About the Speakers
Karen Abramson, President & CEO, Wolters Kluwer Health Medical Research
Karen Abramson is President and CEO of the Wolters Kluwer Health Medical Research, a leading force in medical journal publishing and the development and delivery of aggregated, customizable electronic research information. Ms. Abramson, a recognized leader in customer-centric product development, has driven renewed customer focus across Medical Research with new society and journal online publishing solutions. She holds a BA in Political Science from George Washington University.
Lars Björk, CEO, QlikTech
Lars Björk is CEO and member of the board of directors of QlikTech, a business intelligence software company. Under Mr. Bjork's leadership as CEO, QlikTech has sustained tremendous growth the past five years while considerably expanding its geographic reach. During 2010, Mr. Björk oversaw the company's initial public offering (IPO) on the NASDAQ, which was recognized as one of the year's top tech IPOs. Previously, he held CFO and management roles at several Swedish companies. Mr. Björk was recently named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year national winner in the technology category.
Nick Brien, CEO, McCann Group Worldwide
Nick Brien is Chief Executive of McCann Worldgroup, at MRM Worldwide, and also serves as its Chairman of the Board. Mr. Brien served as the Chief Executive and President of MediaBrands Worldwide (Mediabrands) at The Interpublic Group of Companies, since July 2008. He joined Interpublic after a long career at Publicis Groupe's Leo Burnett and Starcom companies.
Frank Brown, Senior Partner, General Atlantic Partners, and former Dean, INSEAD
J. Frank Brown will become Chief Operating Officer in January 2012 at General Atlantic, a global growth equity firm. From 2006 to 2011, Mr. Brown served as Dean of INSEAD, the leading international business school with campuses in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Mr. Brown received his B.S.B.A. from Bucknell University and studied in the advanced management program at Wharton.
Ram Charan, Author, Strategist, Former Professor – Harvard Business School, Advisor to Jack Welch, A.G. Lafley, Alan Mulally
Ram Charan is a highly acclaimed author, strategist and trusted business advisor who has coached CEOs at companies like GE, KLM, Novartis and Verizon for the last 35 years. Co-author of the best-selling Execution with Larry Bossidy, Ram started his career in the family shoe shop in India. Ram has earned a B.S. in Engineering, an M.B.A. and doctorate from Harvard.
Richard Finnegan, CEO, C-Suite Analytics; Founder, President, The Retention Institute
Dick Finnegan has been cited by BusinessWeek magazine as the leading thinker on employee retention. He is CEO of C-Suite Analytics and President and Founder of Finnegan|Mackenzie, The Retention Firmsm, companies dedicated to helping organizations engage and retain their employees. Dick has worked with scores of clients across 6 continents on employee retention solutions in industries including healthcare, energy, manufacturing, and financial services. Author of Rethinking Retention in Good Times and Bad, Dick was first to detail the only research-based, strategic approach to cutting employee turnover with specific tactics that work. Dick holds bachelors and graduate degrees from The Pennsylvania State University.
Leonard M. Fuld, President and Founder, Fuld & Company
Leonard Fuld is a pioneer in the field of competitive intelligence. Fuld & Company specializes in providing business intelligence to corporations to improve their decision-making for strategy, operations and tactical applications. His company has served over half the Fortune 500
companies as well as corporations around the world. Mr. Fuld is a widely published author, including his newly published book, The Secret Language of Competitive Intelligence (Random House, 2006). Mr. Fuld was among the first four people to be named a Fellow of the Society of Competitive
Intelligence Professionals (SCIP) and was awarded the Meritorious Award, the highest award offered by SCIP, in 1998.
Robert Hardy, CEO, Geostrat Worldview
After a distinguished 30-year career on Wall Street, Robert Hardy founded The Geostrat, a geo-political intelligence brief. Previously he was Managing Director at LaBranche and Co. He established the first international stock trading operation at the NYSE while at MJ Meehan and Co. Robert is a graduate of University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Fred Hassan, Chairman, Bausch & Lomb; Senior Partner, Warburg Pincus
Fred Hassan became the Chairman of the Board of Bausch & Lomb in March 2010. Previously, he served as Chairman and Chief Executive of Schering-Plough from 2003 until November 3, 2009 when the company completed its merger with Merck & Co. Hassan received a B.S. degree in chemical engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology at the University of London and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Joseph Herring, Chairman, CEO Covance, Inc.
Joe Herring is Chairman and CEO of Covance, one of the world's largest drug development services companies with annual revenues greater than $1.9 billion and 10,500 employees in more than 60 countries. Mr. Herring joined Covance in 1996 as Corporate Vice President and General Manager of North America Early Development. Prior to joining Covance, Mr. Herring worked 18 years in the American Hospital Supply Corporation/Baxter International/Caremark International organization, where he held senior leadership positions in sales, marketing and general management. Mr. Herring earned a Bachelor of Science in business administration from Louisiana State University in 1978.
