that were neither legally viable nor efficacious. I never thought I’d be nostalgic for the 1990s.

Yet hope springs eternal. This month, I want to spotlight two local CEOs who are doing it the right way, whom we can look to with appreciation and respect. Sun Country’s Jude Bricker isn’t mentioned in our print edition, and he’s not even CEO anymore, since the carrier merged with Allegiant Air in mid-May. But if you want to muse on the power of leadership, fresh thinking, and innovating within seemingly hidebound industries, Bricker is your man.

He took Sun Country from decades of struggle, interspersed with short bursts of success, to an airline with a unique business model that drove growth, added jobs within the airline business, and led to industry-leading margins. His success paved the way for the Allegiant merger, which siphoned the airline’s HQ to Nevada but hopefully leaves a stable competitor for Delta at MSP T2.

Bricker wasn’t a high-profile figure in the community, but Sun Country didn’t really have the heft to justify that. In a Q&A I conducted with him just days before the merger closed, Bricker expressed a desire to remain in the Cities, and I wondered which other local companies could benefit from his capacity to think beyond the typical constraints. Odds are another underperforming airline will snap Bricker up, and he’ll find himself in Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, or Europe perhaps, but it was educational to watch him operate over nearly nine years (and a pandemic) to reinvent an airline.

The other CEO on my mind is in this issue. He’s Ecolab’s Christophe Beck, and senior editor Liz Fedor’s feature (page 28) looks at the company’s audacious move into data centers—not just to get in on the action, but to bring solutions to the factors that prompt many Americans to fear and oppose local data centers, which exist largely to power AI. Ecolab is working on ways to reduce their prodigious use of electricity and water and has made key acquisitions to that end.

Liz also got Beck, who is chair of Greater MSP, to open up about our region’s sagging competitiveness, timidity in the face of opportunity and change, and the existential sense we may be entering a period of decline. It’s sobering and important reading for people thinking about such things, as I tend to do. Beck is a Swiss transplant and sees this region with affection but also an outsider’s eye. We need more CEOs talking about this. If you’re a CEO and want Liz’s number, send me an email.

Speaking of influential CEOs, how about Beth Leonard, Tim Murnane, David Reiling, David Shea, and Beth Wozniak? The Wolves may have fallen to the Spurs, but this starting five won it all. They’re our 2026 Hall of Fame honorees, and you can read about their impressive careers starting here. I hope you can join us on July 22 to honor them.

Who’s not in this issue? Stephanie Pierce, who has been writing our insightful “HR Confidential” column since 2021. Congratulations to Stephanie on her new role at U.S. Bank as senior vice president and head of leadership and talent practice. Sarah Lutman authored a fascinating dive into the financial practices of local foundations; her “Performing Philanthropy” column will return in the August/September issue. You can find our other regular columnists, Linda Holstein and Vance Opperman, too.

Here’s to a calm and peaceful summer for all of us. Thanks for your time this issue.