Page 143 - How We Lead Matters

About the Author

SM
Marilyn Carlson Nelson is chairman and former CEO of Carlson , a global
group of companies providing travel, hotel, restaurant, and marketing serv-
®
ices. Included in this portfolio are such brands as Radisson and Regent ®
hotels and resorts, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson , Park Inn and Park
®
SM
®
®
®
Plaza hotels, Carlson Wagonlit Travel , Carlson Marketing , and T.G.I.
Friday’s ® restaurants. With headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
Carlson-owned and franchised operations employ nearly 200,000 people in
more than 150 countries and territories. In 1998, Carlson Nelson was named
Carlson’s CEO and chairman, succeeding her father, Curtis L. Carlson, at the
helm of one of the largest privately-owned companies in the United States.
Forbes magazine regularly has selected Carlson Nelson as one of the
“World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.” She also has been named one of
“America’s Best Leaders” by U.S. News & World Report.
Carlson Nelson serves on the World Economic Forum’s International
Business Council and in 2004 co-chaired the forum’s annual meeting in
Davos, Switzerland. She has chaired the federal advisory boards of the
National Women’s Business Council and the U.S. Travel and Tourism
Advisory Board. She also is a member of the World Travel and Tourism
Council and the Business Roundtable and is a co-founder of the Women
Leaders Program of the World Economic Forum.
Carlson Nelson graduated with honors from Smith College in
Northampton, Massachusetts, with a degree in international economics and
a minor in theater. In 2006, she was invested in the French Légion
d’Honneur for her exemplary service to humanity. She is also a member of
the Royal Order of the North Star First Class, presented by the King and
Queen of Sweden, and the Order of the White Rose, Officer First Class, pre-
sented by the President of Finland.
Outside her industries, Carlson Nelson serves on the boards of
ExxonMobil Corporation, the Mayo Clinic Foundation, the Foreign Policy
Association, and the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy and is
a life director for the Minnesota Orchestra.
She lives in a suburb of Minneapolis with husband, Dr. Glen Nelson,
and Tutu, their dog.