Brendan Hoffman, CEO, Lord & Taylor
Brendan Hoffman is President and CEO of Lord & Taylor, America's oldest department store. He began his retail career in Lord & Taylor's Executive Training Program, later joined the Neiman Marcus Group, and was named President & CEO of Neiman Marcus Direct in 2002. He returned to Lord & Taylor in 2008. Mr. Hoffman received a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, and his M.B.A. from Wharton.
M. Christine Jacobs, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, Theragenics Corporation
amatic growth of Theragenics Corp., a medical device company serving the cancer treatment and surgical markets. Revenue has grown from $4.1 million in 1993 to $78.3 million in 2009, representing average growth exceeding 20% over the 16-year period. During her tenure as CEO, the company's production capabilities quadrupled in size with the construction of the largest cyclotron facility in the world and the largest production facility for the active medical isotope Palladium-103. Jacobs is the longest serving female CEO of an NYSE-listed company. Jacobs received a Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology from Daemon College in Buffalo, NY, and an MBA from Georgia State University.
Emmet B. Keeffe III, CEO & Co-Founder, iRise
In the late 1990s Emmet Keeffe and Maurice Martin co-founded iRise, with a vision to transform how business and IT stakeholders would communicate about requirements for custom and packaged business software. In 2000, Emmet and Maurice invented the market for "Software Visualization" and have built iRise into the world's leading provider of enterprise visualization for business software. Prior to co-founding iRise, he built a top-selling region at NetDynamics, a pioneer of the Web application server market that was later acquired by Sun Microsystems. Earlier in his sales career, Emmet earned over 15 national sales awards, including being named "National Top Performer" by NetDynamics, Auspex Systems, Diasonics and Minolta. He earned a B.A. in Political Economy of Industrial Societies from the University of California at Berkeley and lives in London, England.
Duncan Niederauer, CEO, New York Stock Exchange, Euronext
Duncan Niederauer has served as chief executive officer and a director of NYSE Euronext since December 2007, and as a member of the Company's management committee since April 2007. Prior to his current position, Mr. Niederauer was President and co-Chief Operating Officer of NYSE Euronext with responsibility for U.S. cash equities. Mr. Niederauer was previously a partner at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (United States) where he held many positions, among them co-head of the Equities Division Execution Services franchise and the managing director responsible for Goldman Sachs Execution & Clearing, L.P.
Robert L. Nardelli, CEO, Cerberus Operations & Advisory Company, LLC
Robert L. Nardelli joined Cerberus as CEO in June 2009. Prior to joining Cerberus, he served as Chairman and Chief Executive and as a member of the Board of Managers of Chrysler, LLC. From 2000 to 2007 Nardelli served as Chairman, President and CEO of The Home Depot. Nardelli began his career at GE in 1971, and advanced through a series of leadership positions.
Cary Pappas, President & CEO, FedEx TechConnect
Cary's genuine leadership style inspires 5,000 FTC team members to deliver daily on The Purple Promise to make every FedEx experience outstanding. Throughout his 25-years with FedEx, Cary has embraced the traditions that define the renowned brand and position FedEx as a leader in the global marketplace. Having earned his bachelor's degree in marketing transportation from the University
of Memphis, Cary is a six-time recipient of the prestigious Five Star Award, the highest recognition bestowed by FedEx.
Lynn Tilton, CEO, Patriarch Partners, LLC
Lynn Tilton leads a private equity firm and holding company with revenues of over $8 billion, managing 75 companies across 12 industry sectors. Passionate about saving American manufacturing jobs, Ms. Tilton has restructured more than 150 companies, saving over 250,000 jobs. Ms. Tilton earned a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.
Myron "Mike" Ullman, III, Chairman of the Board and CEO, J.C. Penney
Myron E. Ullman, III is Chairman and Chief Executive of J.C. Penney Company, positions he has held since 2004. Before joining J.C. Penney, Mike served as Directeur General, Group Managing Director of LVMH Möet Hennessy Louis Vuitton from 1999 to 2002. Previous positions include Group Chairman and Chief Executive officer of DFS Group Limited and Chairman and CEO of R.H. Macy & Co.
Larry G. Wash, President, Global Services for the Climate Solutions Sector, Ingersoll Rand
Mr. Wash is president of Global Services for the Climate Solutions sector of Ingersoll Rand. Climate Solutions, comprised of Hussmann, Thermo King and Trane, leading building, transportation and refrigeration brands respectively, is a $3B+ global business that operates in 60 countries, through more than 300 parts retail outlets, and three global engineering and development centers. Wash holds a bachelor's of science degree in electrical engineering from Wayne State University, Michigan; a master's degree in electrical engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology (NY); and a master's in business administration with honors from Stanford University.
John S. Wood, Vice Chairman, Heidrick & Struggles
John Wood is Vice Chairman and Global Managing Partner of Heidrick & Struggles' Chief Executive Officer & Board of Directors Practice. Based in New York, John has more than 15 years of executive search consulting experience and an extensive track record of recruiting chief executive officers and board directors for a broad range of international clients. In 2008, Business Week named John one of The 50 Most Influential Headhunters in the World. John began his career in advertising and has held senior management positions at Grey Advertising (now the Grey Group) and Foote, Cone & Belding. John earned a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism and an MBA from the University of Oregon.