Kitty M. So, of Manhattan Beach, California, graduated Magna Cum Laude from Angelo State
University in 1990 with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration. During the three years So attended ASU, she was elected to Alpha Lamda Chi Honor Society, Student Senate, and Treasurer of Delta Sigma Pi. So was a Freshman redshirt for the ASU volleyball team and traveled two years as a statistician. Outside of school related activities, she served as Treasurer of the San Angelo Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants and taught a semester at Howard County Community College. In 1991, she began working for Arthur Anderson & Co. in Dallas, Texas. As Senior Auditor with Arthur Anderson, So was responsible for comprehensive audits for client companies in diverse industries, management improvement recommendations, and all phases of an audit. She earned the Certified Public Accountant designation during her tenure at Arthur Anderson.
In 1993, Ms. So left Arthur Anderson & Co. to become the Senior International Auditor with Pepsi Co, Inc. So performed the financial and operational audits in PepsiCo's international operations, which encompassed the $8 billion divisions of snack foods, restaurant and beverage. So worked in multi-cultural, diversified operations in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Operations ranged from $5 to $500 million dollars in revenues. So also managed audit teams, budget oversight, and client concerns. These audits included evaluations of operating efficiency and effectiveness in warehousing, production control, financing and foreign exchange exposures.
Kitty So continued to further her career in 1995 and advanced as the Pepsi-Cola Company International Planning Manager for the Greater China Business Unit in Hong Kong. She prepared, consolidated, and analyzed business unit forecasts and the annual operating plan. So delivered forecasts, analyzed and monitored the financial performance of equity joint ventures in Southern China, with frequent visits to the market and plants.
In 1997, So enrolled in the Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration in Boston, Massachusetts. At Harvard, she was elected Section Treasurer and was selected by faculty to conduct financial accounting review sessions for First Year students. So was a member of the Finance Club, Asia Business Club, Texas Club, Women's Students Association, Volleyball Club, and member of the intramural basketball, volleyball, and soccer teams. In the summer of 1998, she worked with Chase Securities, Inc., in New York, as a summer associate. So graduated from Harvard with her Master's degree in Business Administration in 1999.
Following graduation, she began working with Davita Inc., in Torrance, California, as the Director of Finance and Banking. Her job responsibilities include maintaining relationships with the Company's banking syndicate and ensuring compliance with credit facility agreements, both external and internal constituents, as well as ensuring adequate cash to meet operating needs while minimizing the cash on hand. She also serves as the point person on subordinated debt restructuring and interest rate derivative instruments. In 2001, So was part of the team that completed a refinancing of Davita's credit facilities by replacing the existing facility with a $400 million senior secured credit facility and a $225 million senior subordinated debt offering.
In her free time, So enjoys playing volleyball, tennis, reading and traveling. Since moving to Southern California, she has adapted to beach volleyball and picked up scuba diving. She and her boyfriend enjoy traveling and are planning their second annual dive trip, this year to the Philippines. So's immediate family resides in the Houston area, while her extended family is scattered throughout the United States, Hong Kong, and Australia. However, So maintains her Texas roots with regular weekend barbecues and visits to her parents' home in Spring, Texas.
As profiled in the 2001 Fall Alumni Magazine.
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