Roberto Crispulo Goizueta Cantera was a Cuban-born American business executive who served as the chairman, president, and Chief Executive Officer of The Coca-Cola Company from August 1980 until his death in October 1997.
15 Facts About Roberto Goizueta
2.
Roberto Goizueta was the only son of Crispulo Goizueta and Aida Cantera.
3.
Roberto Goizueta's father, Crispulo, was an architect and a real estate investor who inherited Cantera's sugar interests.
4.
Roberto Goizueta attended Colegio de Belen in Havana, a Jesuit secondary school and later studied for a year in the United States at the Cheshire Academy, a preparatory school in Connecticut.
5.
Roberto Goizueta graduated from Yale University with a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering in 1953.
6.
Roberto Goizueta returned to Cuba to work in his family's business in 1953.
7.
Roberto Goizueta was reassigned to Nassau, Bahamas as a Chemist for the Caribbean region.
8.
Roberto Goizueta remains the youngest person to hold this position at the company.
9.
Roberto Goizueta received a surprising appointment in 1979, to become President of the Coca-Cola Company after then-officer J Lucian Smith resigned.
10.
Roberto Goizueta remained at the helm of The Coca-Cola Company for 16 years until the time of his death, due to complications from lung cancer, in 1997.
11.
In 1982, Roberto Goizueta approved the purchase of Columbia Pictures, signaling Coca-Cola's intentions to branch out beyond the soft-drink business.
12.
Roberto Goizueta sat on the Board of Directors for various companies, including SunTrust Banks, the Ford Motor Company, Sonat Inc and the Eastman Kodak Company.
13.
Roberto Goizueta was well known for his business rivalry with fellow businessman Roger Enrico, CEO of PepsiCo, during his tenure as Coke's CEO.
14.
Roberto Goizueta established the Goizueta Foundation, with a goal to support educational and charity institutions in 1992.
15.
In January 1999, the estate of Roberto Goizueta pledged $20 million to Emory University.