Originally published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle by Maria Saporta
Two iconic Atlanta business leaders will be honored at the 2019 JA Atlanta Business Hall of Fame on Feb. 23 at the InterContinental Buckhead.
They are Rosalind "Roz" Brewer, chief operating officer and group president of Starbucks Corp. (Nasdaq: SBUX); and John F. Brock, retired CEO of Coca-Cola European Partners (NYSE: CCE).
The JA Hall of Fame is one of the top recognitions highlighted in Atlanta each year. It honors people for their distinguished careers and philanthropic achievements in the Atlanta community.
The 2019 Hall of Fame will be the 30th annual for JA Georgia.
Before joining Starbucks, Brewer was president and CEO of Sam’s Club, a division of Walmart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT). She was the first woman and first African-American to fill the role of CEO at one of Walmart Stores.
Brewer is a native of Detroit who moved to Atlanta to attend Spelman College, graduating in 1984. She joined Spelman’s board of trustees in 2006, and she now serves as chair of its board. Brewer also chaired the search for Spelman President Mary Schmidt Campbell, who joined the Historically Black College and University in 2015.
Brewer joined Walmart in 2006 as its regional vice president responsible of overseeing operations in Georgia.
Prior to joining Walmart, Brewer worked for 22 years at Kimberly-Clark Corp., where she eventually became president of the Global Nonwovens Sector in 2004. Brewer serves on the board of Lockheed Martin Corp. Fortune Magazine recently named her to its 2018 Most Powerful Women in Business list.
Before retiring as CEO of Coca-Cola European Partners in December 2016, Brock served as chairman and CEO of Coca-Enterprises from 2006 to May 2016 (when there was a merger of European bottlers).
Brock began his career with Procter & Gamble and later joined Cadbury Schweppes, serving in several executive roles, becoming its COO in 2000. From 2003 to 2006, Brock was CEO of InBev.
Currently, Brock serves on the board of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines.
Brock also has served in multiple civic leadership roles in Atlanta, and he chairs the GT Foundation. Brock, who as a BS and MS in chemical engineering from Georgia Tech, also chaired the university’s recent capital campaign.
He also is chair of Horizons Atlanta, an organization focused on summer learning for under-served children. Brock and his son, John IV, are co-owners of Team Envy and the Dallas Fuel, which are eSports teams. His wife, Mary, also is a co-owner of the Atlanta Dream. They have three children and seven grandchildren.
To find out more about the event, click here.