Muhtar Kent

Last updated
Muhtar Kent
Muhtar Kent (cropped).jpg
Kent in 2009
Born
Ahmet Muhtar Kent

(1952-12-01) December 1, 1952 (age 71)
New York City, U.S.
Education University of Hull (BA)
City University, London (MBA)
Predecessor E. Neville Isdell
Relatives Necdet Kent (Father)

Ahmet Muhtar Kent (born December 1, 1952) [1] is a Turkish-American business executive. He was the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of The Coca-Cola Company. He became CEO in 2008, and chairman in 2009, leaving those positions in 2016 and 2019 respectively. [2]

Contents

Early life

Kent was born in 1952 in New York City, where his father, Necdet Kent, was the consul-general of Turkey. After completing high school at Tarsus American College [3] in Mersin, Turkey in 1971, Muhtar Kent went to the UK to study at the University of Hull. Subsequently, he earned an MBA degree at Cass Business School, London. [4]

Professional career

Kent at the World Economic Forum in Davos, 2010 Muhtar Kent 2010.jpg
Kent at the World Economic Forum in Davos, 2010

1978–1999

Kent found a job at the Coca-Cola Company in Turkey through a newspaper ad in 1978. He toured the country in trucks to sell Coca-Cola, and thereby learned its distribution, marketing and logistics systems. [5]

In 1985, he was promoted to the general manager position of Coca-Cola Turkey and Central Asia, and transferred the headquarters of the company from İzmir to Istanbul. Three years later, he was appointed president of the company's East Central Europe Division, responsible for 23 countries in a region from the Alps to the Himalayas. Living in Vienna, Austria, he served at this post until 1995. [5]

Promoted further, Muhtar Kent became in 1995 managing director of Coca-Cola Amatil-Europe. In two years, he increased the turnover of the company about 50%, which covered bottling operations in 12 European countries.[ citation needed ]

1999–2005

In 1999, Kent left the Coca-Cola Company after 20 years. Returning to Turkey, Kent became CEO of Efes Beverage Group at Anadolu Group, [6] the largest local shareholder of the Coca-Cola franchise in Turkey and one of Europe's largest beverage businesses. He extended the company's territory from Serbia to Pakistan. [7]

One issue concerns his personal ethics. In 1996, Kent was judged guilty of insider trading in civil court in Australia, where he held a senior-level position at Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd., a regional bottler based in Sydney. He was required not only to give up the profit he made of $324,000, but also pay $30,000 to cover the cost of an investigation by the Australian Securities Commission. Kent has since claimed that his then financial adviser sold short some 100,000 shares of the company on Kent's behalf a mere hours before the profit announcement. In the event, the Australian controversy continued to dog him because two years later - in 1998 - Kent resigned from Coca-Cola Amatil-Europe. [8]

2005–present

In May 2005, Kent rejoined Coca-Cola after almost six years and was appointed president and chief operating officer of the company's North Asia, Eurasia and Middle East group, a position reporting directly to chairman and chief executive officer Neville Isdell. Muhtar Kent's rise continued and he was promoted in January 2006, to the newly created position of president of international operations. In this capacity, he was responsible for all operations outside of North America, and all group presidents outside of North America reported to him. [5]

Kent was named chief executive officer (CEO), effective July 1, 2008. He became chairman of the company almost a year later, on April 23, 2009. [9] By 2015, it was reported he was paid $25 million a year by the Coca-Cola Company. [10]

Kent is co-chair of the Consumer Goods Forum, a fellow of the Foreign Policy Association, a member of the Business Roundtable, a past chairman of the US-China Business Council, and current chairman emeritus of the US-ASEAN Business Council. He was appointed as a member of the Eminent Persons Group for ASEAN by President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton. He serves on the boards of Special Olympics International, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Catalyst and Emory University. [11] He received an honorary doctorate from Oglethorpe University in 2008. [12]

He serves on the board of directors of The American Turkish Society [13] and the National Committee on United States-China Relations. [14]

He is an invitee of the Bilderberg Group and attended the Greece 2009 Bilderberg conference at the Astir Palace resort in Vouliagmeni, Greece. [15]

In May 2014, Kent was awarded an honorary degree by the Georgia Institute of Technology. [16]

In December 2016, Coca-Cola announced that Kent would step down as CEO in May 2017, to be replaced by president and COO James Quincey. Kent continued as the company's chairman. [17] He stepped down as chairman in April 2019. [18]

In 2016, he was inducted as a Georgia Trustee, an honor given by the Georgia Historical Society in conjunction with the Governor of Georgia to individuals whose accomplishments and community service reflect the ideals of the founding body of Trustees, which governed the Georgia colony from 1732 to 1752.

