The inaugural list of the 2015 Most Influential Women of the Mid-Market has been announced by CEO Connection®, the only membership organization exclusively for mid-market CEOs.  This list recognizes the top 25 women in the U.S. based on their ability to influence change, innovation, and standards for excellence in companies with annual sales between $100 million and $3 billion.

List of Top 25 Most Influential Women in the Mid-Market (in alphabetic order):

Andrea Ayers, Convergys Corporation
Tory Burch, Tory Burch
Sandy Cochran, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.
Kat Cole, FOCUS Brands
Gayle J. Delly, Benchmark Electronics, Inc.
Tanya Domier, Advantage Sales and Marketing, LLC
Jane T. Elfers, The Children’s Place, Inc.
Diane Marie Ellis, Limited Stores, LLC
Julie Howard, Navigant Consulting Inc.
Katherine Lawther Krill, Ann Inc.
Beatrice Lafon, Claire’s Store, Inc.
Kathy E. Lehne, Sun Coast Resources, LLC
Selina Lo, Ruckus Wireless
Tamara Lundgren, Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc.
Linda K. Massman, Clearwater Paper Corp.
Virginia McDowell, Isle of Capri Casinos
Judy R. McReynolds, ArcBest Corporation
Michelle Peluso, GILT
Ranjini Poddar, Artech Information Systems
Sydney Price, Kate Spade
Karyn Schoenbart, The NPD Group
Sally J. Smith, Buffalo Wild Wings
Jule Smolyansky, Lifeway Foods
Stephanie Streeter, Libbey Inc.
Diane Sullivan, Caleres

More than business trailblazers, the 2015 honoree list includes dedicated philanthropists such as Tory Burch who launched the Tory Burch Foundation to support the economic empowerment of women entrepreneurs. To view the bios of all the winners, visit http://www.midmarketrankings.com/influential-women/.

“We are honored to be able to recognize such a prestigious group of women who have truly made an impact on their company and have given back to their community,” says Kenneth Beck, CEO of CEO Connection.  “We have been recognizing CEOs through our Mid-Market 500 and Mid-Market 1000 lists and saw a need to recognize an underrepresented group within the mid-market, so we started the Most Influential Women’s list.”

Honorees will be recognized at the 2015 Mid-Market Convention on October 18-21 at The Wharton School in Philadelphia, PA.  Referred to as the “Davos for the Mid-Market,” this exclusive global gathering features hundreds of CEOs, political leaders, business experts, and presidential candidates.

ABOUT CEO CONNECTION:

Founded in 2005 by C-level Wharton executives, CEO Connection is the only membership organization in the world focused exclusively on mid-market CEOs and uniquely designed to champion the mid-market perspective in the global marketplace.  The mission of CEO Connection is to help mid-market CEOs and their companies succeed by connecting them to each other; to people, information and resources to which they would otherwise not have access; and promoting the interests, welfare, and points of view of the mid-market.  The mid-market is comprised of nearly 20,000 publicly and privately held companies and represents an integral piece of the U.S. economy, employing more than 30 million people and generating approximately $10 trillion of the $30 trillion of annual gross receipts.  For more information, visit www.ceoconnection.com; Twitter @ceoconnection #midmarketceo.

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