CSU Beverage Business Institute kicks off with Coca-Cola CEO

FORT COLLINS – Colorado State University’s College of Business Beverage
Business Institute, developed to provide specialized management
education and research for the beverage industry, will launch in
November with a presentation by Muhtar Kent, chairman and chief
executive officer of the Coca-Cola Co.

Kent will address students and BBI participants on the Fort Collins
campus on Nov. 16. The inaugural workshop will be held Nov. 16 through
18 and include two classes in the BBI certificate program as well as
guest speakers and tours of local breweries and warehouse operations.

BBI workshops can be combined into certificates as well as an MBA with a
specialization in beverage management. Courses will be delivered
through a combination of live and online education, with live classes
and workshops being offered in Fort Collins and in selected regional
locations. BBI also will focus on beverage and brewing industry research
and will develop a comprehensive database of industry metrics.

BBI represents an enterprise growth strategy for CSU’s College of
Business, said John Hoxmeier, associate dean of graduate programs at the
college, in announcing the first workshop.

“We saw an opportunity to combine the supply chain, finance and
entrepreneurship expertise of College of Business faculty, the know-how
of Colorado brewers and distributors, and the talents of CSU strategic
partner Coca-Cola to the benefit of the beverage industry,” Hoxmeier
said. “The beer industry employs more than 20,000 people throughout
Colorado, and Northern Colorado has more microbrew and craft breweries
per capita than almost any other region of the country, so there is an
incredible supply of industry talent available.”

Coca-Cola has committed to a multi-million-dollar, multi-year donation
to the BBI as well as funding for scholarships and internships in
Atlanta.

Private sector funding will support initial curriculum development and
faculty recruitment for the institute. In addition to Coca-Cola,
founding sponsors include American Eagle Distributing Co., the Colorado
Beer Distributors Association, High Country Distributors, New Belgium
Brewery, Odell Brewing Co., Stolle Machinery and Tamarron Consulting.

James Francis, founder and director of CSU’s Center for Professional
Development and Business Research and the Institute of Transportation
Management, will serve as director of the institute.

For more information, go to www.csuBBI.com or contact Francis at Jim.Francis@business.colostate.edu or 970-491-6265.