Athens, Ga. – The CFO of Coca-Cola Enterprises, one of Atlanta’s top office real estate brokers and a health care public relations manager will be honored by the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business at its 2011 Alumni Awards and Gala on April 16 at the InterContinental Hotel in Buckhead.
Two of the graduates, Bill Douglas and Andy Ghertner, both of Atlanta, were chosen to receive the college’s Distinguished Alumni Award for their career achievements and community service. Mai-Lise Nguyen of New York City, a 2005 graduate, will receive the college’s Outstanding Young Alumni Award.
The Terry College has been presenting its alumni awards since 1964. The college’s Alumni Board of Directors hosts the spring gala, which in the past four years has raised $1 million for the college.
Distinguished Alumni Award
Douglas, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc., is a 25-year veteran of the Coca-Cola system with extensive international experience. Douglas joined Coca-Cola Enterprises in 2004, when he was appointed vice president, controller and principal accounting officer. He was named CFO in 2005. Douglas and his team were integral in the successful sale of CCE’s North American business to the Coca-Cola Co. and the purchase of the Coca-Cola Co.’s Norwegian and Swedish bottling operations in October 2010.
Prior to joining Coca-Cola Enterprises, he served as CFO of Coca-Cola HBC, one of the largest bottlers of non-alcoholic beverages in Europe, whose territory encompasses 28 countries. Before joining Coca-Cola, he was associated with Ernst & Whinney, a predecessor to Ernst & Young.
Douglas graduated from the Terry College of Business in 1983. He is a trustee of the University of Georgia Foundation and a member of the J.M. Tull School of Accounting Advisory Board.
Ghertner is executive vice president of Cushman & Wakefield of Georgia. He joined C&W in 1977 and now sits on the firm’s board of directors. With more than 30 years of real estate experience, Ghertner specializes in representing tenants and users in their office space, business park and build-to-suit transactions.
Early in his brokerage career, Ghertner spent five years with Adair Realty Company handling office leasing. Ghertner was one of the founders of C&W’s brokerage operations in the southeast, following its purchase of Bugg Coppedge Ghertner & McWilliams, a regional brokerage firm where he was a principal.
Ghertner graduated from the Terry College of Business in 1965. He is an emeritus member of the Terry College Alumni Board. His many honors include being a lifetime member of the Atlanta Board of Realtors Million Dollar Sales Club and a Silver Phoenix Award recipient.
Outstanding Young Alumni Award
Nguyen is group manager in the health care practice at Weber Shandwick, a leading global public relations agency with offices in 74 countries around the world. Nguyen joined Weber Shandwick in 2006 and has extensive communications experience with Food and Drug Administration approvals, advisory committees, data announcements, issues management and medical meetings. She also leads public relations activities and health awareness campaigns for biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients.
Nguyen previously worked in employment marketing at The Home Depot headquarters in Atlanta and interned in health care public relations at Burson-Marsteller in New York.
As an undergraduate, Nguyen participated in the Terry College’s highly selective Leonard Leadership Scholars Program and graduated magna cum laude with honorsin 2005 with a major in marketing and minor in cellular biology. She is a member of the Terry College’s Young Alumni Board, and she is also a past LAGRANT Foundation Scholar and current scholarship reviewer.
The Terry College of Business Alumni Board of Directors selects the alumni award winners from nominations submitted to the board. More information on the awards criteria and nomination process is available at www.terry.uga.edu/alumni/awards.