The BIG Idea Committee is excited to announce Joe Mahon as this years keynote speaker at the virtual final competition! Joe will talk about the importance of small business for the economy.

Here is a recent article Joe wrote if you want to read his work.

Joe Mahon is a regional outreach director at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Prior to that, he served as a regional economist and as a staff writer and analyst for Minneapolis Fed publications the Region and fedgazette. Mahon’s primary responsibilities involve tracking several sectors of the Ninth District economy—an area that covers Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Montana and portions of Wisconsin and Michigan—for the Fed. Sectors he follows closely include agriculture, manufacturing, energy and mining. He holds degrees in economics and journalism from the University of Minnesota.