Sodexo Names Patricia Bellinger to North America Advisory Board

GAITHERSBURG, Md., March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- To further expand its roster of experts in sustainability, workforce diversity and business innovations, Sodexo, Inc., world leader in Quality of Daily Life solutions, today announced the appointment of Patricia S. Bellinger to the Sodexo North America Advisory Board, a group of respected leaders, academicians and entrepreneurs whose recommendations help guide strategy for the company's North America region.

Bellinger is an internationally recognized expert on diversity, equality and leadership development. She is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Nordic Windpower Inc., a leading manufacturer of two-bladed wind turbines with headquarters in Berkeley, California. Until 2007, she served as one of the top executives at BP plc, first developing BP's global diversity and inclusion efforts. She subsequently led executive development for BP.  Under Bellinger's leadership, BP was awarded the prestigious Catalyst Award for measurable results in the advancement of women in business and for the corporation's successful global diversity strategy. Prior to BP, Bellinger worked at Bristol-Myers Squibb in New York City. She is a graduate of Harvard University and a recipient of the Benjamin A. Trustman Fellowship, the Pulliam Journalism Fellowship and a Rotary Fellowship for international studies.  

Bellinger holds leadership roles for a number of global, national and New England area organizations. She is a Vice Chairman of the board of the YMCA of Greater Boston and serves on the New England Advisory Board and the Board of Trustees of Facing History and Ourselves. She also is a member of the Advisory Board of the Organizational Resources Council's Worldwide Diversity & Equality Practice, and a non-executive director of Sodexo SA, based in Paris, France. Bellinger served on the Generations Appeal Board of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Charity, in London. In 2003 she was appointed to the Government Taskforce "Accounting for People", by the UK Minister for Trade & Industry.

Sodexo, Inc. looks to its North America Advisory Board for advice and counsel related to markets, business growth and issues that impact its corporate reputation. The other members of the Advisory Board are:

• Alexis M. Herman, chair, former U.S. Secretary of Labor
• Judy George, founder and CEO of Domain Home Fashions
• Bradley Googins, executive director of the Center for Corporate Citizenship
• John D. Hofmeister, founder and CEO of Citizens for Affordable Energy
• Lester Lyles, managing partner for Four Seasons Ventures
• George Munoz, president of Munoz Investment Banking Group, LLC
• David R. Pitts, chairman and CEO of Pitts Management Associates, Inc.
• Joshua I. Smith, chairman and managing partner of The Coaching Group

Sodexo, Inc.

Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com), a member of Sodexo Group, is a leading provider of Comprehensive Service Solutions serving more than ten million customers daily in corporations, health care, long term care, retirement, schools, higher education, government and remote sites. Headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., Sodexo, Inc. operates in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with $7.7 billion (USD) in annual revenue and 120,000 employees. The Sodexo Foundation (www.SodexoFoundation.org) is an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $12.7 million in grants to fight hunger in America. Visit the corporate blog at www.sodexoUSA.com/blog.

SOURCE Sodexo, Inc.