In 2016, Kent was mentioned as a possible running mate for Hillary Clinton during the 2016 U.S. presidential election. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberto Goizueta</span> Cuban-American chief executive

Roberto Críspulo Goizueta Cantera was a Cuban-born American business executive who served as the chairman, president, and chief executive officer (CEO) of The Coca-Cola Company from August 1980 until his death in October 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Coca-Cola Company</span> American multinational beverage corporation

The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. It manufactures, sells and markets soft drinks including Coca-Cola, other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. Its stock is listed on the NYSE and is part of the DJIA and the S&P 500 and S&P 100 indexes.

Douglas Ivester is an American businessman. He served as the chairman and chief executive officer of The Coca-Cola Company from 1997 to 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coca-Cola Amatil</span> Defunct Australian beverage company

Coca-Cola Amatil Limited (CCAL) was an Australian bottler of non-alcoholic beverages that existed from 1904 to 2021, when it merged with Coca-Cola European Partners to form Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. It was one of the largest bottlers of non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages in the Asia-Pacific region and one of the world's five major Coca-Cola bottlers. CCA operated in six countries—Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa. The company also bottled beer and coffee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James D. Robinson III</span> American businessman (1935–2024)

James Dixon Robinson III was an American businessman best known for his position as the chief executive officer of American Express Co. from 1977 until his retirement in 1993.

Coca-Cola HBC AG also known as Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company or just Coca-Cola Hellenic is the world's third-largest Coca-Cola anchor bottler in terms of volume with sales of more than 2 billion unit cases. Coca-Cola HBC's shares are primarily listed on the London Stock Exchange with a secondary listing on the Athens Stock Exchange. The company is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Coca-Cola HBC has been named the industry leader among beverage companies in the 2014 Dow Jones Sustainability Index and is also included in the FTSE4Good Index.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bayes Business School</span> Business school in London

Bayes Business School, formerly known as Cass Business School, is the business school of the City, University of London, located in St Luke's, just to the north of the City of London. It was established in 1966, and it is consistently ranked as one of the leading business schools in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Keough</span>

Donald Raymond Keough was an American businessman and chairman of the Board of Allen & Company LLC, a New York investment banking firm. He was elected to that position in April 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. Neville Isdell</span>

Edward Neville Isdell is an Irish businessman, former chair and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company and currently president of the WWF.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Liveris</span> Australian businessman

Andrew N. Liveris is an Australian former CEO and chairman of The Dow Chemical Company of Midland, Michigan. Liveris served as a member of Dow's board of directors since February 2004, CEO since November 2004 and was elected as chairman of the board effective 1 April 2006. Liveris became CEO in 2004 after holding the position of chief operating officer (COO). Afterwards he served as executive chairman of DowDuPont. He is chairman of the board of Lucid Motors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John F. Brock</span> American businessman

John F. Brock, is an American businessman who was the chairman and chief executive officer of Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE), the world's third-largest marketer, distributor, and producers of Coca-Cola products. He has more than 25 years of experience in the beverage sales industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Partners for a New Beginning</span>

In his "A New Beginning" speech on June 4, 2009, at Cairo University in Cairo, Egypt, President of the United States Barack Obama stated "I've come here to Cairo to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, one based on mutual interest and mutual respect, and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap and share common principles – principles of justice and progress; tolerance and the dignity of all human beings." During the speech, he also committed to "host a Summit on Entrepreneurship this year to identify how we can deepen ties between business leaders, foundations and social entrepreneurs in the United States and Muslim communities around the world".

