Lynn G. Tilton (born April 22, 1959)[citation needed] is an American businesswoman and collateralized loan obligation (CLO) creator, owner and manager.

After completing her MBA she moved first to Goldman, Sachs followed by Kidder Peabody and finally ended up at Merrill Lynch as an investment banker until 1989.

Since 2000, through Patriarch Partners' affiliated funds, Tilton has had ownership in and restructured more than 240 companies with combined revenues of $100 billion.

The spirit of the award honors both professional success and contributions to society, made either as a direct result of a career or through humanitarian efforts.

In March 2015, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Tilton with defrauding her collateralized loan obligation (CLO) investors.

[26][27] In June 2016, an article in The New York Times attributed the collapse of TransCare, a provider of ambulance services, directly to Patriarch and Tilton.