The Top 50 Nashville Women Leaders of 2026
Nashville’s influence isn’t powered by any single industry-it’s the overlap that makes the region distinctive. Healthcare and higher education shape the talent base. Tourism and entertainment shape the brand. Corporate headquarters and fast-scaling companies shape opportunity. And civic institutions-utilities, courts, and public agencies-quietly determine whether growth is sustainable, equitable, and functional.
What follows is an editorial, ranked roster of women whose work most consistently changes outcomes across the greater Nashville metro-through capital decisions, job creation, workforce strategy, policy, operational scale, cultural reach, and community investment.
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#1 Amy Adams Strunk
In a city where sports, tourism, and real estate development often move together, the Titans’ controlling owner sits at a uniquely influential intersection: brand, civic pride, major-event gravity, and long-horizon investment decisions. Her leadership matters not just to fans, but to executives watching how Nashville competes for talent and global attention-because “what the city is becoming” is part culture, part infrastructure, and part confidence.
#2 Stephanie Coleman
The Chamber CEO is one of the region’s most practical power positions: convening employers, shaping economic development priorities, and translating business needs into action across public and private sectors. Coleman’s influence shows up in the deals Nashville pursues, the coalitions it builds, and the way the region tells its story to investors, relocations, and high-skill talent.
#3 Teresa Broyles-Aplin
Every major growth ambition-housing, transit, data centers, electrification, business expansion-ultimately runs through reliable power. Leading NES puts Broyles-Aplin at the center of Nashville’s “can we scale responsibly?” question, with direct impact on resilience, cost, and readiness for big infrastructure moments.
#4 Deana Ivey
Tourism is not just weekends and conventions-it’s a jobs engine, a small-business ecosystem, and a perception machine that shapes how outsiders value the city. As CEO of the region’s destination marketing organization, Ivey helps determine how Nashville competes for events, visitor spend, and the kind of global visibility that can either accelerate growth-or distort it.
#5 Mimi Vaughn
A public-company CEO based in the region brings a different kind of influence: corporate governance, investor scrutiny, and strategic decisions that ripple through jobs, suppliers, and commercial real estate. Vaughn’s role matters because it keeps Nashville represented in national boardrooms-and because retail and consumer brands are powerful “signalers” of where culture (and spending) is heading.
#6 Jennifer Berres
In a healthcare-heavy region, the HR leader at a global-scale operator has enormous leverage over workforce pipelines, leadership development, retention, and the practical realities of “how work gets done.” Berres’ impact is felt through hiring priorities, talent systems, and leadership culture-especially in an era where healthcare staffing and burnout are economic issues, not just HR issues.
#7 Anna Hemnes, MD
Clinical leadership at the “system” level shapes patient access, physician strategy, and care standards across the region. Hemnes’ role influences how complex-care capacity is built, how specialty services evolve, and how medical leadership translates into both health outcomes and the attractiveness of Nashville as a destination for top-tier clinicians.
#8 C. Cybele Raver, PhD
A provost is a talent-and-innovation multiplier: steering academic priorities, research direction, and how education aligns with the needs of employers and communities. In a metro competing for knowledge work, Raver’s influence is felt through what Vanderbilt chooses to build, study, credential, and partner on-often years before the public sees the downstream economic effect.
#9 Candice McQueen, EdD
University presidents shape the practical bridge between education and employment-especially in metros where workforce demand outpaces supply. McQueen’s leadership matters because it directly affects credentials, employer partnerships, and the talent pipeline that feeds healthcare, business, education, and the civic sector in Middle Tennessee.
#10 Sarah Trahern
Nashville’s cultural capital is economic capital. The CMA is one of the institutions that helps convert “Music City” into global brand equity-supporting industry growth, strengthening the city’s entertainment identity, and sustaining the events and relationships that make Nashville a magnet for creators and business alike.
#11 Erica Mitchell
United Way leadership is a different kind of executive role: systems-level coordination across nonprofits, employers, and government to move the needle on stability, education, and long-term mobility. Mitchell’s influence shows up in what gets scaled, what gets coordinated, and how the region’s corporate community turns generosity into measurable outcomes.
#12 Sara Correa
In global companies, marketing is not “promotion”-it’s strategy: brand positioning, customer trust, growth narratives, and often internal culture. Correa’s role matters in Nashville because Bridgestone is a major corporate presence, and brand strategy influences everything from local vendor ecosystems to how top talent perceives the company-and the region around it.
#13 Michele Herlein
The “people” function increasingly determines whether a company can execute-especially in competitive labor markets. Herlein’s influence comes from shaping leadership expectations, talent strategy, and workforce experience in a major employer-impact that shows up indirectly across the metro through hiring standards, development pipelines, and corporate community engagement.
#14 Cindy Christy
Nashville’s tech identity is built by leaders who scale real revenue and real teams. Asurion’s revenue leadership is a growth lever-driving commercial strategy, partnerships, and market expansion that support high-value jobs and reinforce Nashville’s credibility as a place where tech-enabled businesses can thrive.
