This week, editor Kim Singletary shares the year's top executives from around the city, and who grabbed the top spot of CEO of the Year and why.

This week, producer Kelly Massicot interviews host and editor of Biz New Orleans Magazine Kim Singletary about the stories that made headlines in 2024.

From healthcare to banking and Taylor Swift, we've got the Top 10 Stories of the year to round out our 2024 season.

Thanks for listening to Biz Talks.

In the second part of our conversation with Amanda and Isaac Toups, the couple share the latest happenings with their nonprofit, Toups Family Meal, including how they, and a growing legion of volunteers, made Halloween and Thanksgiving a little brighter this year. They also share their plans for the upcoming holidays, how you can get involved, and their plans for a major expansion.

Renowned on the culinary scene, chef Isaac Toups is a four-time finalist for James Beard  “Best Chef: South” and co-owner of the award-winning restaurant Toups Meatery with his wife, Amanda Toups.  Since the pandemic, however, the duo has also co-founded a nonprofit called Toups Family Meal that is dedicated to remedying food insecurity in New Orleans. To date, TFM has served over 175,000 meals to Orleans Parish residents. In part one of our conversation, the Toups share how this new venture came about and what they’ve accomplished so far.

In the second part of Biz’s conversation with New Orleans Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Sandra Lindquist looks at the future of the organization, which includes a can’t miss event on Dec. 12, where the organization will hand out its first-ever award to a local business leader.

As the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce celebrates two decades serving area businesses, President and CEO Sandra Lindquist shares how the chamber has evolved to fit the needs of its 1,300 members and growing — including its move into legislative advocacy. She shares details on the chamber’s biggest wins and groundbreaking events.

Anyone interested in the future of energy in Louisiana is invited to attend a free, three-day event at Tulane’s Uptown campus Nov. 13-15. This week, Biz talks with the executive director of the Tulane Energy Institute and Tulane Center of Energy Law who share what most excites them about the forum, and the state’s future.

In the second part of our conversation with Dr. Sonnier at Louisiana Policy Institute for Children, she shares the organization’s plans for the future, including the conversations they’ve been having, and are continuing to have, with area businesses.

Celebrating 10 years this month, the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children is an independent source of data and research on early care and education for young children in the state. CEO Libbie Sonnier shares the biggest successes of the past decade – which have put the state in a surprising spot in state rankings nationwide.

When it comes to input on City Park planning, City Park Conservancy President and CEO Rebecca Dietz joins Bobbie Hill, principal of Concordia, share some of the feedback they’ve received, along with when we can expect to see some new additions in the second part of this two-part conversation.