Karen Phang

Karen is the vice president of human resources for the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation. In this role, she leads talent acquisition and development, leadership development and organizational effectiveness, drawing on experience across small, medium and large organizations in the medical device industry.

She built her early HR career at Medtronic and St. Jude Medical, and continued her work in cardiology at AGA Medical and AtriCure. More recently, she worked at Smiths Medical and served as an HR leader for several small, private equity–owned medical device firms, roles that required strong business and organizational acumen as well as adaptability, change leadership, clear communication and action-oriented problem solving.

Karen earned her M.A. in human resources and industrial relations from the University of Minnesota and her B.A. in human resources from St. Olaf College. She and her husband live in Woodbury, where she enjoys traveling, working out, drinking wine and exploring new restaurants.