Board member Chris Krusmark Honored as a Notable Nonprofit Leader
We are happy to share that long-time board member Chris Krusmark has been named to this year’s Twin Cities Business List for Notable Nonprofit Board Members!
As the Executive Vice President, Chief Retail and People Officer for Sleep Number, Chris is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to opportunities to acquire the skills and credentials needed to secure family-sustaining work. His passion is deeply personal, and rooted in his childhood where he saw firsthand how the power of accessing job training programs had the power to completely change the trajectory of stability and success for his family.
Chris’ commitment to workforce equity has included 15+ years of service to Hired as a board member, culminating with being board chair for the past five years. Among his many contributions to Hired are his steadfast leadership during the pandemic, leading a community-centered strategic planning process, and improving board governance and operations.
President and CEO, Julie Brekke, shares her excitement and gratitude to Chris: “I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with Chris as a thought partner and colleague over the past five years! All of us at Hired are grateful for his service and commitment to ensure stability as we transition to our next generation of leadership.”
“His passion, dedication, and hard work over many years of board service have been a major asset to Hired. ”
Chris’ commitment to workforce equity has included 15+ years of service to Hired as a board member, and as its board chair for the past five years. As Hired’s board chair during the pandemic, Chris was a crucial thought partner with the Hired board, President and leadership team, as the team navigated the challenges of operating during an unprecedented time, and successfully implementing a fully digital service delivery model during the pandemic.
Chris was instrumental to several efforts to support Hired strategic growth and positioning for the future, including:
Overseeing an inclusive and ambitious strategic plan process that is adaptive and prepares the organization for future growth
Restructuring Hired’s Executive Committee to be more holistic and aligned with best practices in governance
Investing in Hired through stewardship of a multi-million gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott; and many other contributions to Hired.
His career has spanned a number of fields and has progressively moved through corporate leadership roles. At Sleep Number, he has served Sleep Number as Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, Interim Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Sales Operations, Field Services and Training. In these roles, he led store and home delivery operations, customer sales centers, sales promotions, and wholesale business development. Earlier in his career, he held finance leadership positions supporting sales, real estate, marketing and product.
Chris holds an MBA from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management and an undergraduate degree in business administration with a focus on accounting from Drake University.
From our entire team, we are deeply grateful for the many ways that Chris Krusmark has been a valuable leader for our community. We share our congratulations to Chris and the team at Sleep Number for this honor and are appreciative for Chris’ legacy supporting Hired.