SHINE: Governance Illuminated: Recent Episodes
Private Directors Association
Private Company Governance Illuminated! On SHINE: Governance Illuminated, you’ll hear conversations with America’s private company owners, independent directors, and service providers as they illuminate their passion for governance based on healthy accountability and respect for process and collaboration.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® visit us at privatedirectorsassociation.org.
Michael Vekich has been a public, private, non-profit and government agency board director for more than three decades. In addition to chairing a community bank board and serving as chair of a North Dakota nitrogen company, he is also a fiduciary for the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority—he brings the ballgame to the boardroom. Michael is also a board member with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, the third largest education system in the US. This son of Serbian immigrants to the United States shares his thoughts on governance and his life philosophy with the PDA’s Budd Berro.
Tracy Till and her business partner Sue Butler founded a marketing and advertising company in their native Rochester, New York about 20 years ago. Today, Butler/Till—now an ESOP—has its own building in the city, a presence across the US, and two hundred and fifty employee-owners. Tracy has just transitioned off the board at Butler/Till but remains an active champion of ESOPs everywhere. She talks with Budd Berro about her governance philosophy and her passion for employee stock ownership plans.
Ka’Neda Bullock founded her own wealth management company in 2019. Master Plan Investment Group specializes in helping young and mid-career professionals (30-50-year-olds) and women develop clear financial plans that align with their investment strategy. The company also manages employee retirement plans. Ka’Neda’s interest in entrepreneurship and ownership stems from mentorship she was offered during her student days at Smith College—she strongly believes in saying YES to opportunity and creating the future. A certified financial planner before the age of 40, Ka’Neda knows how to succeed in a highly regulated industry. Unimpressed by some of the governance practices she has observed in big companies, Ka’Neda has strong ideas about the value and composition of her own advisory board today. She talks to Budd Berro.
Abhi Shah has four superpowers that make him attractive to boards. He is an experienced CEO who has built a global AI/data analytics company, Clutch Group. His digital transformation expertise is in high demand. He has worked all over the globe, and he has 15 years of corporate governance experience as a diverse Asian-American board director. With his corporate career behind him before 45, Abhi now devotes his time to board service, philanthropy and family. He talks to Elaine Eisenman.
Susan Mallory’s interest in board service grew through a career in banking—many of her clients were owners of private companies, and Susan enjoyed advising on strategy and seeing family businesses grow. Now an independent director serving on the boards of two subsidiaries of State Farm—a Fortune 50 mutual company—Susan Mallory shares her definition of sound governance with Alan Aldworth.
Matot makes goods elevators—dumb waiters—used in the hospitality, healthcare and hi-tech industries, and in many other sectors. The company was founded in Chicago by Duffy Matot more than 130 years ago. Today, his two great-granddaughters Cece and Anne work in the company and sit on the board. These sisters are doing it… Cece, the board chair, talks to Budd Berro about the value created by the all-woman board at Matot.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® please contact join@pcdassociation.org.
Times change, families grow, and ownership can become too much of a risk. As chief executive and then chair of Crane & Co., Lanse Crane had to first mastermind the transformation and then the sale of an enterprise that had been in his family for more than one hundred years. The company made paper—some of it used for currency. It turns out that a license to print money is not all it’s cracked up to be. Lanse tells Elaine Eisenman the story of loving the company and letting it go.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® please contact join@pcdassociation.org.
Monica Starks is the majority owner of GS Group LLC, a construction company based in Detroit. She didn’t grow up in the building trade. In fact, she started her career in radio. Determined to own her own business, she first earned her real estate license. Then, she became a licensed builder. Next, a mold assessor… Monica is a continuous learner with a multi-million-dollar business built on asking questions, listening carefully to the answers, and acting on what she now knows. An experienced and dedicated non-profit board member, she is on the threshold of a private company board career. Listen as she tells Alan Aldworth how and why she set up an advisory board to support the growth of GS Group LLC and the value her governance network generates.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® please contact join@pcdassociation.org.
Bob Buddig is one of a team of five family members stewarding Carl Buddig and Co.—a business making and marketing lunch meat, sausage and barbecue meat. Listen to discover how the Buddig family has weathered fallouts and forged relationships, keeping the third and fourth generations pulling together while continuing to learn and grow. Bob, vice chairman of the Private Directors Association, discusses the value (and values) of effective family governance in conversation with PDA’s Alan Aldworth.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® please contact join@pcdassociation.org.
Meghan Juday is proud that IDEAL Industries—now multi-national and hi-tech—is still based on the values of her great-grandfather, J. Walter Becker, a multi-talented entrepreneur. Meghan is chairman of the board—the first woman in the role. Meghan joins PDA’s Alan Aldworth to discuss IDEAL relationships, board structure and board process, and to share her experience of family ownership, boardroom challenges and the value of an all-women network.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® please contact join@pcdassociation.org.
On SHINE: Governance Illuminated, you’ll hear conversations with America’s private company owners, independent directors, and service providers as they illuminate their passion for governance based on healthy accountability and respect for process and collaboration.
To learn more about great governance that creates value or to become a member of the Private Directors Association® please contact join@pcdassociation.org.