People To Watch In International Business

SHEIKH AHMED BIN SAEED AL-MAKTOUM Airline Chairman

“We are determined not to allow present difficulties to deflect our resolve,” explained Emirates Airlines chairman Al-Maktoum of the decision this month to spend $15 billion on new planes from Airbus and Boeing. Since 1985, Al-Maktoum, 42, a member of Dubai’s ruling family, has turned Emirates into the fastest-growing airline in the Middle East.

TED MEISEL Search Engine Chief Executive

In October, GoTo.com changed its name to Overture, but CEO Meisel, 38, kept intact a business plan that has proved successful, if controversial. Overture invites advertisers to bid for placement in its search results, with the higher bidders getting the top spots. Rather than marketing itself as a destination for users, Overture partners with such companies as AOL and MSN. In October the company, based in Pasadena, Calif., reported its first profitable quarter.

MORRIS CHANG Chip Manufacturer

The microchip industry worldwide is mired in a slump, with prices falling and many factories closing. But Chang, chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., posted third-quarter earnings that were better than expected. He believes the rebound has begun, and he announced a $20 billion expansion. Chang, 70, an avid contract-bridge player educated at Stanford and MIT, founded TSMC in 1987 and has made it the industry leader.

MARCE FULLER Power Generator

When Southern Co. spun off subsidiary Mirant Corp. last April, Fuller, 41, was tapped to head the newly independent entity. She became CEO of a $13 billion, publicly traded company that builds and operates power plants and sells electricity and natural gas in North America, Europe and Asia. Last month’s announcement by Mirant, once known as Southern Energy, that its third-quarter earnings had more than doubled those in last year’s third quarter coincided with the announcement that Fuller was named to the board of Earthlink.

JOCHEN ZEITZ Sporting Goods CEO

Most CEOs have been living a nightmare of late, but last month Puma head Zeitz boasted that his company is experiencing “dream results” as the sportswear merchandiser’s third-quarter profits more than tripled, compared with the same quarter in 2000. Zeitz, 37, a medical-school dropout, took over Puma in 1993, after it had lost market share to U.S. companies like Nike and Reebok. Now Puma, based in the German town of Herzogenaurach, has effectively repositioned itself as a hip lifestyle and fashion brand, leaving competitors sprinting to keep up.