David W. Olson Jr., 38
Kevin L. Patterson, 36
DAVID OLSON JR. is the youngest executive managing director at Principal Financial Group, a financial institution that employs over 16,000 people who serve more than 22 million clients. Olson leads 110 advisers, administrators and staff across the Great Lakes region in the business marketplace, helping manage the relationship of several thousand businesses and hundreds of millions of dollars in assets. Aside from his professional responsibilities, Olson is pursuing his passion for culinary arts. He has been publicly recognized for his work as a chef, being unanimously elected to the American Culinary Federation board. Olson has been a member of ACF for two years, raising more than $350,000 for culinary education scholarships alongside GRCC’s Secchia Institute for Culinary Education and to help Kids’ Food Basket underwrite the significant expense of fighting childhood hunger across West Michigan. Olson has taken his love for culinary arts to different mediums. “As a chef, annually I appear on dozens of television programs and host events from coast to coast, this year filming from New York to Atlanta and Chicago, and appearing on the likes of PBS’ Emmy Award-winning program, ‘A Moveable Feast,’ Fine Cooking magazine, NASCAR and the Travel Channel’s ‘Man vs. Food,’” he said. Olson also was a co-founder of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s Transformando West Michigan, an initiative designed to reduce barriers for Hispanic business owners and entrepreneurs, as well as create and support educational programs for Hispanic students. He said founding the nonprofit was his proudest professional accomplishment.
JULY 1, 2017, marks a special date for Kevin Patterson. On that date, Patterson became the first Asian audit partner of BDO Grand Rapids in its 99-year history. He also is BDO Grand Rapids’ youngest audit partner by seven years. Before he became a partner, he was the audit senior manager since starting with the firm in 2014. During that time, he has served on numerous boards for BDO, including the BDO Sales/Networking Leaders board, which has donated 1 percent of BDO Grand Rapids’ annual West Michigan revenues to local nonprofit organizations. That amounted to $1.6 million, from July 1, 2014, to June 30, 2018, which was donated to organizations including Junior Achievement of the Michigan Great Lakes, the YMCA, Goodwill and many more. Patterson also is a member of the Titan Business Challenge Committee and the board of directors for Junior Achievement of the Michigan Great Lakes. The committee is in the process of raising money to move forward with building a $10-million Free Enterprise Center in Grand Rapids, which will support the financial education of young students. Patterson credited current boss and career mentor Tony Lawrence as having a major influence on his professional career and life, saying Lawrence “empowered me to go above and beyond when auditing (clients) and when mentoring colleagues.” “I would not be where I am without Tony’s professional and personal teachings, and I try to emulate him by mentoring and helping others just like Tony helped me,” Patterson said.
Executive managing director Principal Financial Group
36 Grand Rapids Business Journal | 40 UNDER 40 2018
Audit partner BDO USA, LLP