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Prestigious Women Awards Honorees: Amy McGraw

Amy McGraw is Marketing VP and CXO for Tropical Financial Credit Union. She has been highly successful in developing innovative marketing plans and using data and AI to develop personalized omnichannel experiences for consumers in the S. Florida market. She has been a leader in the credit union profession nearly 20 years, contributing to the betterment of the industry as a whole.

 

Favorite quote: Carpe Diem

Fun fact: I am a huge advocate for Pitbull breeds of dogs and one of my three dogs is a rescue Pitbull from Miami. I also have trained all my dogs to be Canine Good Citizens.

How do you unwind after a long day of work? Walking the dogs, swimming, or reading.

What challenges have you faced in your career, and how did you overcome them? My first job in credit union marketing, I worked for a mortgage company and I was told the CEO would never promote a woman to a senior leadership position. I overcame it by being hired as the VP of marketing for a credit union in his market. I am told by others that still work there that he counts his biggest career mistake as underestimating me and letting me go.

What has been the most monumental moment of your career thus far? Being named the Credit Union Marketing Professional of the Year in 2011 by the Credit Union National Association – the biggest honor for any credit union marketer in the country.

Who are your role models? Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Michelle Obama, Maya Angelou, and Meryl Streep

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten? Failure is simply the isolation of that which does not work – it should never be feared.

What advice would you give a young woman at the start of her career? Never let anyone use gender to define your limits.

How has being a woman impacted your career? When I got out of college with a Telecommunications degree, I started working in sports television – became a producer in a VERY male-dominated industry. I never thought of myself as a woman in a man’s world; but MANY did everything they could to remind me I didn’t belong. It was especially difficult when I was pregnant and then nursing my babies in an office with only one bathroom. Every roadblock put up became just another opportunity for me to tear it down and gain strength.

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Drew Limsky

Drew Limsky

Editor-in-Chief

BIOGRAPHY

Drew Limsky joined Lifestyle Media Group in August 2020 as Editor-in-Chief of South Florida Business & Wealth. His first issue of SFBW, October 2020, heralded a reimagined structure, with new content categories and a slew of fresh visual themes. “As sort of a cross between Forbes and Robb Report, with a dash of GQ and Vogue,” Limsky says, “SFBW reflects South Florida’s increasingly sophisticated and dynamic business and cultural landscape.”

Limsky, an avid traveler, swimmer and film buff who holds a law degree and Ph.D. from New York University, likes to say, “I’m a doctor, but I can’t operate—except on your brand.” He wrote his dissertation on the nonfiction work of Joan Didion. Prior to that, Limsky received his B.A. in English, summa cum laude, from Emory University and earned his M.A. in literature at American University in connection with a Masters Scholar Award fellowship.

Limsky came to SFBW at the apex of a storied career in journalism and publishing that includes six previous lead editorial roles, including for some of the world’s best-known brands. He served as global editor-in-chief of Lexus magazine, founding editor-in-chief of custom lifestyle magazines for Cadillac and Holland America Line, and was the founding editor-in-chief of Modern Luxury Interiors South Florida. He also was the executive editor for B2B magazines for Acura and Honda Financial Services, and he served as travel editor for Conde Nast. Magazines under Limsky’s editorship have garnered more than 75 industry awards.

He has also written for many of the country’s top newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Miami Herald, Boston Globe, USA Today, Worth, Robb Report, Afar, Time Out New York, National Geographic Traveler, Men’s Journal, Ritz-Carlton, Elite Traveler, Florida Design, Metropolis and Architectural Digest Mexico. His other clients have included Four Seasons, Acqualina Resort & Residences, Yahoo!, American Airlines, Wynn, Douglas Elliman and Corcoran. As an adjunct assistant professor, Limsky has taught journalism, film and creative writing at the City University of New York, Pace University, American University and other colleges.