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Mark Whitacre      

Executive Director of t-factor of Coca Cola Consolidated, Inc. & Subject of Steven Soderbergh's "The Informant"

Mark Whitacre is Executive Director of t-factor of Coca Cola Consolidated, Inc. Mark was most recently Chief Operating Officer (COO) of CBMC, an organization that has impacted his life greatly the past two decades. Mark was an executive at CBMC from 2013 to 2020. From 2006 to 2013, he was the Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Science Officer at Cypress Systems, Inc., a California biotechnology company. His undercover work with the FBI during the ADM scandal was the inspiration for the major motion picture, "The Informant," starring Matt Damon as Mark Whitacre. Drawing from his unique history, Mark provides one-of-a-kind insight into corporate ethics, corporate greed, and the warning signs of a flawed corporate leadership. Read more... After simultaneously completing B.S. and M.S. degrees at Ohio State University, Mark then earned his Ph. D. degree at Cornell University in Nutritional Biochemistry. Mark then worked for multiple Fortune 500 companies including Ralston Purina, Degussa (Evonik), and Archer Daniels Midland (ADM). Mark was hired at ADM when he was 32, and as the president of the BioProducts Division from it's launch, was the youngest Divisional President in the history of the company. In just six years, their fermentation complex became one of the largest in the world. At age 35, he became a Corporate Vice President of ADM and was the leading candidate to become the next company president.

Dr. Whitacre has extensive international business experience, having lived for almost four years in West Germany, working for an international company. He has also been involved with two international companies in the Southeast Asia market and traveled the region dozens of times. Mark's more than two decades of top management experience at Fortune 500 and international companies, as well as his experience with the ADM price-fixing scandal and the FBI, give him a unique, seasoned perspective on leadership in the corporate world. As Mr. Douglas Burris, Chief of U.S. Federal Probation in the Eastern District of Missouri has stated publicly, "The story about Mark Whitacre's redemption and second chance is one of the most inspirational stories of our time."

Speech Topics

When Good Leaders Lose their Way

Mark Whitacre's take away messages include:

  • the ultimate real-life lesson in personal and business ethics
  • accountability
  • about ALWAYS doing the right thing
  • the need to think long-term in all of your personal and business decisions.

Mark's presentation is extremely entertaining as he actively engages his audience about how he wore a wire for the FBI everyday traveling the globe for three years in one of the largest white-collar cases in U.S. history. But, his story is also about Hope, Family Commitment, Redemption & Second Chances, and a wonderful example of a family Overcoming Extreme Adversity, against all odds

News

The Informant- The Story of Mark Whitacre
Mark Whitacre’s whistleblowing story is similar to that of high-drama movies – both literally and figuratively. A prodigal student to a federal criminal, to a celebrated hero, the man’s entanglement with the ADM shaped his life.
A Presidential Pardon Long Over Due For Whistleblower Mark Whitacre
Granting a pardon for a white collar offense represents a difficult political choice for a president. Think back to Bill Clinton's pardon of Marc Rich, viewed as more of a political favor than an act of compassion. That brings us to a pardon that some have said is gaining support inside White House ... former whistleblower Mark Whitacre.

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