Kiera Fernandez stepped into her role in June, when there’s never been more attention on race in business. She has big shoes to fill after her high-profile predecessor Caroline Wanga.…
The TCB 100 - 2021
It’s been a year, huh? When we set out in late 2019 to identify the TCB100, we saw a 2020 defined by an election and a booming economy. And for 10 weeks, that’s what we got. Then Covid hit, then George Floyd, then an election week that revealed how polarized we all are.
So when our editorial team met in a driveway just before Labor Day, the question was how to identify 100 people who will shape 2021 when 2020 threw us nothing but curveballs.
So this TCB100 is a little different. The people we’re suggesting you keep an eye on are the usual array of movers and shakers, emerging and vets, but with extra emphasis on those who will blaze our trail out of a pandemic and into a business universe increasingly defined by its commitment to equity in deeds rather than verbiage.
Here’s to a year of healing and prosperity for us all. —Adam Platt
By Tess Allen, Kait Ecker, Liz Fedor, Burl Gilyard, Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl, Allison Kaplan, Sarah Lutman, Stephanie March, Dan Niepow, Adam Platt, Gene Rebeck, and Rajiv Tandon
In his current role, Paul Fischer, who joined Thomson Reuters in 1996, continues to help customers better manage their legal needs and facilitate collaboration between legal professionals and clients. Fischer…
Founded in 2012, Minnetonka-based GuideK12 became one of the nation’s top developers of geospatial analytics software for the K-12 market. School districts use Guide12’s platform to “map” where their students…
Art installations, local food vendors, a drive-through haunted house, and a store and workshop dedicated to Midwestern makers: Rosedale Center has gone to great lengths to distinguish itself from other…
2021, Alumni: Teaming up with YouTube on virtual concerts and hosting private weddings at the iconic First Avenue is but a small part of Dayna Frank’s pandemic pivot. Frank has…
2021, Alumni: Elevating the voices of those who’ve been marginalized is Luz María Frías’ work; in 2020, that mission took the longtime public servant and former CEO of YWCA Minneapolis…
2021, Alumni: Joan Gabel has had a lot to navigate amid Covid-19 and the disruption to normal class schedules. She’s decisive and not afraid to make unpopular calls, such as…
Julie Gilbert left Best Buy as a senior vice president of enterprise growth more than a decade ago, but her name is still heralded for her enduring impact, including the…
Rick Gomez started at Target in 2013 as senior vice president of brand and category marketing; in 2017 he was named CMO, and in 2019 he was tapped as head…
Mary, 2021, Alumni: In June, former Google exec and Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund partner Mary Grove teamed up with investor Brett Brohl on Bread & Butter Ventures.…
2021, Alumni: Initial public offerings from Minnesota-based companies are few and far between, but the industry-leading enterprise software company went public in July at $26 per share. A tech industry…
Among the many lessons of 2020, the importance of diversity in business has taken on new significance. DEED appointed Anisa Hajimumin to her post in June, a brand-new position at…
Rachel Hardeman has achieved national recognition for her work on racial inequities in health care. The University of Minnesota associate professor and reproductive health equity researcher has highlighted how two…
Taking on a new role at Aeon right before the pandemic struck has highlighted Sarah Harris’ personal mission to make Minneapolis a better place for children. (Prior to Aeon, she…
As founder Chad Halvorson stepped into a new role, Minneapolis-based When I Work brought on Martin Hartshorne as its new CEO in July. Hartshorne brings experience helping drive the growth…
Friends describe Chad Hetherington, co-founder of The Stable, as one of the most connected people in retail today, and this year’s dramatic swing to online shopping cemented his Minneapolis-based agency’s…
St. Paul-based Securian Financial returned to the Fortune 500 this year driven by record sales of $6.6 billion in 2019, a robust 20.1 percent gain. Chris Hilger, who joined the…
2021, Alumni: Following George Floyd’s death, Pahoua Yang Hoffman is expanding grantmaking to nonprofits serving people of color. With the goal of redistributing power, she’s also focused on diversifying the…