A new year brings about some new faces to the NDTO Boards’ leadership, and we are excited to have Lt. Governor Miller as chairman, Commissioner Teigen as secretary, and Representative Lefor.
This January, Tammy J. Miller was sworn in as the 39th Lieutenant Governor for ND. Prior to this appointment, Miller has been serving as the chief operating officer in the ND Governor’s office since April 2020. As lieutenant governor, Miller serves as president of the state Senate and chairs the Capitol Grounds Planning Commission, Task Force for Military Issues in North Dakota, Northern Plains Unmanned Systems Authority, State Investment Board, State Board of Equalization, and Early Childhood Council.
She has a strong leadership background, with various roles at Border State starting in 1991, and finishing her service as CEO, where the company grew exponentially. Her work also includes roles in Major Gift Initiatives with MSUM to fund scholarships and the wellness center a founding member of the Grand Farm steering committee to encourage collaboration between businesses, organizations and researchers for the future of farming.
Miller has earned countless leadership awards, including the Trailblazer Award from the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED), YWCA Women of the Year in Business Award in Fargo, the inaugural Influential Leaders Award from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business and two distinguished alumni awards and the prestigious L.B. Hartz Professional Achievement Award from her alma mater, Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM).
Miller graduated from Lakota high school, earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a master’s in business administration from MSUM, and is a certified public accountant. She continues to support a variety of non-profits throughout ND and has chaired numerous funding raising and capital campaigns.
Commerce Commissioner Josh Teigen is also new to his role as secretary on the NTDO Board of Directors. Prior to being appointed Commissioner of the ND Department of Commerce in September 2022 by Gov. Doug Burgum, Josh Teigen served as ND’s Director of Economic Development and Finance for two years. His private sector experience includes leadership positions with Mind Shift, an innovative business solution to chronic underemployment and unemployment of individuals on the autism spectrum, and serving as president and chief financial officer of Protosthetics, a 3-D printing company. This experience, along with his bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship from the University of North Dakota and a certificate in alternative investments from Harvard Business School, has helped him serve many North Dakota needs and beyond.
Teigen currently serves on the board of directors for the Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corp.’s Growth Initiative Fund.
Representative Mike Lefor was first elected to the ND House of Representatives in 2014. He now serves as House Majority Leader and represents District 37, which includes Dickinson, ND.
Lefor has served on the House’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee and chaired the Industry, Business, and Labor Committee. In the 2017 session, Rep. Lefor was elected Majority Caucus Leader of the ND House of Representatives. In 2015, he was honored to attend the Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as one of three North Dakota legislators invited to the training. Rep. Lefor now serves on the Institute’s selection committee.
Lefor is a Dickinson State University graduate and is the president of Blackridge Enterprises, LLC, a real estate firm based in Dickinson, ND.
The NDTO team is excited to have each new members’ leadership experience and fresh insights as we look forward to another year of assisting ND Exporters in growing beyond our borders. Welcome!