86 Luis Gutiérrez Age: 60 Occupation: U.S. representative This son of Puerto Rican immigrants has emerged as a charismatic speaker on immigration reform, drawing large crowds at rallies nationwide and acting as a fearless gadfly to the president on the issue. As Gutiérrez recounts in his 2013 memoir, Obama recently pulled him aside to say, “Why … Read more
13 John Rogers Jr. Age: 55 Occupation: Founder, chairman, and CEO, Ariel Investments Obama’s bud preaches what he practices: Wealth brings security and power, and building it takes research and patience. Rogers’s 85-employee firm (which has $9 billion in assets under management) notched 2013 returns of 46 percent for its Ariel Midcap Appreciation Investor Fund and … Read more
14 Steve Koch Age: 58 Occupation: Deputy mayor, City of Chicago This former investment banker is one of Emanuel’s closest aides and the person CEOs call to talk business in the city. Insiders give him megacredit for nabbing ADM (see No. 7). Among his major tasks this year? Attracting tenants for all those shuttered Dominick’s stores. … Read more
15 Miles White Age: 58 Occupation: Chairman and CEO, Abbott Laboratories After spinning off its pharma research business in January 2013, Abbott shrank in size but not in clout. Its connected CEO still sits on a bazillion boards, and the company—which has paid shareholders a dividend for 42 years straight—paid White a hefty $17.2 million in … Read more
16 Joe Mansueto Age: 57 Occupation: Founder, chairman, and CEO, Morningstar “I’ve been extremely fortunate in life, and it’s [a] way to give back by funding causes that are making a positive impact in the world,” says this financial research firm founder of his pledge to give half his fortune to charity. Access to information is … Read more
20 Jeanne Gang Age: 50 Occupation: Principal, Studio Gang Architects This will be the year that Chicagoans start associating the city’s only female starchitect with something besides Aqua, the undulating tower that has riveted the international design community since the late 2000s. Last October, to effusive praise in the architectural press, this MacArthur “genius” unveiled a … Read more
18 Lester Crown Age: 88 Occupation: Chairman, Henry Crown & Co. The patriarch of the billionaire Crown family just terminated his family trust (amount undisclosed), giving the bulk to the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago; doled out $10 million to the Aspen Institute’s Henry Crown Fellowship Program; and gave a large, unspecified sum to Brandeis University. … Read more
19 Greg Wasson Age: 55 Occupation: CEO, Walgreen Co. Last year his $72 billion pharmacy chain opened up 186 new stores and snagged some of the highest-profile retail spots in Chicago (seen the corner of Damen and Milwaukee lately?). Now Wasson, whose company filled 19 percent of U.S. prescriptions in 2013, is reportedly focused on items … Read more
9 Eric Lefkofsky Age: 44 Occupation: CEO, Groupon; cofounder, Lightbank The tech startup buzzword is “disruption”: creating innovative businesses from scratch and turning traditional ones on their heads. As head of the VC firm Lightbank, Lefkofsky knows all about it, boosting Chicago’s tech footprint and reaping billions along the way (much of which he will ultimately … Read more
22 Tom Pritzker Age: 63 Occupation: Executive chairman, Hyatt Hotels This scholar of Himalayan art probably needed all his Zen in 2013 when ironing out the final details of that decadelong untangling of his family’s assets. He has reportedly helped chart a path to peace for some of the bickering heirs while still pursuing a number … Read more
