Alumnus profile: Wesley A. Coleman

While after years of grueling academics, most Pitt students are unleashed into the workforce… While after years of grueling academics, most Pitt students are unleashed into the workforce and taught to shoot for the stars, one distinguished alumnus decided to shoot for somewhere better. Wesley A. Coleman, a graduate of Pitt, has gradually worked his way to the vice presidential position of the Walt Disney Company, a company that creates amusement parks arguably more magical than the stars.

Coleman was born in Halifax, Virginia and decided to stay in the state to get his undergraduate degree in business management from the distinguished Hampton University. It is obvious that Coleman not only recognizes the importance of education in his success, but also works to pass that influence onto younger generations. He is actively involved in local charities that mainly focus on youth and education and volunteers for INROADS, Self-Enhancement, Inc. and SMART (Start Making A Reader Today).

Coleman eventually went on to receive an M.B.A. from Pitt and has only gone upward from there. He began his merger into the business world when he got a job with SC Johnson, the powerhouse behind products such as Ziploc, Pledge and Glade. While working with SC Johnson for 20 years, he slowly worked his way up the rankings, managing to hold esteemed positions ranging from vice president of human resources for Asia-Pacific to vice president of human resources for North America.

His international knowledge gave him a spot at the super brand Nike in 2002, where he served as vice president of global human resources and was put in charge of the 250,000 employees Nike retains in its worldwide undertaking. This involved a global understanding of staffing, compensation and benefits and employee relations, just to name a few.

Such broad experience could only mean bigger and better things for Coleman. This year, he was officially named executive vice president and chief of human resources for The Walt Disney Company.

“These experiences in leading human resources efforts for preeminent and respected global brands in diverse and complex organizations make him an ideal fit for Disney,” said Robert A. Iger, president and CEO of The Walt Disney Company. “His impressive professional accomplishments, both in the United States and abroad, will make him integral in developing and executing Disney worldwide human resources strategies and initiatives to attract, motivate and retain experienced, knowledgeable and creative employees throughout our organization.”

Coleman has certainly managed to leave his mark in the industry. Instead of reporting to boss after boss, he is now in charge of an almost endless number of employees and has the experience to make it happen efficiently. All of Disney’s heads of human resources and senior executives will now report to Coleman.

His accomplishments illustrate a blatant palette of success, but he did not begin just anywhere. Just as Coleman realizes, education is one of the most important parts of the road to achievement and Pitt is proud to have been a stop along the way.