Japan’s Consul General Says Good-bye, Promises to Return

CLICK HERE to see Mr. Ogawa throw out the first pitch at an Atlanta Braves game.

Shoji Ogawa, Japan’s consul general in Atlanta since March 2005, announced that he would be returning to Japan in mid-July during the annual dinner of the Japan-America Society of Georgia at the Piedmont Driving Club on June 4.

“Looking back over a little more than three years of my stay in Atlanta, I have tremendously enjoyed my official work here, as well as my private life,” he said. “I can leave Atlanta with a sense of fulfillment and with many unforgettable memories.”

Mr. Ogawa did not say what his new assignment would be, joking that it would be somewhat of a secret posting, but he is expected to return to Tokyo.

However, he added that he would be coming back to Atlanta for personal reasons in the month ahead.

Mr. Ogawa has served on Japanese mission to the United Nations and embassies in Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Ireland and Denmark. He also has worked in Tokyo in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Bureau of Economic Affairs. Prior to coming to Atlanta, he was posted in Iraq.

 

Atlanta Fed President Pro Japan

Dennis P. Lockhart

Dennis P. Lockhart, president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, revealed a personal affection for Japan during his comments at the annual dinner of the Japan-America Society of Georgia held at the Piedmont Driving Club on June 4.

Admitting that he was a longtime “admirer of many things Japanese,” Mr. Lockhart said that between 1988 and 2001, when he was president of the financial services firm Heller International Group Inc., he had worked particularly closely with a number of Japanese from the then-Fuji Bank.

He felt that Japan had “receded in the consciousness of the American business community,” primarily because of the current concentration on the economic strides of China and India.

But he placed things in perspective for the dinner guests from the Southeast. He cited the gross annual domestic product of the states of Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee and part of Mississippi in the Sixth Federal Reserve District, which he oversees, as well as that of Japan.

With a population of 45 million, the area of the sixth district last year had an economic output of some $1.8 trillion, he said, compared to that of Japan, which has a population of some 127 million, with a GDP of $4.4 trillion.

According to those figures, if the sixth district were a country, it would rank as the eighth economy in the world while Japan’s economy ranks second.

He also reminded the guests that Japan is the second-largest investor in the United States after the United Kingdom and that Japanese companies employ more than 100,000 in the sixth district region.

Mr. Lockhart also said that between 2002 and 2005, Japanese firms increased their investment in commercial property in Georgia from $779 million to $859 million. He also estimated that employment at Japan-affiliated companies in Georgia is about 25,000.

The Japan-U.S. relationship, he added, has yielded “great benefits to both countries.”

“I would argue that the relationship between Japan and the United States stands as perhaps the world’s most prominent example of pragmatic cooperation between peoples who, if not opposites culturally are at least very, very different.”

For a full copy of his remarks, go to www.frbatlanta.org.

Hispanic Marketer Named Businessman of the Year

Ralph Herrera

The founder of an Atlanta marketing firm that helps companies reach Hispanic customers was named “Businessman of the Year” by the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. 

Ralph Herrera, whose Lanza Group LLC also runs the popular Fiesta Atlanta and Fiesta Georgia heritage festivals, received the award at the chamber’s annual gala at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta.

In an acceptance speech, Mr. Herrera thanked his employees for their support and the Latino business community for its respect. 

He also said he’s convinced that “there is a real need for our kind of service in Atlanta” and that he’s dedicated to working with the city and region as a whole.

Attendance at Fiesta Atlanta increased this year by 50 percent to 45,000 on May 4 at Centennial Olympic Park.

Fiesta Georgia will take place in Duluth in September, Hispanic heritage month.  

For more information, visit www.lanzagroup.com.

Atlanta Consulting Firm Hires Two Vice Presidents

John Klustner

John Manrodt

Atlanta-based business operations consulting firm Proudfoot Consulting announced the addition of two senior vice presidents to oversee different divisions of the company June 4.

John Klustner, formerly in sales and service operations at McCaw Cellular and AT&T Wireless Services Inc., is to be responsible for the firm’s telecommunications industry clients.

Proudfoot’s past clients in this sector include Basking Ridge, N.J.-based Avaya Inc., which specializes in call center technology and Becancourt, Canada-based Télébec, a subsidiary of Canadian telephone service provider Bell Canada Enterprises Inc.

The firm’s northeast region is to be run by John Manrodt, a former partner and vice president at corporate consulting firms Deloitte Consulting LLP and A.T. Kearney Inc., respectively.

Proudfoot works with companies from 19 offices worldwide and is a member of London-based Management Consulting Group PLC, a network of six corporate consulting firms, each focused on a different area of business.

For more information, visit www.proudfootconsulting.com.