A partner who is now in charge of client relations at Ice Miller, Melissa Proffitt practices as an employee benefits tax lawyer and is chair of the Food and Agribusiness Group. She serves on more than 15 community boards, including as vice chair of the Indy Chamber and chair of the Indiana University Women’s Philanthropy Leadership Council. She is a member of the team advising IU President Pam Whitten on the separation of IUPUI into two schools. Proffitt also has worked on political campaigns for U.S. Sen. Todd Young and former Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, among others.
Leadership: “My favorite part about being a leader is: (1) making things happen, I am a “doer”; (2) watching others demonstrate their skills and grow as professionals, who then themselves become leaders; and (3) connecting people. … Finally, I love to connect people, on a one-one-one basis, to help promote their success and success in our city. Relationships are fundamental to all that we do. They build trust, loyalty and stability.”
Kim Ryan has served as a director and president and CEO of Hillenbrand since December 2021. Before becoming CEO, she was the company’s executive vice president and named incoming CEO for a transition that began in June 2021. She also served as president of Hillenbrand’s Coperion business from 2015-2021 and oversaw Hillenbrand’s Rotex business during part of that period. Under Ryan’s leadership, Hillenbrand’s focus is on expansion across the company’s portfolio of highly engineered processing equipment and markets that include durable plastics, food and recycling. Hillenbrand is the 19th-largest public company in Indiana, with $2.8 billion in revenue, according to IBJ research.
First job: Working in a gift store. “At that time, it taught me how to be confident in my approach of our customers and think creatively around what we were selling.”
Something surprising: “I became a grandma last year, and that ‘job’ is my favorite role.”
Walk-up music: “Brick House” by the Commodores
Brent Yeagy became president and CEO of Wabash Corp. in June 2018 after serving as president and chief operating officer since October 2016. In 2023, Wabash achieved record profitability and earnings per share and, this year, it was listed among Forbes’ Most Successful Small Companies and Newsweek’s Most Responsible Companies. Yeagy joined Wabash, North America’s largest producer of semitrailers and liquid transportation systems, in 2003 and held several positions of increasing responsibility, including vice president of manufacturing, vice president and general manager of commercial trailer products, and senior vice president and group president of commercial trailer products. Before Wabash, from 1999 to 2003, Yeagy held various positions within human resources, environmental engineering and safety management for Delco Remy International.
First job: The U.S. Navy. “It created a profound sense of duty and responsibility in me as well as a deep appreciation [for] how systems are required to manage complex organizations and operations.”
Dan Starr has served as president and CEO of Do it Best, a member-owned wholesale distribution and services company supporting independently owned hardware stores, home centers and lumberyards across the United States and in 54 countries, since January 2016. Earlier this year, Starr led the merger of Do it Best, Indiana’s largest privately held company, with United Hardware, a home improvement wholesaler based in Minnesota. With the acquisition, Do it Best grew membership 20% and added a ninth distribution center in the Great Plains. Starr also spurred the launch of the Do it Best Foundation, which has granted more than $1 million over the past five years to organizations that support health and wellness and youth enrichment projects where Do it Best team members live.
Advice for a young person: “You’ll be most successful when you find a mission or culture that matches well with who you are as a person. Then, demonstrate your initiative. Deliver results at work that show you are working at a responsibility level beyond your current role, and let those results do the talking for you.”
Amy Schumacher has been part of The Heritage Group family of businesses for over 15 years. As CEO, she oversees the company’s portfolio of more than 30 businesses, HGVentures, and its 5,500 employees. Under her leadership, The Heritage Group has increased its focus on sustainability and sustainable investments, including investing in what is now the largest EV battery recycling company in North America, Cirba Solutions; solar panel recycling; and production of sustainable aviation fuel. In 2008, Schumacher co-founded Monument Chemical, the group’s specialty chemicals business, and served as president and CEO for eight years. In that role, she was responsible for growing Monument from a small, Indianapolis-based business into a global company with operations in Europe and the United States. In 2016, she transitioned to president of The Heritage Group and was appointed CEO in 2020.
