Susan Abrams Email & Phone Number

I'm an 8-year CEO, grounded earlier in my career at McKinsey and Goldman Sachs, and passionate about advising/guiding companies to transformative growth and innovation. Marketing, strategy, leveraging technology, and financial discipline are throughlines enabling me to help businesses across industries, incl consumer goods, entertainment/education, and real estate/construction, to achieve success.As CEO and Board (Bd) member of IHMEC, a museum and human rights center, I led a financial turnaround, including paying down all debt 20 years early and more than doubling net assets & other metrics, while increasing customers 700%. With my guidance, IHMEC’s application of technology in interactive holograms, featured on CBS’s 60 Minutes, & in VR products, enabled global scaling & transformed IHMEC from regional player to int'l leader. To support the breakthrough strategy & risk management, I worked closely with Bd Chair to augment Bd capacity & served on all committees incl Nom/Gov and Finance/Audit, & I fostered public/private partnerships & strong government relations. In response to market conditions, I led a strategy pivot, including a digital-first transformation, that further expanded customer base.As COO of JCC Chicago, a health/wellness, education, and community building company, I embedded an innovation mindset & grew new & legacy business segments. I also served as President of JCA Properties, a developer of res'l real estate, & authored The New Success Rules for Women: 10 Surefire Strategies for Reaching Your Career Goals (Random House). I served as Commission Member, appointed by 2 Governors, on IL Holocaust & Genocide Commission, was a past Board of Advisors Member for Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern Univ’s Women’s Business Association and for Leadership Illinois (LI) – also a LI alumnus & served on LI’s Board of Directors. I served 9 years as Bd Director, Nom/Gov Committee Vice Chair, and Marketing Chair for Chicago Children’s Museum.I speak regularly on leadership, women’s business success, & leveraging technology – e.g., TEDx talk Use Virtual Reality to Transform the Future – & have been quoted in WSJ, NYT, Fast Company, Chicago Tribune, etc. In 2018, I was named to Better’s 10 Most Powerful Chicago Women list, in 2017 to Crain’s Who’s Who in Chicago Business, and in 2016 won Stevie Awards for Innovation and Leadership.MBA - Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Mgt; BSE - Wharton; BA - College - UPenn. Alum: Deloitte Board-Ready Program.Member; The Economic Club of Chicago, The Chicago Network, C100, & Private Directors Ass'n.