People, Companies & Deals

February 1, 2008

Cox Enterprises named John M. Dyer as executive VP. He will assume the role of executive VP and CFO in the summer of 2008. Dyer will succeed Robert C. O'Leary, who will continue serving on the Cox Enterprises board of directors. Dyer served as senior VP and CFO at Cox Communications since 2005.

The Atlanta Regional Health Forum has named Douglas Greenwell, Ph.D., as its executive director. Greenwell will be responsible for strategic planning, program development, fundraising efforts, maintaining the organization's relationship with the Atlanta Regional Commission and the Centers for Disease Control, as well as act as the forum's spokesperson.

The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce has named Chuck Meadows as its VP of transportation. He recently headed the City of Atlanta's Office of Budget & Fiscal Policy, where he funded a program to improve the city's transportation network and spearheaded an effort to quantify, prioritize and pay for infrastructure projects.

Stacy Meyer, director of marketing for OmniVue Business Solutions, which specializes in the implementation, hosting and support of financial and operational management software, has joined the board of directors of the Technology Association of Georgia's Tax & Finance Society.

Mueller Water Products has dismissed PricewaterhouseCoopers as the company's registered public accounting firm and replaced it with Ernst & Young. In a public filing, Mueller said PwC's reports on its financial statements for the years ending September 30, 2006 and 2007 "did not contain an adverse opinion or a disclaimer of opinion, and were not qualified or modified as to uncertainty, audit scope or accounting principles."

Emory Healthcare Chief Quality Officer William A. Bornstein, MD, has been named vice chair of the professional and technical advisory committee of the Joint Commission Hospital Accreditation Program.

Homrich & Berg, a fee-only wealth management firm, has named Rick Kraich as chief investment officer.

Steel Partners, a New York-based investment firm, has acquired nearly 10 percent of the shares of EarthLink.  Steel Partners is controlled by Warren G. Lichtenstein, a young corporate raider and associate of investor Carl Icahn. Steel Partners may be EarthLink's largest shareholder.

Coca-Cola North America has entered into a two-year sponsorship agreement with ExerciseTV, an on-demand TV network dedicated to fitness, sports training and motivational programming. The deal, which began January 1, will highlight numerous Coca-Cola brands, according to the company.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has ratified a new contract that covers about 240,000 UPS employees. The new contract includes wage increases, contributions to health-care and pension plans to bolster employee benefits.

GE Energy has netted its biggest order ever for Jenbacher gas engines for power plants in Bangladesh. The engines will generate electricity at four new power plants in developing areas of the South Asian country. The engines are set for delivery in July and will begin operating in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Powell Goldstein LLP has officially opened a Charlotte, N.C., office with six new attorneys from firms in the Charlotte legal market. This follows Powell Goldstein's expansion last year into Dallas, another new market for the firm.