Company Description: Founded in 1886, The Coca-Cola Company is the world’s leading manufacturer, marketer, and distributor of nonalcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, used to produce more than 230 beverage brands. It has local operations in nearly 200 countries around the world.
Education: B.A., cum laude, Harvard College
J.D. Harvard Law School
Department Size: 170
Immediate Prior Position: Vice President and General Counsel, Texaco, Inc.
1. Describe an attitude change or defining moment that was important to your success.
My experience nearly 25 years ago in the western part of Sudan was a defining moment. I worked there for six months between college and law school for a United Nations development project. It was the first time in my life to be outside of my country. I had to struggle with the language and the culture, and I had to deal with the absences of the usual lifelines like family, friends, fax, telephone, and mail. But I made it work. I learned to connect with the people and to communicate with them, to make relationships across differences.
2. What is the best advice that you have ever received?
My mother, my teacher in high school, and mentors in college and law school, all told me to take a chance. If you care about something, are passionate about something, then you should not be afraid to step out and do something new. You can always come home. When I was 14 and about to leave Chicago to go to a boarding school, my mother told me that I could always come home. I am often surprised to see that many professionals I deal with are reluctant to take that chance.
3. How do you describe your management style?
I try to find the best possible person for the job, be very clear about my performance expectations, and get out of the way.
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From the December 2001 issue of Diversity & The Bar®