“A leader’s most powerful ally is his or her own example.” — Coach John Wooden

By Cheechee Lin

On October 6, the John Wooden Global Leadership Award, presented annually by UCLA Anderson, honors Ursula Burns, chairman and CEO of Xerox Corporation. The award is given for exemplary leadership and service to the community, with proceeds from the dinner funding $25,000 John Wooden Global Leadership Fellowships. 

The 2015 event also features Maggie Wilderotter, chairman and CEO of Frontier Communications, engaging Burns in a Q&A. Wilderotter is a seasoned executive in communications and a regular on Fortune’s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business. Wilderotter is also a strong advocate for women: “While we’re climbing the ladder with one hand, we need to have another hand to pull women along from behind. I do that every day,” Wilderotter says. 

Prior to joining Frontier Communications in 2004, Wilderotter served as Microsoft's senior vice president of global business strategy and directed the worldwide public sector. She has also served as the president and CEO of Wink Communications Inc.; executive vice president of national operations for AT&T Wireless Services Inc; CEO of AT&T’s aviation communications division; and SVP of McCaw Cellular Communications Inc.  

Legendary head coach, author and speaker John Wooden joined UCLA in 1949. Over the next 27 years, he built a record and legacy admired and lauded worldwide. Coach Wooden lived his life with compassion, grace and humility on and off the basketball court. He honed his “Pyramid of Success” during his career and translated his work ethic and principles into the backbone upon which UCLA Anderson is built. The John Wooden Global Leadership Award Program recognizes people whose lives and leadership pay homage to Coach Wooden and the essential lessons he taught us. 

The John Wooden Global Leadership Fellowships are presented to exceptional UCLA Anderson students based on their exemplary leadership, academic merit and financial need. Wooden’s leadership philosophy and Pyramid of Success are incorporated into the UCLA Anderson curriculum. This year’s recipients are: Tiffany Cantrell (FEMBA ’16); Christian Dunbar (EMBA ’16); Virginia Tancioco (M.D./MBA ’16); and Robert Douk (GEMBA Asia Pacific ’16). 

Past recipients of the John Wooden Global Leadership Award include: Paul E. Jacobs, executive chairman of Qualcomm; Robert Iger, chairman and CEO of Disney; Indra Nooyi, chairman and CEO of PepsiCo; Peter Ueberroth, managing director of Contrarian Group; Frederick Smith, president and CEO of FedEx; Kenneth Chenault, chairman and CEO of American Express; and Howard Schultz, chairman, president and CEO of Starbucks. 

The 2015 event will be held on Tuesday, October 6, at Beverly Wilshire, starting at 6:00 p.m. Business attire is required. For event and ticket information, contact [email protected]. Proceeds from the event fund fellowships for the four UCLA Anderson students, who have demonstrated exceptional leadership.