"Gauging the Economic Turnaround"
May 19, 2004
Conference Program
| 8:00 a.m. | Registration & Coffee | Fenwick Huss Associate Dean J. Mack Robinson College of Business |
| 8:30 a.m. | Words of Welcome | |
| 8:35 a.m. | Energy Availability & Pricing: Is the Economy Adjusting? | Paula Rosput [read bio] Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer AGL Resources |
| 8:55 am. | What Now? Rethinking Today's Investment Alternatives> | Max Darnell [read bio] Partner & Chief Investment Officer First Quadrant |
| 9:15 a.m. | eBay: Changing Global Commerce Paradigms | Mark Rubash [read bio] Vice President, Finance & Investor Relations & Chief Accounting Officer eBay |
| 9:35 a.m. | The Paradox of Strategic Growth | Karen See [read bio] Chief Executive Officer Abovo Group |
| 9:55 a.m. | Q & A and Moderator Comments | Ken Bernhardt [read bio] Chair, Regents' Professor, and Taylor E. Little, Jr. Professor of Marketing J. Mack Robinson College of Business |
| 10:25 a.m. | Refreshments Break | |
| 10:45 a.m. | Forecast of the Nation, State and the Region | Rajeev Dhawan [read bio] Director Economic Forecasting Center J. Mack Robinson College of Business Georgia State University |
| 11:30 a.m. | Final Remarks and Q & A | |
| 11:40 a.m. | Light Lunch and Networking |
Industry Speakers
Max Darnell
Partner & Chief Investment Officer
First Quadrant
BIO- Max Darnell is the Chief Investment Officer and Director of Research at First Quadrant, L.P. Mr. Darnell joined First Quadrant in 1991, after earning an M.S. in Economics from the UCLA.
At First Quadrant, he oversaw derivatives research until 2000, when he assumed the role of Director of Research, overseeing both equities and derivative products. In January 2003, he was promoted to Chief Investment Officer.
First Quadrant is an investment manager that specializes in managing portfolios for large corporate and public institutional investors, and manages over $17 billion in actively and passively managed assets and overlays invested using its own proprietary investment strategies. These strategies are quantitative, relying upon objective analysis of market conditions and asset value rather than subjective inferences about future trends to form the basis for its investment decisions.
Mark Rubash
Vice President, Finance & Investor Relations & Chief Accounting Officer
eBay
BIO- Mark currently serves as the Vice President, Finance and Investor Relations and the Chief Accounting Officer for eBay Inc. In this capacity, Mark is responsible for the worldwide accounting, financial planning & analysis, tax, treasury, investor relations and workplace resources functions.
Prior to joining eBay in February 2001, Mark worked in the public accounting profession for approximately 20 years, where he planned and directed business advisory services to clients in both the public and private sectors, including multi-national organizations and venture-backed emerging businesses. He worked for 7 years with Ernst & Whinney and for 13 years with PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he was recognized as one of the top experts in Internet accounting and served as audit partner for 8 years.
Mark holds a B.S. Accounting from California State University at Sacramento and is a licensed CPA in the state of California.
Karen See
Chief Executive Officer
Abovo Group
BIO- Abovo Group provides marketing services to companies in need of business transformation, whether through market expansion, product innovation, corporate development or brand promotion. Its executives have a diverse background in strategy from companies such as Boston Consulting Group and Booz-Allen, as well as corporate marketing and advertising/PR agency services.
As founder and CEO, Karen See leads the creative strategy team and has helped over 100 companies through the transformation process. Karen is very active in the Atlanta and high-tech communities, currently serving on the boards for the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, CEO High Tech Council, and Technology Executive Roundtable.
Karen received her B.S. in Mass Communication from Kansas State University.
Ken Bernhardt
Chair, Regents' Professor, and
Taylor E. Little, Jr. Professor of Marketing
J. Mack Robinson College of Business
BIO- Ken Bernhardt is Chair of the Department of Marketing at the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University. He is also a Regents' Professor and the Taylor E. Little, Jr. Professor of Marketing.
Dr. Bernhardt has published numerous textbooks, monographs and articles on marketing and consumer behavior. He is a past president of the Association for Consumer Behavior and a past chair of the board of the 45,000 member American Marketing Association.
Bernhardt's current research interests involve consumer attitudes and behavior, public policy issues in marketing and the marketing of services. He has won numerous teaching awards, and has been engaged in consulting and research assignments for many businesses, including BellSouth, Kimberly-Clark, Chick-fil-A and UPS. He serves on the board of directors or board of advisors for several companies and also serves on the board of trustees for six nonprofit organizations.
Dr. Bernhardt received a B.S. from Washington and Lee University, an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, and a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.
