F. Duane Ackerman

F. Duane Ackerman is the retired chairman and chief executive officer of the BellSouth Corporation.

Ackerman began his communications career in 1964 and has served in numerous capacities with BellSouth. Ackerman was named president and CEO of BellSouth Telecommunications, BellSouth’s local telephone service unit and largest subsidiary, in November 1992. He was promoted to vice chairman and COO of the parent company, BellSouth Corporation, on January 1, 1995, and was elevated to the position of president and CEO of BellSouth on January 1, 1997. One year later, the board added the chairman’s responsibilities, and Ackerman served as chairman and CEO until BellSouth’s merger with AT&T on December 29, 2006.

Ackerman serves on the boards of The Allstate Corporation, United Parcel Service and The Home Depot. He also serves on the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology and is chairman of the board of trustees of Rollins College. Ackerman is the immediate past chairman of the national Council on Competitiveness, as well as the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee. He is a former member of the Homeland Security Advisory Council and has served on the board of governors for the Society of Sloan Fellows of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

A native of Plant City, FL, Ackerman holds a bachelor’s degree in physics and a master’s degree from Rollins College in Winter Park, FL; and a master’s degree in business from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.