Nov. 17 event to recognize leaders for business and community achievements

October 21, 2009 - (ATLANTA) - Five alumni who are global business leaders will be recognized for achievements in business and community service at the 7^th Annual J. Mack Robinson College of Business Alumni Awards Celebration to be held on November 17 at 6:30 p.m. at Georgia State University's Buckhead Center.

This year's winners are Ahmet Bozer, president of the Eurasia and Africa Group of The Coca Cola Company (Global Business Leadership Award); Ann-Marie Campbell, president of the Southern Division of The Home Depot (Outstanding Young Alumna Award); Brad Ferrer, EVP of finance and administration for CNN Worldwide (Award for Service to the Robinson College); Jeff Hwang, CEO and co-founder of Pyramid Systems, Inc. (Alumni Technology Award); and Sherry Hwang, president and co-founder of Pyramid Systems, Inc (Alumni Entrepreneurship Award).

Barbara Babbit Kaufman, CEO of BBK Enterprises, and a member of the Robinson College Board of Advisors, will serve as emcee. The event is open to the public and registration is available online by going to robinson.gsu.edu/alumni/awards. 

About the recipients
 
Ahmet Bozer, president of the Eurasia and Africa Group of The Coca-Cola Company, leads the company's business activities in more than 90 countries. Headquartered in Istanbul, the group consists of eight business units, including Turkey, Middle East, Russia-Ukraine-Belarus, South-Eastern Eurasia, India and South West Asia, North and West Africa, East and Central Africa, and South Africa.  Bozer joined Coca-Cola in Atlanta in 1990 as financial controller and moved to Turkey in 1992 as region finance manager. He then served as finance director and subsequently as managing director of Bottling Operations in Turkey between 1994 and 2000. He was appointed president of the Eurasia and Middle East Division in 2000 and Eurasia Group President in 2007.
  
Ann-Marie Campbell, who is president of the Southern Division of The Home Depot, oversees sales and operations of more than 640 stores. She leads a team of more than 100,000 associates in 15 U.S. states, Puerto Rico and St. Thomas. Campbell joined The Home Depot in 1985 as a cashier. She has served in a variety of positions during her 20-plus year career at the company, including store manager, district manager and regional vice president. Campbell also has served as vice president of operations, vice president of merchandising and special orders, vice president of retail marketing and sales for Home Depot Direct and vice president of vendor services.

Brad Ferrer was named executive vice president of finance and administration of CNN Worldwide in June 2000. He is responsible for financial and administrative matters for each division within CNN. Ferrer is based in CNN's world headquarters in Atlanta and is a member of the CNN Executive Committee. Since joining TBS Inc., in 1995 Ferrer also has provided financial and administrative oversight of the construction of Turner Field and Philips Arena and due diligence on potential interactive and other business investments. From 1981-1995, Ferrer was a CPA for Price Waterhouse in the accounting and auditing group. He is a member of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Ferrer serves as a member and secretary-treasurer of the Georgia State University Alumni Association Board
 
Jeff G. Hwang is CEO and co-founder of Pyramid Systems, Inc. (Pyramid), a full-service IT consulting and software engineering firm operating in the government and commercial markets. Mr. Hwang moved to the United States in 1984 to pursue his Master's Degree at Georgia State University. He has more than 20 years of experience in the information technology market. He is the principal visionary behind the Pyramid business strategy and go-to-market strategy. In 2008, Hwang was named by SmartCEO magazine as a Smart 100 CEO.
 
Sherry Hwang is president and co-founder of Pyramid Systems, Inc. (Pyramid), a professional and technical services firm specializing in providing services in the areas of management and information technology consulting, infrastructure management, and program and administrative support. Mrs. Hwang has led the company through a period of uninterrupted growth after assuming leadership of the company in 1999. Her systems engineering experience has encompassed full life cycle systems support for major initiatives as well as leading projects to transition legacy systems to open source platforms. She has supported high-level task force initiatives and provided technical expertise to resolve critical issues for agency projects.

Recipients were selected by a committee comprising alumni representatives, members of the College Board of Advisors and faculty/staff members.