Keynote Speech to Midtown Alliance

Muhtar Kent, President and Chief Executive Officer, The Coca-Cola Company
Atlanta, Georgia
December 17, 2008

Thank you, Jack (Guynn), and good morning, everyone.

What a great honor it is to be here today in this wonderful theater in the heart of Midtown -- with so many good friends and neighbors. One great friend and neighbor who we're honored has joined us this morning is our mayor -- The Honorable Shirley Franklin. Mayor Franklin, would you mind standing, please? On behalf of Midtown Alliance, The Coca-Cola Company, and all of us here today, I'd like to thank you for your inspired leadership.

In this joyous and special time of year, I also want to extend my best wishes to each of you -- and to your families -- for continued health, happiness and prosperity.

That commercial you just saw is one of my favorites from the past few years. It speaks to the power of family and friends coming together over a meal and conversation -- simple moments of pleasure and refreshment that truly underscore our humanity.

I think it's fitting for the holiday season and also for our special gathering this morning.

When I think of Midtown, the first image that comes to my mind is the incredible diversity of people, ideas and cultures that flock here to nourish their bodies and minds at your world-class restaurants, parks, universities, galleries and museums... advance their careers in your gleaming office towers... and  soothe their souls in your beautiful neighborhoods and arts institutions.

30 years of inspired leadership got us to this place.   And what a place it is. Midtown Alliance and everyone associated with this incredible model for urban revitalization should feel very, very proud today. I congratulate you all.

Today is a very special day for me as well. 30 years ago I answered a classified ad for a job in Atlanta with The Coca-Cola Company.  (Yes, I'm living proof that classified ads really do work!) It was a humble beginning, to say the least.

And in those days, to be honest, I didn't venture into Midtown all that often.  I was told it wasn't the best part of town, and being young and new to the city, I listened to folks.

I also distinctly remember the mood in Atlanta and across America 30 years ago. It was pretty somber. Fuel prices were spiking.  A recession was draining our confidence.  There was widespread fear that we were losing our global political and economic leadership.  Many people feared that a surging Japan would cripple American industry, jobs and the U.S. economy.   Even greater numbers of people were worried about their jobs being replaced by technology.  There were some striking parallels to the situation we find ourselves in today.

But the system didn't collapse, did it? In fact, America got stronger... much stronger... and that's because this great nation did what it has always done best -- America innovated and reinvented itself.

And we can and have to learn from history -- that the past is indeed prologue.

In the process of innovating and creating a technology and service-driven economy, America replaced 40 million antiquated jobs with 80 million new high-paying and high-skilled jobs between 1980 and 2000.  In those two decades, we witnessed a unique creation of new wealth and ideas -- all because of innovation.  All because of the entrepreneurial spirit and vitality of a nation that cultivates diverse cultures... and people... and points of view.

It's the same formula -- the same antidote -- that will ultimately solve our current problems.

And for inspiration, I wish I had a huge mirror I could place on stage here this morning.  The inspiration is right here.  There is no better metaphor for the kind of innovation and spirit that is needed across our economy -- and the world economy -- than Midtown and the leaders of Midtown.

True innovation, I have found, springs from this great collision of diverse people... ideas... professions... and points of view -- all which exist in abundance here in Midtown today.

And it's not just me, or fellow Atlantans, or American visitors who believe this to be true of Midtown. People around the world are also seeing what you have done here.

Let me give you one case in point.  Last winter I had the honor of helping host a concert right here at The Fox by a world-renowned Indian musician by the name of Amjad Ali Khan. 

Mr. Khan plays the sarod, an instrument that is somewhat similar to the sitar, for any of you familiar with Indian music.  He's probably the best in the world at it.  He's a national hero in India and his influence is truly global.  In fact, some of his biggest fans include members of the Allman Brothers Band, no strangers themselves to the Fox Theatre.

After the concert, Mr. Khan told me how impressed he was with The Fox... and the vitality of the neighborhood... and the interesting and diverse people he met during his few days here in Midtown. Quite frankly, I'm not sure what Mr. Khan expected but Midtown certainly far exceeded his expectations.

I bring up this point because I truly believe the future of Midtown... of America... of the world economy... is a multi-cultural and global future where investment, commerce, innovation and ideas will come from all corners of the planet. We no longer should think of Midtown merely as an urban revitalization success story for Atlanta... or the Southeast... or for that matter, the U.S. Midtown should serve as a model for the world's great cities -- and believe me, influential people like my friend Mr. Khan play an important role in promoting this fact.

I know some of you may be thinking right now that global investment and influence are great, but what about our current reality -- it's tough out there with the economy and all. Certainly we can't sugarcoat the fact that it's brutally tough at the moment.  And as perilous as the global financial crisis seems at the moment, it will be probably get even worse before it gets better.  At least that's the consensus I've come to after private meetings in recent weeks with Chairman Bernanke, Wall Street investors, and CEOs from the world's leading consumer products and retailing companies.

But relief will be coming -- probably much sooner than most of the pessimists would have us believe. I don't pretend to have a crystal ball, but one thing I can assure you is that the positive tailwinds coming our way -- coming your way -- over the next decade or so will more than make up for the current sacrifices we're all making.

We indeed live in a world of great paradox. Enormous challenges on one hand... breathtaking opportunities on the other.

A paradoxical world requires a paradoxical mindset. It's absolutely imperative for all of us as leaders to possess and convey long-term faith in our future -- the core belief that we will prevail. 

