Mellody Hobson Replaces Roger Enrico as Chairman of DreamWorks Animation

Roger Enrico has resigned as chairman of DreamWorks Animation and is being replaced by board member Mellody Hobson, the company announced Thursday.

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Enrico, the former CEO of Pepsi, had been the chairman of DreamWorks Animation since 2004. No reason was given why Enrico, 67, is stepping down.

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"Roger has been an invaluable leader to our board of directors, and his guidance helped put DreamWorks Animation on a path to success from day one," Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation, said in a statement. "On behalf of the board of directors and our entire management team, I'd like to deeply thank Roger for his unfailing service over the past eight years and wish him the very best in the future."

Hobson, 43, is president of Chicago-based Ariel Investments, which manages more than $3 billion in assets, and chairwoman of Ariel Mutual Funds. Ariel is reportedly among the largest African American-owned money management and mutual fund companies in the U.S.

Hobson regularly contributes commentary on financial issues on ABC’s Good Morning America and is a spokesperson for the annual Ariel/Schwab Black Investor Survey.

In 2009, Hobson hosted a show on ABC called Unbroke: What You Need to Know About Money, which was meant to educate people about how to invest and save money. It featured appearances by celebrities including Samuel L. Jackson, the Jonas Brothers and the Muppet character Oscar the Grouch.

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Hobson, who is unmarried and has no children, has been linked romantically to filmmaker George Lucas since 2006.

A native of Chicago, Hobson graduated from the Woodrow Wilson School of International Relations and Public Policy at Princeton University in 1991. Not long after that, she joined Ariel as an intern and became president in 2000.