April 25, 2023

This week’s Up-and-Comer is Lisa Karsky, a consultant at Maximizing Excellence.

Name: Lisa Karsky

Age: 40

Hometown: Springfield

What brought you to Sioux Falls?

I grew up in southeast South Dakota and wanted to be back closer to home. I knew enough about the community, the people and the growth that it really seemed like an easy decision to choose Sioux Falls.

What keeps you in Sioux Falls?

Sioux Falls has so much to offer when it comes to overall quality of life, excellent education options and plenty of entertainment. But beyond that, there is such a great culture of giving back to help the entire community thrive. Whether through volunteering or financial gifts, it’s hard to look very far without seeing the benefit and competitive advantage that philanthropy has provided here.

What’s your favorite thing about your job?

I love connecting with people to learn about them, what they are passionate about and the organizations that they work for and volunteer with. Getting to do that every day truly makes what I do a dream job!

How did you get connected to your industry?

Honestly, probably luck! When I decided to move back to South Dakota, I had been volunteering with a couple of organizations through my previous employer so started to explore the community by looking at organizations that were familiar to me. At that same time, Sioux Empire United Way was hiring for a campaign director, so I took a chance and applied, was hired and fell in love with philanthropy as a career. From there, the opportunities for growth have really been driven by relationships made. I was recently given the opportunity to join Maximizing Excellence LLC as a consultant and to use what I’ve learned throughout my career to help organizations improve their effectiveness and achieve high impact.

Describe your workplace in three words.

Energetic, dynamic, collaborative.

What is something someone might be surprised to learn about you?

Prior to my current career path, I went through the leadership development program for Target and worked in store leadership in Watertown, South Dakota; Fargo North Dakota; and Monticello, Minnesota. Also my first-ever job was detasseling corn when I was 14 years old!

What’s your favorite way to give back to your community?

Helping to connect people and missions when it is mutually beneficial.

What’s one business you’d like to see in Sioux Falls that isn’t here now?

Crate & Barrel.

If you had $1 million to start a business, what kind of business would it be?

In my free time, I enjoy working on house projects leaning more toward the design side, so probably something along the lines of interior design style or home staging.