Sara Gavin Inducted into Minnesota Business Hall of Fame

Weber Shandwick’s President of North America, Sara Gavin, was named to the Minnesota Business Hall of Fame by Twin Cities Business at an induction ceremony in Minneapolis this week. Each year, the publication honors five influential business leaders who are trailblazers in their fields and embody a commitment to building business in the state.

Gavin was a founding member of the Minneapolis-based PR firm, Mona, Meyer, McGrath & Gavin, which was acquired by Shandwick in 1988. Gavin stayed with the firm through additional mergers & acquisitions, and what would become Weber Shandwick in 2001. After successfully leading its Minneapolis office for over 15 years, she became Weber Shandwick’s president for North America in 2013.  In this role, she oversees the strategy for clients and talent across the firm’s largest geographic network, comprised of 26 offices in both the U.S. and Canada.

“Sara has storytelling in her DNA and there is nobody who can craft a powerful and engaging narrative better. And her one-of-a-kind approach — combining humility, investment in people and a conviction to make everything we do better — embodies the collaborative spirit at Weber Shandwick,” said Gail Heimann, president and CEO of Weber Shandwick. “Sara has been instrumental in advancing our firm’s growth in North America and in Minnesota, where she is equally committed to supporting the community and state she calls home. I’m thrilled to see Sara take her place in the Minnesota Business Hall of Fame.”

Under Gavin’s leadership, Weber Shandwick’s North America operation was recognized as U.S. Agency of the Year by PRWeek for three consecutive years (2015-2017), the most awarded agency at The Holmes Report’s 2019 North America SABRE Awards and named a Best Place to Work by Ad Age in 2019.

Gavin has been active in her local community for decades; formerly serving on the boards of Second Harvest Heartland, the Minnesota Women’s Economic Roundtable, American Public Media Group, St. Catherine University and College Possible, a national organization based in Minnesota that connects promising, low-income students with coaching and support to help make college admission and success possible. Gavin currently serves as Chair of the corporate governance and public affairs committee and sits on the human resources and compensation committees of Securian Financial, a Saint-Paul-based mutual holding company that provides a range of financial services and products.