Sri Zaheer Earns Women in Business Career Achievement Award

For her many contributions to the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota, community organizations, and more, Dean Sri Zaheer is the 2021 Career Achievement honoree for the annual Women in Business awards from the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal (MSPBJ).

Zaheer, who joined the Carlson School faculty 30 years ago, has served as dean since 2012. During her tenure, she launched a Military Veterans Initiative to help service members transition from military to business careers, resulting in the Carlson School being named the number one Military Friendly business school in the nation. She has increased the business community’s engagement with the school, resulting in a wealth of new experiential learning opportunities for students, and has overseen the introduction of new degrees in business analytics, supply chain management, finance, and new programs in partnership with Tsinghua University in Beijing and Tongji University in Shanghai, as well as online degrees and certificates.

In addition, Zaheer holds the Elmer L. Andersen Chair in Global Corporate Social Responsibility and her research focus is on international business—a topic on which she has published extensively. She is a Fellow of the Academy of International Business, and a former Consulting Editor of the Journal of International Business Studies.

She also is active in the community, currently serving as chairwoman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, where she has served as a director since 2017. Zaheer has also served on the boards of numerous organizations, including Greater Twin Cities United Way, Guthrie Theater, and Mayo Clinic's Destination Medical Center Economic Development Agency.

The Women in Business awards recognize women “for their professional achievements and contributions to the Twin Cities community.” Zaheer was a Women in Business awardee in 2013 as well. This year, she joins 51 other women, that, according to the business journal, “represent a broad range of industries, including education, real estate, health care, and insurance, and include entrepreneurs at startups and C-level executives at large corporations.” All honorees will be featured in MSPBJ’s Oct. 15 Women in Business special publication and celebrated during a Monday, Oct. 18 event at Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel, The Depot.