CONGRATULATIONS TO ASHLEYCAMPION ON BEING RECOGNIZEDASONE TOP25WOMEN

CharRae Chwialkowski President Connect Interiors Fargo, N.D.

CharRae Chwialkowski has a passion for bringing clients visions to life through design. NCIDQ certified with more than 28 years of interior design and commercial furniture sales experience, she leads Connect Interiors as president. After graduating from NDSU with a degree in Interior Design, Chwialkowski started her career with Steelcase, the leading commercial furniture manufacturing company in the world. In 2007, she moved back to the Fargo area with her family and joined Hannaher’s Inc. where she held various design, sales, and leadership roles. In 2020, Chwialkowski and four other women leaders purchased Hannaher’s and the company became Connect Interiors.

Chwialkowski is focused on building relationships, helping her clients achieve their goals, and positively impacting her team members and communities. Fostering diversity and growth, she is extremely proud to lead the organization with national certification as a Women’s Business Enterprise, Women Owned Small Business and North Dakota Women Owned Business.

Chwialkowski is involved with the North Dakota Interior Designers organization and a member of Lutheran Church of the Cross. She resides in West Fargo with her husband, Jay, and they have four children.

Brenna Grossbauer

Officer

Michelle Daggett has been the leader for all seasons at Lakeshirts, whose motto is “Life’s Better in a T-shirt.” She was hired as the company’s first-ever Human Resources director in 1997, and a few short years later became the company’s first-ever operations manager. She has served in her current role as president since 2017.

From managing the myriad challenges of a high-growth company booking record sales in early 2020, to guiding a company through a pandemic, to guiding Lakeshirts back to a record sales pace, Daggett’s adaptive leadership has proved critical for the company. Her care of our community – one of the company’s core values –is renowned. This has included things like working with the Detroit Lakes High School School-to-Work program, and helping to rejuvenate the local Art Master’s program.

During her 25-year career, Daggett has been the epitome of servant leadership, rolling up her sleeves to help the company’s “army of problem solvers” and being the driving force in efficiency gains, creative labor market development and culture enhancement. For Lakeshirts, she’s a big reason why “Life’s Better in a T-shirt.”

Brenna Grossbauer empowers Starion Bank employees to grow and flourish in their community banking careers. As the chief human resource officer, she knows that people are the key to any successful organization. Her creative approach and unique perspective help the bank’s leadership translate visions and strategies into actions that support local rural and urban neighborhoods and businesses.

Grossbauer has a BS in Human Resource Management from Park University and a master’s degree in Human Resource Administration from Central Michigan University. She is also certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources through the HR Certification Institute, and she is a Senior Certified Professional from the Society for Human Resource Management.

Grossbauer’s career in Human Resources has spanned more than 25 years. She has spent 21 years in the banking industry, with nearly 20 of those in an executive leadership role.

At Starion, she serves as a member of the Executive Committee and is chair of the bank’s Management Committee. She is also a member of the Central Dakota Human Resource Association and the Society for Human Resources Management.

Kristi Hall-Jiran serves as executive vice president and chief philanthropy and partnership officer of Altru Health System in Grand Forks, North Dakota. She leads system-wide philanthropic initiatives through Altru Health Foundation as well as community engagement, partnership, and marketing strategies.

Prior to joining Altru, Hall-Jiran served as president/CEO of the Community Violence Intervention Center (CVIC) in Grand Forks, leading CVIC from a six-staff, crisis-focused agency to a 74-staff, multi-program organization. Her leadership paved the way in bridging cross-collaborative relationships, ultimately leading to the Safer Tomorrows Road Map, a nationally recognized intervention and prevention strategy to virtually end violence in two generations.

Hall-Jiran is a visionary leader who is passionate about the power of generosity to heal our communities. She currently serves on the boards of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence and the Empire Arts Center, as well as the UND Nistler College of Business and Public Administration and the Greater Grand Forks Young Professionals advisory councils.