#15 Andrea Magyera Jimenez
A CFO’s influence is often “quiet power”: capital allocation, investment discipline, risk management, and the financial architecture that enables growth. In a city attracting corporate expansions, visible finance leadership at a significant tech-enabled company signals operational maturity-and helps keep Nashville in the conversation for sophisticated corporate functions.
#16 Emily Taylor
Operational leadership at a national retailer is a masterclass in complexity: supply chains, store execution, labor realities, and disciplined expansion. Taylor’s seat matters because it shapes how a major Nashville-area headquartered company performs at scale-an influence that extends into logistics networks, vendor ecosystems, and the region’s reputation as a place that can run big businesses.
#17 Rhonda Taylor
In high-scale retail, legal leadership is business leadership: compliance, governance, risk, disputes, and the guardrails that protect strategy. Taylor’s influence matters because it affects how the company navigates fast-moving regulatory environments-and because strong legal stewardship increasingly determines corporate resilience.
#18 Peggy Valentine, EdD
One of Nashville’s most urgent constraints is workforce capacity-especially in healthcare. Valentine’s role matters because allied health pipelines (training, credentialing, and practical pathways to stable careers) are a direct lever on patient access, staffing stability, and upward mobility for residents-impact that’s both economic and human.
#19 Dawn Kussow
Healthcare isn’t only hospitals; it’s also aging services, senior living operations, and the financial sustainability of care ecosystems. A CFO in this space shapes investment priorities, operational resilience, and the ability to navigate a complex cost environment-decisions that influence jobs, facilities, and service stability across the region.
#20 Apryl Childs-Potter
Nashville’s healthcare “cluster” doesn’t coordinate itself-someone has to convene leaders, translate shared needs into action, and build connective tissue across competitors and partners. Childs-Potter’s role matters because convening power is a competitive advantage: it shapes what Nashville can solve together (workforce, innovation, policy, and growth) versus what stays fragmented.
#21 Mary Sue Patchett
As Brookdale’s chief operating officer, Patchett brings disciplined operational leadership to one of the nation’s largest senior living providers, translating strategy into consistent, high-quality resident experiences across a complex footprint. Her ability to drive performance while keeping care and workforce priorities front and center makes her a pivotal force in Nashville’s healthcare economy.
#22 Kelli Nations
Nations sets the clinical and operational bar for nursing across a major HCA division, championing workforce development, patient safety, and excellence at scale. In a city where healthcare is an economic engine, her leadership strengthens outcomes and elevates the talent pipeline that keeps the region competitive.
#23 Tomi Galin
Galin steers corporate communications and public affairs for a major hospital operator, shaping trust with patients, employees, investors, and communities through clear, credible leadership. Her work protects reputation, supports growth, and helps align complex health system priorities with the stakeholders who influence long-term success.
#24 Beth Witte
Witte’s compliance and privacy leadership safeguards patients and organizations alike, ensuring rigorous standards across a large network of facilities and affiliates. By building a culture of integrity and risk discipline, she helps healthcare innovation and expansion happen responsibly while protecting the enterprise’s license to operate.
#25 Heather Dixon
As CFO, Dixon provides the financial stewardship that enables Acadia Healthcare to invest, grow, and adapt in the high-demand behavioral health space. Her strategic command of capital, reporting, and performance management turns resources into expanded access and stronger, more resilient operations.
#26 Cathy Spencer
Spencer shapes the people strategy at AllianceBernstein, strengthening culture, leadership development, and the employee experience across a global organization. Her impact is felt in Nashville’s reputation as a finance and talent hub, where attracting and retaining top performers is a decisive competitive advantage.
#27 Sithandazile Ntuka
Ntuka brings sharp governance and operational rigor to internal audit, helping AllianceBernstein stay resilient amid evolving risks and regulatory expectations. That steady, behind-the-scenes leadership protects stakeholders and enables confident growth, making her influence outsized in a trust-driven industry.
#28 Dana M. Sanders
Sanders leads internal audit at a major regional bank, ensuring strong controls, transparent reporting, and a proactive approach to enterprise risk. Her leadership bolsters confidence in the institution and supports sustainable lending and investment that ripple through Nashville’s business community.
#29 Deborah Hennessee Thomas
Hennessee Thomas is a growth catalyst for businesses and builders, guiding commercial and construction lending that turns plans into payrolls, projects, and new housing. Her seasoned judgment and relationship-based approach help entrepreneurs secure smart capital and keep the region’s development momentum moving.
#30 Kimberley Gardiner
Gardiner drives brand and customer strategy for Tractor Supply, leading marketing that turns loyalty into durable growth across channels and communities. By translating consumer insight into clear positioning and measurable demand, she strengthens one of the region’s most visible retail success stories.
#31 Joy Powell
Powell leads Springbuk at the intersection of healthcare and analytics, helping organizations turn complex data into actionable decisions that improve outcomes and manage costs. Her strategic leadership amplifies Nashville’s innovation edge by proving that smarter insights can deliver real business and human impact.
#32 Tatum Hauck Allsep
Allsep built Music Health Alliance into a mission-driven powerhouse that helps music professionals navigate coverage, care, and financial barriers to staying healthy. By protecting the people behind Nashville’s creative economy, she strengthens the workforce that fuels the city’s global brand and hospitality ecosystem.