At the same time, we can't bury our heads in the sand.  We have to deal with the current realities. In the broadest sense I believe there are two over-arching realities that we are going to have to deal with today... and well into the future.

The first is the energy situation.  Despite recent fluctuations, most energy experts today believe that oil demand and prices will rise significantly over the next decade as consumption continues to surge. 

This is already fueling one of the largest transfers of wealth in history.  The United States will transfer nearly $500 billion dollars to oil producing economies this year alone.   This will join the $2 trillion dollars that will be transferred out of the EU, China, Japan and India this year.

Of course, oil booms and busts are not exactly uncommon.  What is different today, however, is the surging energy demand we're seeing from fast-growing economies around the world, adding to the already huge demand from the developed world.

The second reality we're going to have to manage today and for the long-term is the growing scarcity not just of oil but food and other natural resources and commodities.  The surge in production of bio-fuels like ethanol, along with erratic weather, is partly responsible for food shortages and rising prices.

This is the new reality. The flip side of the coin, however, is the inevitable global economic renaissance coming our way-- one that will have very positive implications for Midtown and for Atlanta.

When I think about my own unbending faith in the future -- this is what I think about.

Consider this: By the year 2020, a billion additional people will ascend to the middle class around the world.  When you combine all of this economic clout, the world will be $20 trillion dollars richer in 2020 -- nearly two markets the size of the present-day U.S.

The vast majority of these middle-class consumers will reside in urban areas.  For the first-time in history, the majority of the world's population -- over 50% -- is now living in urban areas. Over the next 12 years, 75 million people annually will migrate to urban centers.  That's roughly the equivalent of adding a metro area the size of Atlanta's to the planet every 30 days.

While most of this will be playing out in the developing world, America will also feel the impact directly as our population, cities and per-capita GNP all grow at healthy clips.

Reinforcing all of these tailwinds are some pronounced demographic shifts. Youth markets are growing around the world, and especially in Asia, Latin America, India and Africa.  But even here in the U.S., the youth market is set to grow significantly over the next decade.

At the same time, by 2020, more than a quarter of the world will be over 50 -- Europe, North America and Japan, of course, are aging, but so too are the developing economies of Russia, China and India.

So, here's another duality, another paradox: Within the next decade, we'll see the emergence of not only the most affluent and active youth markets ever known... but also the most affluent and active senior markets the world has ever known.

So what does this all mean for Midtown and Atlanta? Everything, really.

As the world become more mobile and more affluent... as trade and investment increase and innovation spreads... our fortunes can only improve.

For business leaders and entrepreneurs, it means more investment, more people and more fresh ideas coming into our region. For educators, it means a wider pool of prospective students and faculty and research opportunities. For city planners and developers, it's a unique opportunity for Midtown to show the rest of the rapidly urbanizing world a blueprint for success. For leaders in the arts and culture, it means an amazing new era lies at your doorstep.

I've talked a lot about paradoxes this morning.  One of the most powerful of all is the global/local paradox.  As the world becomes more integrated economically and socially through globalization, we're seeing an equally strong and powerful re-assertion of local cultures and identities.  The arts play a huge role in this cultural reassertion and renaissance.

While I won't get into specifics today, many of these same assumptions about the future are also guiding our present strategies at The Coca-Cola Company. Across the board, I am very bullish about our collective future, and you should be, too.

I'm also a firm believer that rough times like these are not an excuse to sit back and ride out the storm.  Rather, this is the time to confront our current reality head-on -- with courage, with tireless determination and with great strategic dexterity.

This is exactly the time to...

• Focus on what matters most to our businesses and organizations...
• Shed what is wasteful and unproductive...
• And keep communicating with our customers, and investing in our brands.

History has shown us, time and again, that world-class organizations that proactively manage turbulence exit the tunnel in much better shape than when they entered.

Perhaps no one managed turbulence better than the legendary Robert Woodruff  ... a man whose influence on The Coca-Cola Company and Midtown have been tremendous, to say the least.  (By the way, thank you for that kind video tribute earlier to The Woodruff Arts Center and to Mr. Woodruff.  He certainly understood that all great cities are defined, in no small part, by their great arts communities.)

Mr. Woodruff also took the most defining, chaotic, and frightening moment of the 20th century -- World War II -- and positioned our business for unprecedented international growth. Mr. Woodruff's vision of providing a Coke for a nickel to every U.S. soldier -- no matter where they were stationed -- led to the development of 64 bottling plants behind the front lines in Europe and throughout Asia. What started as "a Coke for every soldier" turned into a global footprint that remains to this day a critical competitive advantage for our system.

There's no reason why we can't apply the same courage to navigate through the current global crisis. This is not a time to be fearful or skeptical or pessimistic.  It's a time to think about how to best come out of this positioned stronger... more responsive... flexible... and open to new possibilities than we were coming into this period.

I truly believe this -- and Midtown Alliance's history has proved it. For 30 years, you've brought business, government and civil society together to forge a community that is sustainable in the truest sense -- economically, socially, and environmentally.

The Midtown story, of course, is far from complete.  Your greatest days -- like America's and the world's -- are ahead. Let the model of partnership, innovation and inclusion you've created guide you further into an even brighter world ahead.

On behalf of The Coca-Cola Company, we couldn't be more proud to call you neighbors, nor more certain that the next 30 years will be ones of extraordinary achievement for Midtown and the great Midtown Alliance.

Thank you and happy holidays, everyone!

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