Ivy alumni to be honored at the 94th Annual Honors & Awards Ceremony

Citation of Achievement

Established in 1985 to honor distinguished alumni who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in life beyond the campus.

Brian Hannasch (’89 finance) from Columbus, Indiana.

Brian Hannasch has 25 years of experience with Alimentation Couche-Tard, leading up to his role as president and CEO from 2014 to 2024. Prior to that, he served as chief operating officer from 2010-2014. Over the past 16 years, Hannasch has been involved in setting and executing the business strategy with the company’s executive leadership committee. Couche-Tard is a global leader in convenience and mobility, operating in 31 countries and territories, with more than 16,700 stores, of which approximately 13,100 offer road transportation fuel. With its well-known Couche-Tard and Circle K banners, it’s one of the largest independent convenience store operators in the United States and a leader in convenience and retail fueling in Canada, Scandinavia, the Baltic states, Western Europe, Belgium, and Ireland.

Under his leadership, the corporation has grown to be the largest company in Canada in terms of revenue and the most valuable convenience store group in the world. Since retiring as CEO, he has been serving as a special advisor for the company.

In 2022, Hannasch was inducted into the Convenience Store News Hall of Fame. He was named 2021 Retail Leader of the Year by Insight Media. In 2019, Retailer Executive of the Year by Convenience Store News’ blue-chip panel of c-store industry leaders.

Edwin M. Bruere (‘78 finance, accounting, industrial administration) from Naples, Florida.

Ed Bruere, CFA, CPA, will retire in December 2025 following a 46-year investment career. He was with Mid-Continent Capital, a $4 billion Chicago-based investment management firm, since 2000. He was the co-CEO and was responsible for the investment management and risk control of clients’ equity and fixed income portfolios. Bruere also chaired the firm’s research committee. Prior to Mid-Continent, he spent 12 years at the Chicago Corporation as a senior vice president and head of its investment management group. His previous experiences include two years at Richard J. Dennis, a commodity trading firm, and six years as a senior director at Bank of America, where he worked in merchant banking in London, England, and ship finance in Greece, and Chicago, Illinois.

Bruere was an adjunct professor at Loyola University, teaching finance during the evenings for two years. He spent another three years as an adjunct professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology, teaching graduate classes in investments and portfolio management. He was a long-standing member of the board of Colorado Hospital Association Shared Services Inc., as well as the Indiana University Reese Fund.

Bruere is from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He resides in Naples, Florida, with Diane (’80 sociology), his wife of 37 years. They have three sons — Forrest, Adam, and Maxwell — and four grandchildren.

John D. DeVries Service Award

Established in 1985 to recognize individuals who have demonstrated outstanding service to the Ivy College of Business.

Miriam De Dios Woodward (’04 management, marketing) from West Des Moines, Iowa.

Miriam De Dios Woodward is president and CEO of De Dios Consulting, a business growth consulting and coaching firm she founded in 2024 to help organizations strategically engage the Latino market and to support businesses and business leaders in reaching their next phase of growth. She is an accomplished leader recognized for driving businesses through transformative growth and has more than 21 years of experience supporting, growing, and building services and technology businesses. Her professional experience includes more than 12 years in CEO roles at ViClarity and Coopera Consulting, as well as roles at John Deere Financial and State Farm Insurance.

She supports the Ivy College of Business in many ways, including serving as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council, the Women in Business Advisory Board, and often serves as a guest speaker at student events. In 2022, she received the Inspiration Award during the Ivy Women in Business Awards ceremony. The award recognizes women who have made a significant impact in their careers. Through their work, they have inspired other women in business to become leaders and reach their full potential.

De Dios Woodward is a native of Jalisco, Mexico and grew up in Fairfield, California and Perry, Iowa.

Outstanding Young Alumni Award

Established in 2021 to honor alumni age 40 and younger who have distinguished themselves early in their career for their remarkable achievements.

Hernán Machado (’20 finance, accounting) from New York, New York.

Machado is an associate at Ardea Partners, a New York-based investment banking advisory firm. He focuses on mergers and acquisitions and capital markets transactions for clients across the insurance industry, including life, property, and casualty insurance companies.

Prior to joining Ardea, Machado began his career at Citigroup, where he worked in the Financial Institutions Group. His professional experience also includes internships at UBS, GCM Grosvenor, and Citi, spanning alternative asset management, sales and trading, and investment banking.

While at Iowa State University, Machado earned degrees in accounting and finance and held leadership roles as president of the Wall Street Club and the Investment Group. He was actively involved in mentoring students interested in finance and played a key role in strengthening Iowa State’s investment banking pipeline.

Machado is helping the Ivy College of Business launch the Ivy Investment Banking Initiative, which he co-founded. The initiative is an alumni-led program that helps identify and prepare top-performing Iowa State students for careers on Wall Street. He remains engaged with the university through speaking engagements, coaching sessions, and alumni mentorship.

Courtney Hiveley (’11 liberal studies, ’17 master of business analytics) from Ames, Iowa.

Courtney Hiveley came to Iowa State University with a strong work ethic, a drive for excellence, and an open mind toward where her career might lead. Today, she is the President and Chief Operating Officer of Kingland Systems. In this role, she leads Kingland’s operations worldwide, including all software delivery, client success, security, IT, and human resource functions. Hiveley is a seasoned leader with a passion for continuous improvement and talent development.  She has pioneered many of Kingland’s leading operational practices for quality, efficiency, and client success.

Since joining Kingland in 2010, Hiveley has held various roles and leadership positions across nearly every part of the business, including marketing, analytics, operations, and client engagement. She became President in 2023 and is recognized for her work driving operational excellence, building high-performing teams, and championing a culture of continuous improvement and talent development.

She remains an engaged alumna, serving on the Ivy Women in Business Advisory Board and frequently speaking on leadership and career development. She was honored with induction into Beta Gamma Sigma after delivering the keynote address at its annual induction ceremony in 2023.

Hiveley and her family live in Ames, where she enjoys cheering on her children in their various activities and giving back to the local community.