Ford School alums, Michael Delaney and Mark Wallace, profiled by Crain's Detroit Business in "40 under 40"

Ford School alums, Michael Delaney (MPP '07) and Mark Wallace (MPP '04), were selected as two of Crain's Detroit Business 40 under 40, an award that honors Michigan's best and brightest. With over 300 nominations this year, the top 40 are selected because of their impact on business before the age of 40.

Delaney works for DTE Energy and helped found the "Business of Plugging In, "a Detroit based conference to explore the growth for plug-in electrical vehicles. "The conference was extremely successful in positioning Detroit as the center of plug-in electric vehicle innovation and manufacturing," Delany told Crain's. Delaney also works in DTE Ventures, which has invested more than $100 million in energy related companies and funds.

DTE Energy Ventures, together with U-M, hosts the Clean Energy Prize competition, a competition in which Ford School alum Matt Schaar (MPP '10), together with his teammates, placed third. The Clean Energy Prize competition challenges students to create business plans that bring clean technology to the market. Delaney told Crain, "We're hoping to stimulate some early stage energy ventures."

Wallace’s biggest professional accomplishment, as the project manager/leasing director for the Renaissance Center, was recruiting Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan to Detroit (from Southfield). This move brought 3,000 jobs to the city and brought the Renaissance Center’s capacity to 93 percent. Wallace has also helped secure two of Detroit’s largest leases—for GMAC in 2007 and Urban Science in 2009—which has helped bring people and jobs back into the city.