CHARLIE SHIELDS, Missouri Senate

A legislative leader, hip deep in policy decisions involving billions of tax dollars, isn’t often thought of as a Rainmaker. But consider this: Missouri’s budget problems pale in comparison to those of neighboring Illinois, or states like California or Michigan. When you think about the billions of dollars that don’t have to be raised from individuals and businesses to plug holes that big, you think of Charlie Shields in a different light. In that sense, his desire for government that acts more like a business has made him an invisible player at companies all across Missouri. “I’ve always described the state as a $23 billion organization without a strategic plan,” says Shields, whose term-limited run in the Senate is about to conclude a 20-year legislative career. His duties as Senate president pro tem would occasionally entail the application of power, and in very public settings. As with his removal of Republican colleague Chuck Purgason from chairmanship of a committee bottling up tax incentives for Ford Motor Co. in the recent special session— breaks considered vital for keeping Ford’s Claycomo plant operating. “I understood his position and tried to work through our differences,” Shields said, “but at the same time, I had to consider the greater good of the state, protecting 3,000 jobs at Ford and 8,000-9,000 across state. I couldn’t let one individual stand in the way.” That kind of hammer rarely needs to be applied in the other half of Shields’ work. He recently became chief operating officer at Truman Medical Center-Lakewood, after 17 years with Heartland Health in St. Joseph. As a manager, he says, “I’ve always worked really hard not to be in that position. … You hire good people, empower them, give them lots of autonomy and authority in their jobs. If you do that, you don’t put yourself in a position nearly as often where you have to make those tough decisions.”