Hall-Jiran is a devoted mother of three daughters with her husband, Brent. She is a runner, lover of reading, steadfast in her spiritual faith, and contributes greatly to the community.

Heather Hoyt

Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs and Director of Admissions and Academic Records/Registrar

Mayville State University

Mayville, N.D.

Originally from Cooperstown, North Dakota, Heather Hoyt earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Mayville State University prior to beginning her career in their Admissions Office. After five years, she accepted a business analyst role with the North Dakota University System’s Core Technology Services to expand her knowledge of higher education. In 2018, she returned to Mayville State with the objective to positively impact the growth and success of the institution as the director of Academic Records and Registrar.

Hoyt personifies the University’s motto of being the “School of Personal Service” through her collaborative efforts and engaging leadership approach. This allows her to establish high standards and make difficult decisions, which consistently uphold her commitment to excellence and meeting the University’s goals. Additionally, she has played a critical role in streamlining processes and identifying opportunities as the institution has been faced with navigating changes to the traditional learning environment during the pandemic.

Hoyt was recently selected to serve as interim vice president for academic affairs, confident that she could utilize her strong leadership skills and student-centered approach to positively impact the Mayville State campus community.

Heather Huotari

Outsourced Accounting Manager

Eide Bailly LLP Fargo, N.D.

The daughter of an entrepreneur, Heather Huotari knows firsthand the sweat equity it takes for business owners to build the organizations that shape communities. This background drives her passion to provide information to business leaders that empowers them to make the strategic decisions that they face daily. She particularly enjoys leveraging technology to provide real-time insight in a manner that is easy for them to consume.

Huotari earned her accounting degree from North Dakota State University. The first few years of her career were spent as an accountant for a privately held company, prior to earning her CPA and joining Eide Bailly’s Business Outsource and Strategy Group in 2017. In addition to working directly with clients, Huotari also serves on the firm’s national team, leading the efforts to improve and standardize workflows to help the firm’s clients digitally transform their accounting procedures.

In the past, Huotari has served on the board for Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley and has enjoyed volunteering for several other organizations in our community. Outside of her career, she stays busy with her husband, Adam, and two young children.

Jessica Karls, PE, has a passion for problem solving, which is why she chose to go into the engineering field. She joined KLJ in 2007. Her expertise for many years was focused on roadway projects where she developed a strong background in geometric and site layout, street design, signing, and general plan development; redesigning many roadways we all drive on each day. In late 2020, Karls was promoted to department manager of KLJ’s civil transportation department and most recently, promoted to a production director. In this role, she joined KLJ’s existing production director team, and is responsible for implementing production practices that help grow KLJ.

Her passion for encouraging others to better themselves goes far behind her work at KLJ. She is active in communities across North Dakota, currently serving as the president of the Continuum Toastmasters, coaching her daughter’s basketball teams, working with the Society of Women Engineers at North Dakota State University and taking time to volunteer for several STEM-related activities including NDSU’s “Introduce a Girl to Engineering,” as well as different Girl Scout events throughout the state.

Kayser Marketing Manager Trail King Industries, Inc. Mitchell, S.D.

Kara Kayser is the marketing manager for Trail King Industries, the leading North American manufacturer of a complete line of trailers with facilities in West Fargo, North Dakota, Yankton, South Dakota and headquarters in Mitchell, South Dakota. Kayser’s background includes working in various public relations and marketing roles in both agency and private settings. She has worked with major brands to include Fortune 500 companies, high-growth startups and local government. She earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Augustana University.

Over the last five years, Kayser has had a major impact on Trail King’s marketing department. She has worked to conceive and execute marketing strategies and programs that have driven growth and expansion of company products and services. Kayser currently serves as the secretary of her local Economic Development Board and is a long-time coach for Girls on the Run, a program that promotes girl empowerment by teaching life skills through lessons and running. She is also passionate about agriculture, sharing her experiences with Hungry for Truth and the SD Ag and Rural Leadership group.