Anil Pereira (BMgt '87)
2000 Distinguished Alumnus of the Year
Anil Pereira graduated from The University of Lethbridge in 1987 with a Bachelor of Management (with Great Distinction). He was awarded the Jack Klinger Memorial Scholarship, the Kihachiro Onitsuka Award for International Management, the William S. Kizema Memorial Scholarship and The University of Lethbridge Scholarship. He was also actively involved with the Faculty of Management's Alumni Network, serving as the founding editor of the Faculty's alumni newsletter - SPAN. In 1989, Anil Pereira continued his studies at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, graduating with a Masters of Business Administration in1991. There he received the Dean's Award of Excellence, was named a Fisherman-Davidson Fellow, and was elected to Phi Beta Delta, the honour society for international scholars.
Upon graduating from Wharton, Anil Pereira spent seven years with the American Express Company in New York in a variety of marketing positions, including Vice President of the Affinity Card Group. He was instrumental in the development of a number of key strategic partnerships and the launching of products such as the New York Rangers American Express Card, the New York Knicks American Express Card, and the National MS Society American Express Card. He was also involved in new product development, Direct Response Television, and college marketing. Anil Pereira was thrice honored with the AmEx Chairman's Award for Quality.
In his current position as Senior Vice President of Internet Services Group & Corporate Marketing for Verisign Inc., Anil Pereira is part of a management team that completed Verisign's highly successful initial public offering in 1998; its secondary offering in 1999; and all of its mergers, acquisitions and investments to date. He has been responsible for the development of partnerships with numerous e-commerce companies that include AOL/Netscape, Ariba, Dun & Bradstreet, Verio and Visa USA. Anil Pereira currently serves on the Board of SF International (an e-marketing solutions firm headquartered in San Francisco), and the Web Host Guild (an industry association). He also serves on numerous e-industry advisory boards. Anil Pereira resides in San Carlos, California with his wife, Sheryl, and their three children.