Dixie McCadden (left) and Maureen McGovern (right)
Meridian Associates has announced the winners of this year’s Outstanding Women in Family Business Awards, which were given to Maureen McGovern for the Owner category and Dixie McCadden in the Non-Owner category.
Maureen McGovern is the owner of Osco Oil Co. and Bell Fuel. She came into her family business in 1983 and has been thriving ever since. To this day, Osco Oil, home of the “Big Red Truck,” is known as Chicago’s most reliable petroleum fuel distributor, with its red trucks becoming synonymous with reliability. One of McGovern’s greatest accomplishments is empowering other women and leading by example — she created a woman-owned company and hired a woman president.
McGovern’s advice to other women is to “know your numbers,” which she received from her dad and is now passing on to others.
Non-Owner award winner Dixie McCadden is the regional manager at Ed Staub & Sons Petroleum in Klamath Falls, Ore. She joined the petroleum industry in 1990 and started as a cashier to supplement her teacher’s salary. Since then, she has risen to the regional manager position and is no longer a school teacher.
McCadden still uses her teaching skills, though her greatest joy is helping entry level cashiers develop to become managers and beyond. The company uses an assistant manager certification program to help its employees further their careers with Ed Staub & Sons.
McCadden credits her success to slowing down and taking the time to get to know people and is a strong believer in teamwork and personal connections. Her most important mentor is her current boss, who supports her ideas and says “yes” a lot.
“Challenges are always constant, and your plate is going to be full, so celebrate the successes as they can get overlooked when you are in the challenges,” said McCadden.
The Outstanding Woman in Family Business Award recognizes professional women in family businesses for outstanding performance. Nominees are judged on various criteria including their contribution to a company, their overall impact on the industry, leadership qualities and their contribution to those around them in their business or community. The award starts with an online nomination, then the top 10 are selected, phone interviews are conducted and finally an outside panel of businesswomen choose the winner.
The award is presented at Meridian’s exclusive, women-only event — Women in Family Business 2022. This event provides a place for professional women in family businesses to network, strategize and participate in focused mastermind sessions. A highlight of the event is always the Outstanding Women in Family Business Awards.
The award is presented by Betsi Bixby, founder and CEO for Meridian Associates.
“We started this award long before it was popular to honor women in this industry,” said Bixby. “I was in a ladies’ room at the Pacific Oil Conference in 1991 with only three other ladies while the men’s room line was out the door. I began chatting with Lila Leathers and she told me she wished more women were leading petroleum companies. I believe it was that conversation that prompted me years later to begin honoring women in what once was a predominately male industry.”
Meridian Associates has been partnering with family-owned petro marketers for over 30 years to remove barriers, accelerate business growth and reduce stress levels. It has equipped over 4,000 leaders to grow their business and help their families thrive through its combination of high impact business coaching, Petro focused leadership events, advisory, and precision company valuations.
