December 6, 2007 - (ATLANTA, GA) - Maury Kalnitz, former director and graduate of the Robinson College of Business Executive MBA program (EMBA), was honored recently with the 2007 Bud Fackler Service Award from the Executive MBA Council. Kalnitz, who served as the Council's first managing director, currently works with the Robinson College as a consultant for its EMBA Program.

Kalnitz was selected as managing director of the Executive MBA Council in 2000, and he served in that role until he retired in June 2007. Prior to his work with the Council, he spent nearly 30 years at IBM in a variety of domestic and international positions, including head of development operations for IBM Europe and head of health industry marketing for the Asia/Pacific region. As his management role increased, Kalnitz enrolled in the EMBA program at Robinson. When he retired from corporate life in 1992, he joined the College as director of the Executive MBA Program. 
 
During his tenure with the Council, Kalnitz helped to increase membership from 150 to more than 220 member schools and 330 programs, including growth outside of the U.S. Additionally, he enhanced the Council's communication and research offerings and helped strengthen relationships with strategic partners and corporate members.
 
"Maury and the Executive MBA Council's original board had a dream of an independent professional organization with a culture of collegial learning and a focus on education, information sharing and networking," says Barry Van Dyck, chair of the council's Board of Trustees and director of degree programs, executive education, at Notre Dame. "Our success today is a strong testimonial to their insight, vision, fortitude, perseverance and leadership. We have many reasons to say thank you and will be hard-pressed to equal the leadership that we have enjoyed from Maury, prior Board of Trustees and hundreds of volunteers."
 
The Bud Fackler Service Award recognizes contributions to the Executive MBA Council and to EMBA Programs worldwide, including efforts to help other programs, to share best practices and to raise the quality of EMBA Programs. The council named the award after Bud Fackler, the late director of the Executive MBA Program at the University of Chicago and one of the council's founders.
 
The Executive MBA Council fosters excellence and innovation worldwide in Executive and Professional MBA Programs, as well as in other business-related degree programs for professionals.  For more information, contact the Executive MBA Council at 714.628.7334 or info@embac.org.