MPC’s Executive Advisors is a prestigious executive-level membership group focused on connecting corporate and civic leaders to the issues that matter most to our region. The first Executive Advisor cohort was launched in 2002 by a former Northern Trust leader, Bill Osborn, who identified the enormous opportunity in uniting influential executives in conversation around transformative civic change.
MPC Executive Advisors’ breadth of expertise, entrepreneurialism, and stewardship of resources empower dynamic thought leadership and action on issues ranging from the global economic climate to local transportation policy, from Chicagoland’s shortage of affordable housing to the power of visionary development, from the revitalization of Chicago’s Pullman neighborhood to the financial and political tools that enable progress. In short, MPC’s Executive Advisors drive civic change.
There are no required meetings or time commitments. Rather, MPC gathers Executive Advisors for thought-inducing conversations that drive our work.
Executive Advisors bring expertise in fields including real estate development, tech, corporate finance, law, community-centered entrepreneurialism, communications, and more. This chorus of perspectives creates an unique, vital, and dynamic conversation around power and civic change.
As they share resources and ideas, MPC’s Executive Advisors benefit from group membership in ways including:
- Visibility. Executive Advisors and their companies will be listed on MPC letterhead, named in MPC’s Annual Report, and identified in materials distributed to corporate partners and donors.
- Connections. Executive Advisors receive exclusive invitations to participate in conversations featuring notable civic and business leaders.
- Access. Executive Advisors have access to all MPC virtual events, workshops, panels, and seminars.
- Knowledge. Executive Advisors receive private issue briefings or workplace Lunch & Learns with dynamic leaders and MPC experts. These are issues that matter, before they hit the front pages of the local newspapers.
Executive Advisors’ $15,000 investment supports MPC’s partnership with communities, businesses, and governments to unleash the greatness of the Chicago region.
Current Executive Advisors
Carol Bernick
Chief Executive Officer, Polished Nickel Capital Management LLC
John L. Bucksbaum
Chief Executive Officer, Bucksbaum Retail Properties, LLC
Jonathan C. Bunge
Partner, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP
David R. Casper
U.S. CEO, BMO Financial Group
Robert M. Chapman
Chief Executive Officer, CenterPoint Properties Trust
Keating Crown
Managing Principal, Sterling Bay
Marsha Cruzan
Regional President, U.S. Bank
J. Michael Drew
Founding Principal, Structured Development, LLC
Robert Frentzel
Managing Director & Co-Head of Commercial Banking, CIBC U.S.
John S. Gates, Jr.
Executive Chairman, TradeLane Properties, LLC
Nancy S. Gerrie
Ari Glass
Head of Real Estate, Mansueto Office Inc.
Steven N. Miller
Partner & Co-Founder, Origin Ventures
Charles J. Moore
Founder & President, The Banc Funds
J. Marshall Peck
President, InterPark Holdings LLC
Joan Rockey
Chief Financial Officer, The Mather Group
Mark G. Sander
President & CEO, Old National Bancorp
Katherine M. Scherer
Managing Director, Deloitte LLP
Scott Swanson
President, PNC Illinois
Stephan B. Tanda
President & CEO, AptarGroup, Inc.
Edward J. Wehmer
Founder, President & CEO, Wintrust Financial Corp.
Theodore Weldon, III
Executive General Manager-Development, Lendlease
EXECUTIVE ADVISORS IN ACTION
Champion Fighter Award recipient (2019) John Rowe, Frank Clark, and Executive Advisor Scott Swanson
Executive Advisor Carol Bernick during an MPC presentation
Executive Advisor Ari Glass on a Chicago boat tour with MPC
For more information on joining this exclusive group, contact:
Rachel Roberts
Manager of Corporate Partnerships
312 863 6032
rroberts@metroplanning.org
Executive Advisors Overview (printable PDF)
Watch MPC's 2019 Annual Event with speaker Raj Chetty