State Street Corp. Hires Top Officer

Boston's State Street Corp. has hired Sena Kwawu as senior vice president and chief procurement officer to manage a purchase base of more than $1.9 billion. He has a mandate to reduce the firm's expense ratio and to improve the value of services received. Kwawu, who is from Kenya, had been the senior vice president of finance shared services at Genworth Financial. Watch Kwawu on YouTube and follow him on Twitter.

Michelle Gadsden-Williams Heads Marsh & McLennan Division

In June the former senior vice president of Chartis International, Michelle Gadsden-Williams, was appointed to lead the international small and medium enterprises business at Marsh Inc., a Marsh & McLennan company. She oversees the firm's SME insurance solutions and service strategy across more than 70 countries. Gadsden-Williams has a B.A. in communications and a B.S. in marketing from Kean College, as well as an M.S. in organizational dynamics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Cox Communications Exec Has a Rewarding Summer 

In June Mae Douglas, executive vice president and chief people officer for Cox Communications, received the 2011 Vanguard Award for Distinguished Leadership from the National Cable & Telecommunications Association at the organization's 60th annual convention in Chicago. The same month, Douglas received the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications Friend of NAMIC (pdf) award.

READING LIST

Bennett College President Julianne Malveaux Pens New Book

Noted economist Julianne Malveaux, president of the historically black women's school Bennett College in Greensboro, N.C., has written Surviving and Thriving: 365 Facts in Black Economic History. Malveaux earned her Ph.D. in economics at MIT. She is the co-author, with Deborah Perry, of Unfinished Business: A Democrat and a Republican Take on the 10 Most Important Issues Women Face and many essays. 

CALENDAR ITEM

The Sixth Annual Conference for African American Financial Professionals

In partnership with MetLife, Northwestern Mutual, Prudential and New York Life, the American College is hosting the Conference for African American Financial Professionals in Atlanta Aug. 16-17. Mayor of Newark Cory A. Booker is the keynote speaker. Check the agenda, and find out about other speakers. The American College is involved in financial education for securities, banking and insurance professionals.

DIASPORA WATCH

What Does One of South Africa's Top Entrepreneurs Say About Job Growth?

Herman Mashaba, CEO of Lephatsi Investment, took his government to task, accusing it of destroying jobs. You can read the entire interview on the South African financial site Moneyweb. 

Frank McCoy writes about business and technology for The Root. You can contact him here.

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