In the Sept. 5 issue of Coins2Day, we imagined a new kind of fantasy league: one focused on business leaders, where the stats are ruled more by market cap and earnings per share than on-base percentage and earned run averages. (See Coins2Day’s fantasy executive league picks here.)
We want to know whom you would pick. (Choose your own executives here.) But to give you some help, we’ve asked for the picks of three guest team managers: a guru each in management, investing, and business news on TV. Today, we give you our investment whiz, Mellody Hobson.
As the president of Ariel Investments, Mellody Hobson helps oversee an operation that managed $5.5 billion in assets as of the end of June. She chairs the board of trustees for Ariel Investment Trust and sits on the boards of several notable companies, from Starbucks (SBUX) to Dreamworks (DWA). She’s also notable for her work as a consumer finance expert and advocate: you might have seen her as a contributor on Good Morning America or in her column for Black Enterprise.
Take a look at her opinions below, and then pick your own dream C-suite.
CEO — Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA)
Hobson: Greatest investor of all time. Unmatched capital allocator. Enough said.
COO — Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook
Hobson: She is a superstar. I would want her in the trenches for her smarts, calm demeanor, good judgment and can-do spirit!
CFO — Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase (JPM)
Hobson: Is there a better banking executive in the country?
CMO — Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Animation
Hobson: No one outworks this guy — no one. And this far in my career, I have not met any other businessperson who follows through with such discipline and precision. He is simultaneously a left and right brain thinker, which is rare.
Chief Strategist — David Geffen, record executive; DreamWorks co-founder
Hobson: He is just plain smart. Probably the smartest person I have ever met.
General Counsel — David Boies, Boies, Schiller & Flexner
Hobson: Somehow, no matter the legal issue, he proves that he is best in class.