Alpha Phi Alpha
Terrance Williams Regional Vice President Nationwide Insurance KNOWN AS A purpose-driven leader, a motivator of people and a dedicated insurance executive, Terrence Williams believes that insurance can play a pivotal role in one’s life. Brother Williams, initiated on April 24, 1987, at Theta Nu Chapter at the University of South Carolina (USC) in Columbia, S.C., earned a Bachelor of Science degree in insurance and a Master of Business Administration degree at Walden University in Minneapolis, Minn. He has been with Nationwide Insurance since 1996, and in August
Maurice Cooper Senior Brand Manager The Coca Cola Company
A STEWARD OF ONE of the world’s greatest and most valuable brands, Maurice Cooper has accomplished many great feats with The Coca Cola Company. As the senior brand manager of the Coca-Cola Zero business in North America, he has led the most successful sparklingbeverage launch of the last decade—beyond $1 billion in revenue—with oversight over brand strategy, marketing, and commercial initiatives. Included in his responsibilities are the brand-activation of NCAA basketball and March Madness, college and professional football, and blockbuster-movie platforms, such as James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’ and Disney’s ‘Tron: Legacy.’ During his five years at the company he also spearheaded the development and launch of the Sprite Step Off Competition, which awarded $1.5 million in scholarship prizes to college students around the U.S. Prior to joining The Coca-Cola Company, Maurice was a management
2010, was elected regional vice president for its Central Plains and Southern States Operations. He serves as the lead executive and general manager responsible for all agents and employees with profit-and-loss accountability for 10 states across the South and the Central Plains. Previously, he held a variety of posts for the company, including head of the Customer Care Center in Amarillo, Texas and underwriting director in Gainesville, Fla. Williams, a native of the Low Country region of South Carolina, calls his dad and Brother Martin Luther King Jr. his personal heroes, but he gives credit to his aunt for his business sense and inspiration to be in the insurance industry. “As a young teen I learned about insurance and its value from several of my family members, especially my aunt, who was one of the first African-American female executives at American Insurance Group (AIG). Watching and learning from her, something that became very apparent to me was the pivotal role insurance plays in your life,” says Williams. “Whether it’s helping a family recover from the massive devastation of a hurricane or assisting a young family with planning their financial future, I believe this business has a noble purpose.” Williams honed his business skills in retail jobs as a youth, and decided at an early age that he wanted to go in to the insurance industry. Learning the value and nobility of the field has allowed Williams to boast a flourishing career that has spanned over 20 years. Williams, an avid sports fan and Chevrolet Corvette enthusiast, lives just north of Dallas, Texas, with his wife and two sons. H
consultant at The Boston Consulting Group in Chicago, Ill. He has also successfully completed marketing internships at Procter & Gamble and General Mills. Cooper says young people interested in corporate America should not think it will, or try to make it, happen overnight. “Whatever you envision must not just be done, it must be done well. Reputation and careers are not just built on ideas, but how well they were brought to life,” says Cooper. “Young people, now more than ever, are challenged by impatience, due in large part to the fact that celebrities and successes seem to be made over night—almost every night. But if anything is going to last, it has to be tested. And the process in your journey will refine and mature you, connect you with people that will push you, and give you the wisdom and credibility needed to lead your organization well.” A spring 1999 initiate of Alpha Phi Alpha at Alpha Rho Chapter at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga., Cooper earned his undergraduate degree from Morehouse and received an MBA at the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business in Charlottesville, Va. He lives in metro Atlanta. H Winter 2011 H THE SPHINX
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