Marilyn Carlson Nelson
Chairman & CEO, Carlson Companies

Marilyn Carlson Nelson is chairman and chief executive officer of Carlson Companies, a global group with interests in business and leisure travel, hotel, restaurant, cruise, and marketing services. With headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A., Carlson-owned and franchised operations employ about 190,000 people around the world. In 2004, sales under Carlson brands worldwide (including franchised operations) totalled US$26.1 billion.
The Carlson family of brands and services include: Regent® International Hotels, Radisson® Hotels & Resorts, Park Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson®, Park Inn® hotels, Carlson Wagonlit Travel®, Cruise Holidays, America's Vacations Stores, Radisson Seven Seas Cruises®, and T.G.I. Friday's® restaurants.
In 2004, Forbes magazine selected Marilyn as one of "The World's 100 Most Powerful Women." She is a regular on Fortune magazine's list of the Most Powerful Women in Business and has been ranked by Travel Agent magazine as "The Most Powerful Woman in Travel" annually since 1997. She serves on the board of the Singapore Tourism Board, and outside her industry is a board member of Exxon-Mobil and the Mayo Clinic Foundation.
Marilyn is a member of the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum and in 2004 co-chaired the forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. She currently serves on that organization's Board of Governors for Travel and Tourism.