Coca-Cola Exec to Speak at Terry Convocation
Graduation time is upon us again. As the weather warms, students prepare for the biggest event of the year; caps and gowns are bought, finals are finished and families fly in for the big ceremony. This year, students at University of Georgia Terry College of Business will be treated to a special keynote speaker, William W. Douglass III of Coca-Cola.
Douglas will address students at the Terry Convocation ceremony, a smaller, more intimate event than the university-wide graduation. The processional of students and staff will begin at 2pm. The ceremony will follow beginning at 2:30 pm in Segeman Coliseum and will last approximately two hours.
Douglas has been involved in the Coca-Cola system for 30 years. In 2004 he joined Coca-Cola Enterprises where he quickly became executive vice president and CFO. During his tenure, he and his team were essential in the sale of Coca-Cola Enterprises’ North American business to The Coca-Cola Company and the purchase of TCCC’s Norwegian and Swedish bottling operations. In November 2013, Douglas moved to his current role as executive vice president of Supply Chain.
Before joining Coca-Cola, Douglas was associated with Ernst & Whinney, an international accounting firm. Within Coca-Cola he has previously served as CFO of Coca-Cola HBC, one of the largest bottlers of non-alcoholic beverages in Europe. He has also held a number of senior-level positions within the Coca-Cola system since 1985. In his four years with CCHBC, he executed the company’s expansion of its non-carbonated beverage portfolio and led the acquisition of the Russian Coca-Cola franchise.
