This Wall Street whiz, who once oversaw blockbuster deals for Credit Suisse, was hired last August as Rahm's top business adviser. Now his fingers are everywhere: from dealing with the pension crisis to negotiating with the Cubs to trying to boost traffic at McCormick Place. His predecessor, Mark Angelson, laid the groundwork, say City Hall insiders, but Koch, according to one, "runs circles around him."

Photograph: ABEL URIBE/CHICAGO TRIBUNE