Xiao Zhang Lives CITE—At LDI & Beyond
Published: October 27, 2026
“Kids are our future,” Xiao Zhang, VP Strategic Planning, said about his involvement with Junior Achievement North.
Xiao first joined the board of the St. Paul, Minnesota, nonprofit in 2020 to continue LDI’s representation and to support Junior Achievement.
“I’d volunteered there and thought they did a good job educating children outside of the K – 12 classrooms,” Xiao said. “They’re complimenting nicely in the educational system, particularly for financial literacy and entrepreneurship.”
Working across Minnesota, North Dakota, and western Wisconsin, Junior Achievement North inspires and prepares young people for what’s next. They believe every student deserves a future filled with choices and opportunities. That’s why they focus on experiential learning that drives real economic mobility by helping students become confident, capable, and connected.
Junior Achievement North’s work aligns well with our own Leveling the Playing Field initiative. Born out of our value of caring, we strive to set up future generations for success through support of educational, mental and physical health, well-being, and food security initiatives. This is an important initiative that is supported at the Enterprise and local levels with 75% of our annual giving.
Finding Himself at LDI
What ultimately drew Xiao to LDI was the family part of the business and the values.
When he’d first started his career back in China, he really enjoyed working for a private company where he knew everybody and felt he was part of growing the company. During his nine years there, that company changed, too, from private to public and from 250 to 8,000 people.
After coming to the U.S. and completing his MBA at the University of Minnesota, Xiao worked at two large public companies. He doesn’t like to jump companies—he’d prefer to grow with one. After the company he worked at was acquired in 2017, he was looking for a company where he could build lasting relationships and share success, and be part of a company that feels like a family
He found LDI through networking.
“You can feel from day one that it’s a community-driven company,” Xiao said. “What we’re building in the caring culture is visible.”
Xiao admits that caring culture was a bit of culture shock from the beginning. On his first birthday at the company, one person after another came by his office—out of their way—to wish him a happy birthday.
Now at LDI for nine years, Xiao supports business leaders and strategic initiative owners to deliver and execute strategy with a KPI tied to it. Our CITE values—Caring, Innovation, Trust, Excellence—find their way into all aspects of his work.
With the strategy work, Xiao says he doesn’t directly manage the day-to-day activities, but provides support to the initiative owners. With the new business unit, Liberty Custom, Xiao directly works with Levi Moore, Director of Sales at Custom, and the Safco Milford team.
“It is very exciting to come up with innovative ways to help solve customers’ challenges and get paid in the process” Xiao said. “I enjoy getting directly involved in the work and solving difficult problems. In my experience, if there aren’t any problems to solve, we’re probably not pushing hard enough. What excites me most is the opportunity to both develop the strategy and drive the execution, and I feel fortunate to be in a position to do both at LDI.
Get Involved
“Volunteer!” Xiao said emphatically when asked how team members can support Junior Achievement in their areas. “You will not only help others, but also learn something every time”
“Support the causes you’re passionate about and find ways to make our community better,” Xiao said. “Most of us don’t have the resources to solve the world’s biggest challenges on our own, but we can all make a meaningful difference where we are. Invest your time and energy in something you care about. Help your neighbors, support your family, and contribute to your community. Change starts with action. Rather than focusing on what’s wrong, do something that leaves things better than you found them.”
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At LDI, our executive team leaders are strongly encouraged to give back to the community by serving on a local nonprofit board. Thank you to Xiao for his service with Junior Achievement North and LDI!
