Forty Under 40: Tara Muck

Everything Tara Muck has done in her career has been to take on new challenges. She enjoys “being able to tackle a project or an obstacle that may seem impossible or too hard,” she said. “I love to take on a challenge and succeed.”

The Fort Smith native attended the University of the Ozarks in Clarksville on a basketball scholarship but dropped out after a back injury. From a musical background, Muck began to write music and moved to Nashville, Tenn., to write for a record label. After the label took a downturn, a friend suggested she pursue writing. She graduated from the University of Arkansas in 2005 with a journalism degree.

Professor Gerald Jordan, who recommended her for her first journalism job, and Dr. Katherine Shurlds, who encouraged her and guided her, were significant influences in starting Muck’s career.

Muck worked for several publications as a business reporter and then editor of a weekly newspaper before becoming an online media specialist for Bass Pro Shops in Springfield, Mo., in 2011. In 2014, Muck took on a new challenge by joining ArcBest, a company of 14,000 employees, as a senior manager in the corporate communications division.

Some of her achievements in that job include working on a multimillion-dollar ad campaign during the company’s restructuring. She also created a new tagline for a 2018 rebranding — “More than logistics.”

Central Research hired Muck earlier this year. Her role is to streamline communications and create a bigger brand for the company. A challenge with the job is to figure out a business-to-government type of marketing strategy.

A proud member of the LGBTQ community, Muck enjoys karaoke, playing softball and spending time with family.