Center for Finance Strategy Innovation Events and Activities
The Center for Finance Strategy Innovation Center sponsors a number of conference, panel, and workshop programs each year. Recent programs have concentrated on private equity, hedge fund, growth capital, public-private partnerships, and turnaround topics.
Events |
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| 2012 – 2nd Annual Private Equity Funds Symposium | Key Speakers: Kevin Boardman, Partner, Patton Boggs LLP Gregg Buksbaum, Partner, Patton Boggs LLP James Cheng, President & COO, NPIC (Natural Polymer International Corp.) Harvey Fine, Managing Director U.S. Global Investments and Strategies, Fosun Stephen Foote, Director, Northleaf Capital Partners Kim Garber, Co-Founder and Principal, CORE-CCO, LLC Gus Gatzios, Managing Vice President of Strategic Access Platforms at Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System Micah Green, Partner, Patton Boggs LLP R. David Kelly, Chairman, Teacher Retirement System of Texas Roman Kikta, Managing Partner and Founder Mobility Ventures Shoa-Kai Liu, Founding investor of RenRen Paul Louie, North American Partner, Long March Capital Matt O'Reilly, Chief Investment Officer, San Antonio Fire and Police Pension Fund |
| 2012 – Succeeding With Financing in a Time of Economic Uncertainty | Panelists: Rick Pelini, Vice President and Treasurer of Lennox International Henry Schopfer who has served as CFO of four public mid-sized companies Mahesh Shetty, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Encore Enterprises David Whiting, Senior Vice President and head of Comerica Bank’s Technology and Life Services Division Suzanne Lovett, Senior Vice President of Wells Fargo Capital Finance |
| 2011 – Private Equity Funds Symposium, Patton Boggs | Key Speaker: Ronnie Jung, Texas Teachers Retirement System Representative Speakers: Don Moorehead, Patton Boggs Kim Garber, US Securities and Exchange Commission Carl Kopfinger, TD Bank Joy Brawner, McGladrey Suzanne Kriscunas, Riverside Company Brett Palmer, National Association of SBIC’s Tony Schell, Escalate Capital Roman Kikta, Mobility Ventures Conner Searcy, Insight Equity |
| 2010 – The Governance and Financial Tools of Public-Private Partnerships | Panelists: David Leininger, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Paul Wageman, North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) Sasha N. Page, IMG Paul N. Wageman, North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) Robert M. (Bob) Brown, P.E., TXDOT Michael Morris, P.E., Transportation Department of the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Col. Dennis Beal, USMC (Ret.), Texas A & M University System Hon. Cynthia Figueroa, Attorney Paris Rutherford, Catalyst Urban Development, LLC John N. Crew, Public Werks, Inc. Stephen W. McCullough, Public Werks, Inc. |
| 2010 – Conference in partnership with Texas Hedge Fund Management Association | Panelists: Peruvemba Satish, Allstate Investments Todd Centurino, Teachers Retirement System Philip Durst, TollesonWealth Management |
| 2010 – “Where Will Growth Capital Come From?” | Panelists: Trey Vincent, Riverside Company Mary Jo Hoch, Capital One Bank David Oden, Haynes and Boone Ron Stacey, Legacy Advisors Jorge Joramillo, ORIX Leveraged Finance |
| 2009 – Turnarounds, Restructurings, and Distressed Investing | Panelists: Conner Searcy, Insight Equity Michael Bruder, Macquarie Group Jay Lucas, Lucas Group Don Bibeault, Verto Partners Harry Gray, Verto Partners |
Economic Updates and Case Research
Economic Updates
Two indexes tracking the financial health and financial flexibility of the 50 largest publicly held corporations in North Texas are updated quarterly. The series starts in 2009.
Case Research
The Center is producing a series of contemporary case studies on innovative companies. Shortly, we will release the first case. It deals with innovation in the consumer packaged goods industry will be released shortly. The work will be useful to both professionals in the field and graduate students.
Analytical and Operational Support for Corporate Decision Makers
Starting and Growing Businesses
The Center provides support for the analytical needs, of both new and growing businesses, especially in the areas of funding, valuation and strategy. Parallel analytical help for government agencies that work with these businesses is provided. Both faculty and student help is available.
Turnarounds and Restructurings
The Center provides help to managers responsible for such activities. The help usually involves either analysis of current needs and gaps or the planning of operational improvements.
Enterprise and Corporate Transformation
The Center supports corporations in their transformation endeavors when the opportunity is appropriate. Such support may include diagnosis of needs, design of an integrated business plan for transformation and/or the implementation of the plan. The recent economy continues to produce many such opportunities. Recognizable names with whom we have partnered include JC Penney, Target, Fujitsu, and Tektronix.
Sustainable Business
The Center believes there is a real need for financial and business perspectives to be brought to bear in this rapidly emerging area. While relatively new to North America, the concept of designing and operating sustainable businesses finds wider use elsewhere in the world. Sustainable business refers to the balancing of human, financial and ecological concerns so that a business can serve all its stakeholders on a continuing basis. We intend to be part of the continuing evolution of this area.
Financial Management
For the last three years, the Center has provided faculty speakers for the Professional Development Program of the Financial Executives International Dallas Chapter.
Support for Private Equity/Venture Capital Fund Managers and Investors
The Center's capabilities and interests include the provision of professional education, analytical support, economic updates and conference/workshop activities. Analytical support can include the structuring and start-up of new funds.
Analytical Support for Public Policy Makers
Through impartial analysis in its area of expertise the Center actively supports improvements in public policy especially through public-private partnerships of different kinds and involving different levels of governments. In the areas of finance, economic development and innovation the Center is able to help frame issues and analyze needs for consideration by policy makers. The Center does not position itself as an active advocate or active promoter of specific courses of action in the public sphere. In recent years, we have partnered with the Texas Legislature, the City of Cedar Hill, and Dallas Arts District.
Graduate and Professional Education for The School of Management
The Center contributes to graduate and professional education in four major dimensions.
Development and Delivery of MBA/MS Courses
Graduate courses have been developed and are delivered in the areas of corporate renewal, private equity finance, entrepreneurial finance, turnarounds and restructurings, and international financial management. The Center is preparing to deliver further courses in the area of corporate transformations and project finance. The Center designed and delivered an experimental three credit-hour course in enterprise transformation for the Executive MBA program of the School.
Customized Individual Study
The Center pioneered the use of customized individual study opportunities developed in conjunction with outside companies which support the Center's activities. These opportunities are somewhat like internships, but allow more customization of calendar schedules, credit hours, team membership, matching of student capabilities with needs and nature of final product produced. Approximately fifteen students have used these opportunities in the last two years.
Alliance
The Center serves and is allied with the Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship. CFSI works with the Institute in the finance/strategy sphere and provides finance and strategy academic and executive faculty members as appropriate.
