USU's Huntsman School of Business Honors Coca-Cola Executive

The Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University has recognized a former student who has gone on to become the CFO of the fifth largest bottler in the United States with the school’s Professional Achievement Award.

Christine Buckley, the CFO of Swire Coca-Cola in the United States, visited the Utah State University campus to receive the award during the Partners In Business Annual Accounting Seminar.

 

Swire Coca-Cola is a franchise of Coca-Cola and the Utah-based company produces and distributes 40 million cases of soda for more than five million customers every year. Swire Coca-Cola estimates people consume 2.4 million servings of the soda it bottles each day. The company, which is based in Draper, Utah, serves nine states and has plants in West Valley City, Utah, and Fruitland, Idaho.

 

Douglas D. Anderson, dean of the Huntsman School of Business, recognized Buckley for the high ethical standards she has set in her work.

Anderson said that when presenting Professional Achievement Awards the Huntsman School of Business seeks to “honor alumni who have proven successful and can show, by example, how innovative, ethical leadership, coupled with the right analytical skills, can lead to success in our international marketplace.”

The Huntsman School of Business emphasizes four areas: ethical leadership, entrepreneurial spirit, global vision and analytical rigor as it prepares students for graduation.

“Today’s Professional Achievement Award honoree, Christine Buckley, is someone who can speak, from experience, to any of our four areas; and we are delighted to hold her up as an example for our students,” Anderson said.

Buckley, who graduated from the Huntsman School of Business with a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1988, credited her USU professors and classmates with helping her get a good start on her career. She told the business leaders and students at the Partners In Business seminar that it is important for them to “set their moral clock” before they are faced with ethical dilemmas. She said students need know what their standards are before they go into the workplace.

 

“The world out there is not black and white,” she said. “There are a lot of gray issues.”

Anderson said Buckley encourages her staff to further their education in college, she lets them earn the right to use flex time, and she helps shape employee-friendly policies. She brings employees and leaders in to corporate headquarters for training and team building on a regular basis. She also is involved in helping the company find ways to reduce the number of on-the-job injuries, he said.

The Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University seeks to inspire and equip students to become innovative, ethical leaders with refined analytical skills that will help them understand and succeed in the global marketplace. The Huntsman School of Business is one of seven colleges at USU, located in the beautiful Wasatch Range of northern Utah. More information on the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business may be found at the Web site.