Favorite thing about leadership: Seeing team members succeed. “My grandad always told me to ‘bet on your people—they will amaze you and themselves!'”
Ronald Romain is executive chairman of United Cos., a holding company comprised of four operating companies: Professional Transportation Inc., Romain Automotive Group, United Leasing & Finance and Tri-State Aero. Romain is also active in his community, working with regional leaders to develop Talent EVV, a broad-based effort to enhance economic growth, population, education, poverty reduction and early childhood education. Romain is active on a number of civic, charitable and corporate boards, including serving as chairman of the University of Southern Indiana board. As a member of that board, Romain assisted in the school’s move from Division II to Division I status for its athletic programs.
First job: Working with his father as he started the company in 1964. “Learning about the value of diligent work, and results, were important lessons learned. Learning to accomplish and complete tasks and provide value to the business was of utmost importance.”
Laura Berry is executive director of the Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence and a nationally recognized expert in domestic violence. Her work includes overseeing and coordinating statewide training and technical assistance for all domestic violence programs in Indiana. In the last biennial budget, she helped increase statewide funding for domestic violence services from $6 million to $9 million, and she received $2.5 million in funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control to implement health equity strategies to prevent domestic violence and evaluate Indiana’s paid-leave policy. She was a 2023 IBJ Woman of Influence.
Something surprising: “I share a birthday with D-Day: 6/6/66 [same day, different year]. As you can imagine, my identification gets a second glance and you know my age, but my birthday has driven my interest in history and the history of cemeteries.”
Advice for a young person: “Listen and learn: It makes you a stronger and a better leader.”
Pet: Koda, a Great Pyrenees, adopted from the Humane Society five years ago
Jennifer Rumsey became chair and CEO of Cummins Inc. in August 2023 after serving as the company’s president and chief operating officer, president of components (one of Cummins’ five business segments) and chief technical officer. As chair and CEO, she oversees strategic direction, growth initiatives and global operations for the 105-year-old, Indiana-based company and its more than 10,000 employees in Indiana and more than 75,500 employees worldwide. Rumsey co-authored Cummins’ Destination Zero strategy, which calls for the company to go further, faster to reduce the greenhouse gas and air-quality impacts of its products and reach zero emissions by 2050.
Advice for a young person: “Be open to new experiences that challenge you and make you grow. … Find people in your life that you can look up to and identify those in your corner that push you to be the best version of yourself and help you realize your potential.”
Pets: Three dogs named after charcuterie board items: Olive, 15; Roquey, 6; and Chori, 1 (short for Chorizo).
Ned Pfau is a fifth-generation leader of Jeffersonville-based Geo. Pfau’s Sons Co., where he was appointed CEO and president in 1965. The company—which was founded by George Pfau only four years after the Civil War ended, in 1869—manufactures specialty fats and oils, including metal oils and leather-working oils. He’s led the company for over 50 years, along with maintaining significant involvement in the southern Indiana city’s business community. Pfau is vice president of the board of the River Ridge Commerce Center. He is a member of the Jeffersonville Urban Enterprise Zone board and is an emeritus member of the Indiana University Foundation board. He previously served 20 years on the Indiana Port Commission. An Indiana University grad, Pfau and his wife made a significant (but unspecified) donation that helped renovate an Indiana University golf course now named The Pfau Course at Indiana University.
Mung Chiang became the 13th president of Purdue University on Jan. 1, 2023. As president, he works to further the university’s land-grant mission and values, while creating talent, jobs and innovation along America’s hard tech corridor. His goal is “to help Boilermaker students, faculty, staff and alumni take small steps that turn into giant leaps in the discovery and dissemination of knowledge.” Chiang is also the Roscoe H. George Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and currently serves on the inaugural board of the U.S. Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation and several corporate and not-for-profit boards. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2024, in mathematical and physical sciences. Previously, he was professor of electrical engineering at Princeton University, where he founded the Princeton EDGE Lab in 2009 and several startups and industry consortia in edge computing.
Something surprising: “I like ice cream.”
Advice for a young person: Work harder.
Worries about: student safety
