G. Mark Mickelson, President/Owner

G. Mark Mickelson founded Mickelson & Company, LLC based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in early 2006. Mickelson & Company’s practice includes arranging $95 million in annual financings in the rail industry for over 80 railroads and a growing practice in the area of renewable energy and the associated environmental incentives. Mickelson is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the South Dakota State Bar Association.

Prior to starting Mickelson & Company, and its predecessor Mickelson & Newell, LLC in 2004, Mark was employed by Northwestern Corporation, a public utilities company. He also served as an executive with Hegg Companies, a Sioux Falls real estate development company.   Mickelson and his partner at Mickelson & Newell handled the corporate divestiture process for over 50 locations in a mechanical sub-contracting subsidiary owned by Lennox International, a Richardson, Texas, based Fortune 500 company.

Since 2004, Mickelson has also been involved as an active owner in the ongoing development of 200 acres of land (light industrial, office and commercial) in northwest Sioux Falls, SD.

In 1988, Mickelson graduated with the highest honors from the University of South Dakota with a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration and Accounting. He later acquired his CPA and became a member of the South Dakota CPA Society. In 1993, Mickelson graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts and became a licensed member of the South Dakota State Bar.

Mickelson serves on the Board of the South Dakota Economic Finance Authority, the Sioux Falls Development Foundation and is the incoming Chair of the South Dakota Community Foundation. He is also a trustee and currently serves as a member of the executive board of the University. of South Dakota Foundation

Mickelson, the son of the late South Dakota Governor George S. Mickelson (1987-1993), and Linda Mickelson-Graham, is a board member of the Downtown Sioux Falls Rotary Club, a lifetime member of Ducks Unlimited, an Eagle Scout and a trustee of the Sioux Falls YMCA. His wife, Cynthia Hart Mickelson, is the treasurer for United States Senator John Thune’s campaign organization. The couple has three young boys and Mickelson enjoys hunting, fishing, golfing and other South Dakota outdoor activities.

Ryan T. Pidde, Director of Environmental

Incentives & Energy

Mr. Pidde joined Mickelson & Company in May of 2008 as the Director of Environmental Services & Energy. Previously, Mr. Pidde worked as a Business Development Representative for the South Dakota Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) where he was involved in business recruitment and advised and arranged financings for a variety of energy, manufacturing and technology companies.

Prior to working for the GOED, Mr. Pidde interned with the South Dakota Investment Council as an Investment Analyst. These experiences provided Mr. Pidde with the tools to lead the Environmental Incentives & Energy Services area of Mickelson & Company.

In 2004, Mr. Pidde graduated from the University of South Dakota with a B.B.A. in Finance. His additional education includes the University of Arizona (January 2005), University of Oklahoma (Graduate of Economic Development Institute, 2006).

His other interests include golf, snow skiing, camping, reading and the Chicago Cubs.

Cynthia H. Mickelson, General Counsel

Cynthia joined Mickelson & Company in June 2006.  She is an active member of the South Dakota State Bar Association.  Her background as an attorney specializing in real estate, trusts and tax work fits the needs of Mickelson & Company.  She also has been a successful grant writer, focusing on Rural Development projects in South Dakota.  Through this practice, she has helped cleints receive over $7,000,000 in grant funds.

After graduating from Miller High School in Miller, South Dakota, she attended the University of South Dakota as a Presidential Alumni Scholar.  She graduated with an Honors Degree in History and Political Science and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.  She then attended the University of South Dakota School of Law, where she was the Symposium Editor for the South Dakota Law Review and inducted into The Order of the Barristers.  In addition, she was a semi-finalist at the Pace University National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition.

Following graduation, Cynthia was the law clerk for the Honorable Robert A. Amundson, Justice for the South Dakota Supreme Court.  She then joined Richard Cutler, Kent Cutler and Brian Donahoe to form Cutler, Donahoe & Mickelson, LLP.  After having her first son, she retired from private practice.

Cynthia is married to G. Mark Mickelson and they have three sons.  Now that her children have entered school, she is enjoying the work at Mickelson & Company.  In addition to her work, she enjoys volunteering at her sons' schools, traveling and running.