The National Society of Hispanic MBAs Names 2011 Brillante Award for Excellence Recipients

Brillante's Inaugural Founders Award Recognizes the Fortune 150's First Hispanic CEO, Sol Trujillo

DALLAS, Sept. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA) each year recognizes the outstanding individuals, non-profits, educational institutions and companies whose endeavors coincide with the NSHMBA mission and directly benefit the advancement and recognition of Hispanics across the nation.

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Their efforts are lauded with the Brillante Awards for Excellence, the most prestigious honor given by NSHMBA, and presented to the winning recipients during the organization's Annual Conference & Career Expo, being held this year in Anaheim, Calif., October 13–15.  

New for this year is the Founder's Circle award, and the committee chosen to select this nominee is excited about its selection, Sol Trujillo. Trujillo has been a tremendous source of pride for the Hispanic community as the first Fortune 150 Latino CEO, and currently sits on the board of directors for Target Corporation. He also has sat on the board of directors with PepsiCo and is very active with HACR (Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility).

The organization and its Board of Directors and Corporate Advisory Board proudly recognize this year's winners:

• Brillante Award for Excellence, Founder's Circle, Sol Trujillo
• Brillante Award for Corporate Excellence, Sara Lee Corporation
• Brillante Award for Educational Excellence, Jones Graduate School of Business
• Brillante Award for Member Excellence, Manny Martinez
• Brillante Award for Community Service Excellence, David Lizarraga

"The Brillante Award is a prestigious honor that recognizes the tremendous accomplishments of the individuals and organizations who strive to advance, inspire and motivate today's leaders and the upcoming generation of leaders," said Manny Gonzalez, NSHMBA Chief Executive Officer.

In addition to the gala, winners receive a custom designed award; a seal to post on their website; recognition on the NSHMBA website, its official publications, NSHMBA magazine, The Bottom Line newsletter, and in national press releases.

Recipients will be recognized at the NSHMBA 2011 Conference and Career Expo during the Brillante Awards Gala, which is the spectacular finale to the NSHMBA conference. The 2011 Conference and Career Expo is expected to be an overwhelming success with the presence of over 8,500 of the best and the brightest Hispanic MBA professionals and students, and over 250 corporations, non-profits, government agencies, and academic institutions.

About The National Society of Hispanic MBAs
The National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA) was created in 1988 as a non-profit organization. Widely known as the "Premier Hispanic Organization," NSHMBA serves 36 chapters and nearly 10,000 members in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. It exists to increase the number of Hispanics graduating from MBA schools through scholarships, awareness programs and mentorship; enhance career management opportunities for Hispanic MBAs from school to leadership positions, through job placement and world class professional development; to be the partner of choice for organizations seeking to hire and develop Hispanic talent; and recruit and retain as life-long members a majority of Hispanic MBAs. For more information visit www.nshmba.org

Sol Trujillo
Solomon D. (Sol) Trujillo is an international business executive with three decades' experience as CEO of large market cap global companies in the U.S., the EU, and Asia-PAC.  A digital pioneer operating in the telecommunications, technology, and media space, Sol has been a long-time champion of high-speed broadband and a pioneer and innovator of smart phone and the mobile Internet to stimulate productivity and innovation across all sectors of the economy. Sol currently sits on corporate boards in the U.S., EU, and China and has managed operations in more than 25 countries – including developed and emerging markets from the EU and North America to China, South Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Sara Lee Corporation
Each and every day, Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE) delights millions of consumers and customers around the world. The company has one of the world's best-loved and leading portfolios with its innovative and trusted food and beverage brands, including Ball Park, Douwe Egberts, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Sara Lee and Senseo. Collectively, our brands generate nearly $9 billion in annual net sales from continuing operations. Sara Lee has approximately 20,000 employees in its continuing operations worldwide. Please visit www.saralee.com for the latest news and in-depth information about Sara Lee and its brands.

Jones Graduate School of Business
The Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University is one of the world's leading business schools. Named in honor of the late Jesse H. Jones, a prominent Houston business and civic leader, the Jones School's degreed programs include the Rice MBA, MBA for Executives and MBA for Professionals, as well as joint MBAs in medicine, engineering and professional science.  

A Ph.D. in Business attracts candidates aspiring to become faculty at business schools in research universities internationally. The Jones School also provides an undergraduate business minor and full schedule of non-credit executive education and customized courses for business and industry.  

Manny Martinez
Manny was National Chair for NSHMBA in 2003 and 2004 and prior to that he was the organization's National Treasurer & CFO from 1999-2001. He was a leader in the NY chapter as president in 1997-1998, EVP in 1996, and VP of Education in 1995. During his college and MBA programs, he was quite active, including taking on the role of President of the Association of Hispanic and Black Business Students at the Stern School of Business at NYU and also was President of Alianza Latinoamerica at Columbia University. He was active with both The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management and Inroads, as well as a frequent speaker with youth groups for both general mentoring as well as staying in school, pursuing a business degree, etc. Manny was also the co-founder of the CitiGroup Hispanic Network. Additionally, Manny was one of the executives who stepped forward to join the Executive Editorial Board for the Business Journal of Hispanic Research, where he provided his expertise and insight.

David Lizarraga
Dr. David C. Lizarraga is President and CEO of TELACU/Millennium. Under his leadership for more than 35 years, TELACU grew from a fledgling organization to become the largest Community Development Corporation (CDC) in the nation and focuses its more than $600 million in assets on improving the lives of individuals and families in the communities it serves. Lizarraga is also the Founder and Chairman of the TELACU Education Foundation which annually supports 500 full-time college students and serves an additional 1,500 middle and high school students, nursing school students and veterans. For five years, Lizarraga served as the Chairman of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, representing the interests of our nation's more than three-million Hispanic-owned businesses.

SOURCE National Society of Hispanic MBAs - National Office