While some solar companies only serve one function, Dan Dillon says the one he works for is a little more, well, novel. Aptly named, Novel Energy Solutions develops land for solar infrastructure, constructs solar gardens and facilities, and oversees their operations by maintaining equipment and managing subscribers. Dillon, the company’s general counsel, says this vertical […]
Features Region: Midwest
Mahrukh Hussain – McDonald’s
Since joining McDonald’s as a real estate lawyer in late 2000, Mahrukh Hussain has accomplished much, most recently serving as interim general counsel and corporate secretary for six months following the resignation of Jerome Krulewitch last fall for health reasons. During her time with the company, she also served for two years as European general […]
Steve Nielsen – Landus Cooperative
Why is that scarecrow taking pictures of the soybean crop? Well, maybe it’s not a scarecrow. But why’s that robot taking pictures of the soybean crop? Provided by Google as part of its presence at the Landus Cooperative Innovation Center, the robot, nicknamed “GROWver” is just one of the technologies Steve Nielsen’s team is showcasing […]
Matthew Geekie – Graybar
When Matthew Geekie was a trial lawyer, he loved being in front of a judge and jury. But, despite finding fulfillment in helping people, his relationships with clients were short-lived and he longed for more meaningful connections. Now, as senior vice president, secretary and general counsel for Graybar, Geekie, who’s also on the company’s board, […]
Philip Petti – USG Corp.
He’ll leave it to others to make the lightweight wallboard and other USG Corp. products for many of the world’s 10 tallest buildings, starting with the 2,717-foot Burj Khalifa in the United Arab Emirates and ending with the 1,667-foot Taipei 101 in Taiwan. Instead, Philip Petti will keep busy making, defending and leveraging his employer’s […]
Tod Reichert – OFS Capital Management LLC
Once an actor, stuntman and theatrical producer, Tod Reichert traded the grind of auditions and eight performances a week for a legal career that’s brought him to OFS Capital Management LLC as its managing director, chief administrative officer and general counsel. And yet, as a legal and operations leader for a fast-paced, high-growth asset management firm, much of Reichert’s work continues […]
James Slinkman – Advocate Aurora Health
He starts discussions several months, or sometimes a few years, ahead of time when renewing a lease for Advocate Aurora Health. This gives him more leverage to set the terms because the landlord will know he’s not in a rush or under pressure. As the healthcare organization’s senior vice president and associate general counsel, Slinkman […]
Julia Oltmanns – Zurich North America
The term wasn’t in the corporate vernacular during the mid-2000s but Julia Oltmanns was already applying DEI initiatives—diversity, equity, inclusion—as an employment lawyer elsewhere. When she joined the legal staff at the Chicagoland headquarters of Zurich North America in 2016, she found herself among kindred souls. Now, she considers her employer one of the world’s […]
Michael Medved – BBQ Holdings
The most stressful 48 hours of Michael Medved’s professional life have given way to growth pains. Not only has his employer, Minnetonka, Minnesota-headquartered BBQ Holdings, survived the pandemic that shuttered so many competing eateries, its revenues have grown, its stock value has quadrupled, and its portfolio has expanded. But it easily could have gone the […]
Kristin Keltner – Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance
Imagine riding on a horse through fields of vast Indiana farmland, then slipping into a comfortable 1920 Ford Model T, where the horses under the hood make for a much smoother ride—until you drive over a pothole. In 1934, Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance came up with a solution for such unfortunate moments, Kristin Keltner says. […]
