On Leadership

The 87-year-old Stuckey’s brand is synonymous with the American road trip. But Stephanie Stuckey, CEO of Stuckey's Corporation (and granddaughter of its founder) is charting a new course for the family brand that takes it from the nation’s highways to your local grocery store aisle. Since she purchased the business in 2019, Stuckey says gross sales have increased more than 500%.  

It’s been 20 years since Bernie Marcus retired as CEO of The Home Depot. But he still lives by the “do-it-yourself” philosophy. In his new book, “Kick Up Some Dust,” the 93-year-old entrepreneur provides lessons on tackling tough business problems and the benefit of giving back. He has donated more than $2 billion to charity.

Frank Argenbright, Jr.’s career “took off” in 1979 when he founded Argenbright Security, a company focused on aviation services. His journey has had its fair share of turbulence. But he's kept going. With more than 50 mergers and acquisitions under his belt, Argenbright is being recognized with the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 2022 Deals of the Year Lifetime Achievement award. 

As the Managing Director of Accenture’s Atlanta office, Chloe Barzey says she aims to ensure the $50 billion global consulting firm has a local impact on metro Atlanta through innovation, collaboration and community service. 

Chris Womack is energized by the prospect of leading one of the nation’s largest utility companies. Named president of Georgia Power in 2020, he became Chairman and CEO of the company in June 2021. In that role he leads an enterprise with 7,000 employees and 2.7 million customers across the state of Georgia. 

As CEO of SignatureFD, Heather Fortner is focused on the “net worthwhile” for her 1,200 clients and employees. The Atlanta-based financial advisory firm has about $4.5 billion under management. By 2025, the company expects that number to grow to $10 billion. 

Ravi Saligram, CEO of Newell Brands, is focused on keeping the company young and relevant. Some of its brands are more than 100 years old. Newell Brands makes products under the Sharpie, Rubbermaid and Mr. Coffee brands. When he joined the company in 2019, sales were sagging. Not anymore. Last year, net sales topped $10.6 billion. 

For Meredith Leapley, founder and CEO of Leapley Construction, leadership is all about one’s ability to LEAP IN. Always Learn, demonstrate Empathy, be Agile, and Persistent. And do it with Integrity. It’s been an undeniable recipe for success for the company which specializes in building out interior spaces for corporate, healthcare and education clients. Its annual revenue tops $200 million.

As many as two billion people worldwide do not have access to the medicine they need. MAP International aims to change that. President and CEO Steve Stirling brings three decades of experience to the job, and a sense of empathy--having contracted polio as a child in post-war Korea.

The current job market is nothing short of “wild” according to Dan Erling, president and CEO of Accountants One. Covid-19 has forced the industry to toss out the old rules of talent recruiting for a more time-intensive and expensive form of finding the right hires. It’s put more demand on his recruiting firm, and led to the company’s best year ever, he said. After 25 years in the industry, “it’s still rewarding.”