#33 Jennifer Turner
Turner guides the Tennessee Performing Arts Center as both cultural institution and sophisticated enterprise, balancing fundraising, programming, and community access with financial discipline. Her leadership elevates Nashville’s arts economy, drawing audiences, supporting jobs, and reinforcing the city’s appeal to talent and tourism.
#34 Terri Luke
Luke leads Nashville Public Library as a modern civic platform for literacy, digital inclusion, and lifelong learning, extending opportunity far beyond books. Her focus on community-centered services strengthens workforce readiness and neighborhood vitality, delivering measurable social and economic returns for the city.
#35 Masami Tyson
Tyson brings operational excellence to Metro Nashville’s mayoral office, coordinating complex priorities into clear execution across departments and partners. In a fast-growing city, that ability to align policy, budgets, and delivery directly shapes business confidence, quality of life, and long-term competitiveness.
#36 Holly Kirby
As chief justice, Kirby provides steady leadership for Tennessee’s highest court, strengthening the predictability and fairness that commerce and communities rely on. Her trailblazing career and commitment to effective judicial administration make her a consequential figure in the institutional foundation that underpins growth.
#37 Carrie Stokes
Stokes leads Barge Design Solutions in delivering engineering and architecture work that shapes the region’s infrastructure, industry, and community spaces. By pairing strategic vision with client-focused execution, she drives projects that create jobs, unlock investment, and improve the built environment across the Southeast.
#38 Mendy Mazzo
Mazzo is a force multiplier in large-scale construction, building partnerships and winning work that turns ambitious plans into hospitals, campuses, and critical infrastructure. Her national business-development leadership brings investment and opportunity to the region, helping Nashville compete for marquee projects and the skilled jobs that follow.
#39 Tonya Spry
Spry shapes Gresham Smith’s talent strategy and culture, ensuring the firm has the people and leadership systems to deliver complex design work at scale. By modernizing recruitment, development, and retention, she strengthens an employer that influences how cities are planned, built, and experienced.
#40 Kate Hammond
Hammond helps businesses make smarter moves with capital and banking strategy, providing trusted counsel that supports growth, resilience, and operational efficiency. Her relationship-driven approach connects decision-makers with the resources they need to invest confidently, hire, and expand in the Nashville market.
#41 Janeen Lalik
Lalik brings strategic and operational leadership to the Nashville Predators enterprise, helping drive fan experience, partnerships, and venue performance. Her work strengthens a major sports and entertainment engine that fuels downtown activity, tourism, and the city’s national visibility.
#42 Rachel Reed
Reed advises middle-market leaders through complex tax, assurance, and consulting challenges, delivering clarity that improves decision-making and performance. By leading client work with both technical depth and business pragmatism, she helps Nashville companies scale confidently and stay compliant as they grow.
#43 Amy Cox Williams
Cox Williams elevates Ingram Content Group’s global marketing, sharpening brand strategy and go-to-market execution for a company that sits at the center of publishing supply chains. Her leadership strengthens Nashville’s position in media and logistics while helping authors, publishers, and retailers reach readers more effectively.
#44 Anna Maddox
Maddox drives LBMC’s people strategy with a clear focus on engagement, development, and a culture that sustains high performance. By building talent systems that support growth in a competitive professional-services market, she helps LBMC continue to attract top expertise and deliver exceptional client value.
#45 Debbie Elliott
Elliott leads LBMC Staffing Solutions with a keen understanding of what Nashville employers need, matching high-caliber talent to roles that keep organizations moving. Her impact shows up in stronger teams and faster hiring, reinforcing the labor market infrastructure that underpins regional growth.
#46 Emily Hatch Bowman
Bowman leads Bradley’s Nashville office while advising financial institutions and real estate clients on sophisticated transactions, making her a key enabler of capital flow and development. Her combination of legal leadership and deal execution influences the pace of growth across projects that shape the city’s skyline and economy.
#47 Michaela Poizner
Poizner’s leadership in health law and public policy helps providers and health businesses navigate complex regulation while pursuing innovative, sustainable strategies. In a healthcare-driven region, her counsel reduces risk and accelerates smart growth, strengthening the ecosystem that powers Nashville’s economy.
#48 Amy Roeder Norris
Roeder Norris drives strategy and client-development execution for a leading corporate and securities practice, ensuring the firm’s business engine stays aligned with market opportunity. Her work supports transactions and relationships that fuel investment, entrepreneurship, and expansion across Nashville’s most dynamic companies.
#49 Melisa Wimsatt
Wimsatt modernizes how a premier law firm operates, integrating administrative, operational, and technology functions to elevate attorney productivity and client service. That operational leadership turns strong legal talent into consistent, scalable delivery, boosting the firm’s impact across the regional business landscape.
#50 Maneet Chauhan
Chauhan has built a distinctive restaurant portfolio and hospitality brand, pairing culinary creativity with disciplined operations that create jobs and energize Nashville’s dining economy. Her national profile and entrepreneurial drive attract attention and customers to the city, amplifying tourism, talent appeal, and local small-business momentum.
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