Executive Director
Executive director of The Center for Food Integrity, Mickie French is an accomplished global expert in marketing and communications with a focus on helping companies develop and activate a more purpose-driven strategy. Her depth of experience across the food value chain, from agriculture to ingredients and CPG, has made her a trusted strategy and innovation partner. She is particularly passionate about bringing together multiple stakeholders to drive significant impact on global sustainability issues.
Previously, in senior strategic leadership roles with advertising and public relations firms, Mickie worked with some of the world’s most powerful brands to launch them into new markets or reposition them based on local insights. In addition, as an advocate for global education, Mickie served on the Executive Leadership Committee and various other volunteer committees of The Thunderbird School of Global Management where she earned an MBA in International Management. She was a frequent guest lecturer at the Singapore Management University and the Budapest University of Economics.
A Nebraska native, Mickie’s first job was detasseling corn, a job she believes every teenager should hold as a rite of passage. She has lived and worked in 10 countries (speaking six languages in addition to English). Mickie currently lives in the Chicagoland Area where she can be found on the shores of Lake Michigan year-round.