President and Chief Executive Officer

Dawn Sweeney National Restaurant Association Download high-resolution photo

Dawn Sweeney

As president and chief executive officer of the National Restaurant Association, Dawn Sweeney leads the chief business association for the restaurant industry. One of the nation's most powerful trade organizations, the National Restaurant Association represents all types of restaurant and foodservice concepts, including quickservice, fast casual, managed foodservice, casual and fine dining, along with manufacturers, suppliers and distributors, for an industry of 945,000 restaurant and foodservice outlets and 12.7 million employees.

The organization's mission is to help its members -- the cornerstones of their communities -- build customer loyalty, rewarding careers and financial success. She also serves as the CEO of the National Restaurant Association's Educational Foundation, a philanthropic foundation dedicated to enhancing the industry's service to the public.

Immediately before taking the helm of the National Restaurant Association in October 2007, Sweeney was president and CEO of AARP Services, the wholly owned taxable subsidiary of AARP. She was responsible for growing annual revenues from $175 million to $785 million during her tenure -- revenues used to support AARP's mission. Nearly 11 million AARP members used AARP Services products. Sweeney's stewardship of AARP Services included the launch of AARP Financial, which offers financial planning services and products such as AARP Funds, a suite of mutual funds.

Sweeney previously was AARP's Group Executive Officer for Membership. In that role, she was responsible for member recruitment and retention, which improved by over 30 percent during her tenure, and brand development, including the launch of AARP's Hispanic membership development initiatives, as well as AARP The Magazine, one of the nation's highest circulation magazines with over 20 million readers.

Her 25 years of marketing, advocacy and policy experience include leadership positions at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, a membership organization of consumer-owned electric utilities serving more than 30 million individuals, and the International Dairy Foods Association, the trade association for the nation's dairy foods industry.

Her leadership has generated national attention and several awards. She was recently named one of the top association CEOs in the country, chosen from interviews with hundreds of CEOs, Washington influentials and executive recruiters, as published in the July 2009 edition of CEO Update. Factors for consideration included the individual's legislative success, leadership ability, skill in raising their association's profile and managing in a crisis, history of building coalitions and reaching consensus, and membership excellence in areas of meetings, education and certification. Irish America magazine selected her in 2007 as one of its 100 honorees and she was also recently inducted into the Honor Society of the American Culinary Federation's American Academy of Chefs.

Sweeney serves on the board of Save the Children, a global organization committed to creating lasting change in the lives of children in need. She is an active member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Committee of 100, the International Women's Forum, and the Committee of 200, an international network of female executives. A native of Maine, Sweeney has a master's degree in business administration from The George Washington University and a bachelor of arts degree in government from Colby College in Waterville, Maine. She resides in Northern Virginia with her husband and their 11-year-old son.

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