The Coca‑Cola Company Announces Election of Corporate Officers and Declares Regular Quarterly Dividend

The Board of Directors of The Coca-Cola Company today announced the election of corporate officers, along with declaring the company’s regular quarterly dividend.

Brenda Hofmann was elected senior vice president and chief of internal audit, effective Aug. 1. She succeeds Barry Ballow, who is retiring July 31 after a 34-year career with the Coca‑Cola system.

• Most recently, Hofmann has served as vice president and deputy chief of internal audit. Prior to this role, she was head of strategy, communications and operations for Platform Services and was chief of staff for the chief Platform Services officer.
• Hofmann started her career with Coca‑Cola in 1994 in accounting research. She went on to hold numerous roles in finance, procurement and general management, including investor relations, strategic planning and commercial finance. Hofmann also spent more than 12 years working outside of the United States.
• Prior to Coca‑Cola, Hofmann worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Atlanta. 
• Hofmann holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration and a master’s degree in accounting, both from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is a CPA.

Leonardo Zei was elected vice president and appointed head of strategic ingredient supply, leading supply chain sourcing activities for all flavor and non-agricultural ingredients, effective immediately. Zei succeeds Lucy Reid, who retired April 30 after a 36-year career with the company.

• Most recently, Zei has served as finance and strategic planning director for flavors manufacturing.
• Zei joined the Coca‑Cola system in 1997 with Coca‑Cola Hellenic Italy, starting in sales before transitioning into roles of increasing responsibility in various functions, including logistics, audit and financial management, while covering several international assignments.
• In 2012, he joined Reckitt Benckiser in Africa and, in 2014, moved to Ireland in a role with Kellogg’s. He rejoined the Coca‑Cola system in 2016.
• Zei holds a degree in business, economics and finance from the University of Florence in Italy, including a one-year scholarship program at Ryerson University in Toronto. He completed the Strategic Finance Executive program at IMD Lausanne. He also completed the Supply Chain Leadership Excellence program and holds a certification in Procurement and Supply Chain Management Leadership, both from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Derek Benz was elected senior vice president. He continues in his current role as chief information security officer.

• Benz joined the company in 2020 and is responsible for executing the vision, strategy and implementation of the global cybersecurity function.
• He came to Coca‑Cola from Ford Motor Co., where he also served as chief information security officer.
• Benz has nearly 30 years of experience in the cybersecurity industry, holding similar roles in other leading companies such as Honeywell and BP.
• Benz is a graduate of Hillsdale College in Michigan and holds an MBA from Columbia University.