George Israel, president of the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy, will discuss "The Keys to Building Successful Organizations: People, Production, Profit" at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 14 in the IMPACT Speaker Series.

Israel's lecture, which is free and open to the public, will be held in LeCraw Auditorium of the College of Management building (800 West Peachtree Street).

Organized by Georgia Tech's Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship, the weekly IMPACT Speaker Series brings notable business executives, high-tech entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and intellectual leaders to the College.

Irsael was named to his current post at the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy in July 2011. This organization has a mission of seeing all of Georgia’s 750,000 preschool-age children enter school prepared to learn by providing each registered child a book and Leap into Books newsletter every month from the time they are registered until their fifth birthday.

Israel previously served as president and CEO of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce from 2002 to 2010. Prior to joining the Georgia Chamber, he served as a chief executive both in government and business. At 31 years of age, he was elected Mayor of Macon, Georgia’s sixth largest city, and held the position from 1979 until 1987.

During fall 2011, other speakers in the IMPACT series will come from industries as varied as health care, banking, and gaming. They include Donna Hyland, president and CEO of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta; Bill Rogers, president and CEO of SunTrust Banks, and Paul Raines, CEO of Gamestop. For the full lineup, visit the IMPACT Website.