Betsy Holden is a corporate director of Tribune Company

Tribune Company

The Tribune Company is a large American multimedia corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. It is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with ten daily newspapers and commuter tabloids including Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida...

. Holden served as Co-CEO of Kraft Foods

Kraft Foods

Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...

 from 2001 to 2004. She is currently a senior advisor to McKinsey & Company

McKinsey & Company

McKinsey & Company, Inc. is a global management consulting firm that focuses on solving issues of concern to senior management. McKinsey serves as an adviser to many businesses, governments, and institutions...

 and a member of the Duke University Board of Trustees.

Early life

Holden was in Lubbock, Texas

Lubbock, Texas

Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...

 on October 19, 1955. She grew up in Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, within the Pittsburgh Metro Area in the southwestern part of the state...

. Her father was an obstetrician and her mother, a former accountant, was a homemaker. Holden has two siblings.

Holden received her A.B.

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 from Duke University

Duke University

Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...

 in 1977, and an M.Ed and an MBA from Northwestern University

Northwestern University

Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....

 in 1978 1982.

Career

Holden began her career as an assistant product manager in the deserts division of General Foods Corporation. In 1987, she became group brand manager of confections and snacks at Kraft. In 1990, she was appointed a vice president. Holden became an executive vice president in 1995 and president of the Cheese division in 1997. In 1998, Holden was named executive vice president of Kraft Foods. In 2000, Holden was named president and CEO of Kraft Foods North America. In 2001, Holden became Co-CEO of Kraft Foods. However, in 2004, Holden was demoted to president of global marketing and category development.