The Trustees for the Establishment of the Colony of Georgia in America, or simply the Georgia Trustees, was a body organized by James Edward Oglethorpe and associates following parliamentary investigations into prison conditions in Britain. After being granted a royal charter in 1732, Oglethorpe led the first group of colonists to the new colony, arriving there in February, 1733. The trustees governed Georgia, one of the Thirteen Colonies, from its founding until 1752, a period known as Trustee Georgia.

Brian G. Dyson was the chief executive officer (CEO) of Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. from 1986 to 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Bilderberg Conference</span>

The 2013 Bilderberg Conference took place June 6–9, 2013, at The Grove hotel in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. It was the first Bilderberg Group conference to be held in the United Kingdom since the 1998 meeting in Turnberry, Scotland.

Ahmet C. Bozer is a Turkish business executive. He is executive vice president and president of Coca-Cola International, which consists of The Coca-Cola Company's Asia Pacific, Europe, Eurasia & Africa, and Latin America operations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alison Watkins</span> Australian business executive

Alison Mary Watkins is an Australian CEO and director. She has had roles at McKinsey, GrainCorp, Berri Limited, and was a group managing director at Coca-Cola Amatil from March 2014 to May 2021. She has been a member of the Reserve Bank of Australia Board since December 2020, having previously served on their Takeover Panel. She has also held a number of non-executive directorships, including at the Centre for Independent Studies. In June 2021, she became Chancellor of the University of Tasmania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Quincey</span> British businessman in the United States (born 1965)

James Robert B. Quincey is a British businessman based in the United States. After starting his career at Bain & Co, he joined The Coca-Cola Company in 1996 and was later named chief operating officer (COO). He is now the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) at the company.

Ronald W. Allen is an American businessman. He served as the president, chairman and chief executive officer of Delta Air Lines from 1987 to 1997, and as the chairman and chief executive officer of Aaron's, Inc. from 2012 to 2014.

References

  1. Maier, Simon; Kourdi, Jeremy (2011). The 100: Insights and Lessons from 100 of the Greatest Speakers and Speeches Ever Delivered. Marshall Cavendish. p. 152. ISBN   978-9814312479.
  2. "Leadership Viewpoints". The Coca-Cola Company.
  3. "Muhtar Kent'ten, mezun olduğu okula 120 bin dolar". www.hurriyet.com.tr. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  4. "Alumni services". Cass Business School. Retrieved 2012-04-18.
  5. 1 2 3 "Muhtar Kent: Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer". The Coca-Cola Company. Retrieved 2012-06-29.
  6. "Coca-Cola: Büyüme için Kent'e inanıyoruz". www.hurriyet.com.tr. 25 April 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  7. "History". Anadolu Efes. Retrieved 2017-09-14.
  8. Terhune, Chad (19 October 2006). "Coke May Tap Kent as No. 2, Despite Insider-Trading Past". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  9. "Coca Cola'nın Yeni CEO'su Muhtar Kent Oldu". www.perakende.org. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  10. "Muhtar Kent'in aylık kazancı dudak uçuklatıyor". www.sozcu.com.tr. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  11. "Leadership Viewpoints". The Coca-Cola Company. Retrieved 2012-10-04.
  12. "Honorary Degrees Awarded by Oglethorpe University". Oglethorpe University. Archived from the original on 2015-03-19. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  13. "Board of Directors | americanturkishsociety.localhost". americanturkishsociety.org. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
  14. "Board of Directors | National Committee on United States - China Relations". www.ncuscr.org. Retrieved 2016-01-14.
  15. "Bilderberg 2009 list of participants". BilderbergMeetings.org. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
  16. "AJC – Muhtar Kent Honorary Degree" . Retrieved 2014-05-05.
  17. "Media Center | The Coca-Cola Company". www.coca-colacompany.com.
  18. Owusu, Tony (6 December 2018). "James Quincey to Succeed Muhtar Kent as Chairman of Coca-Cola". TheStreet. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  19. "Time - Hillary Clinton Wikileaks Running Mates". 18 October 2016.
Business positions
Preceded by CEO of The Coca-Cola Company
2008–2018
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chairman of The Coca-Cola Company
2009–2018
Succeeded by