Christie Hefner

Christie Hefner is both a well-respected business leader and a strong advocate for the advancement of women and social justice.  From 1988-2008, Hefner was Chairman and CEO of Playboy Enterprises, Inc., making her the longest serving female CEO of a U.S. public company.  During her tenure, Christie restructured the company, initiating its highly successful electronic and international expansion.  When she left, over 40% of her executives were women.  For three years, she was named one of Fortune’s 100 Most Powerful Women in the World.  She was subsequently Executive Chairman of Canyon Ranch Enterprises and is now Chairman of Hatch Beauty.

Christie was a founding member of The Chicago Network, The Committee of 200, and the Chicago Chapter of Women Corporate Directors.  She is on the Advisory Board of Springboard Enterprises, a nonprofit that is an accelerator for women tech entrepreneurs, and the board of the Center for American Progress Action, the leading progressive public policy think tank.  She received the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) Chicago’s first-ever Voice Award and she was inducted into the Women’s Business Development Center Hall of Fame for “opening doors and building opportunities for all women entrepreneurs.”