The symposium’s theme is “Innovative Growth of Financial Services.” URI Business Dean Mark Higgins will serve as the master of ceremonies. The Program will begin at 8 a.m. and run until 1:30 p.m. with lunch included. Panels will cover issues relating to mutual funds, retirement planning and life insurance, as well as industry and academic collaboration.
At 8:45 a.m. Charlie Brenner, founder of the Fidelity Center for Applied Technology: SVP Fidelity Investments, will discuss “Technology, Innovation and the Impact on the Financial Services Industry.”
At 9:30 a.m. a Business CEO Roundtable Discussion will focus on “Shaping the Future by Looking at the Trends.” Among the panelist speaking will be: William Hatfield, market president of Bank of America; Edward A. Hjerpe III, president of Webster Bank; Gary Furtado president and chief executive officer of Navigant Credit Union; and Robert DiMuccio president and chief executive officer of AMICA.
Then at 11 a.m. the Industry Leaders Roundtable discussion, “Crafting a Climate for Financial Services Industry Success,” will be held. The panelists will be Laurie White, president of Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce; Saul Kaplan, executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp.; Dan Egan, chief executive officer of Credit Union Association of Rhode Island; and A. Michael Marques the director of the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation.
At lunch, keynote speaker David Sampson, the president and CEO for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America and former deputy security of the U.S. Commerce Department, will discuss “The Role of the Insurance Industry in the Nation’s Economic Fabric.”
Shaw Chen, chair of the Symposium and associate dean of the College, said the state’s financial services leaders again asked the College to organize this year’s program.
“Students will be exposed to government regulators and decision-makers and they will also learn different perspectives about the industry,” Chen said. “We expect about 200 participants.”
Major sponsors are Fidelity Investments, MetLife Auto & Home, and Amica Mutual Insurance Co. Also collaborating on the program are the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp., Governors’ Insurance Council, Rhode Island Independent Insurance Agents Association and other state trade associations.
The registration fee prior to Nov. 6 is $99, which includes lunch and refreshments. Registration the day of the conference is $120. Those wishing to register in advance should send a check made payable to the URI Foundation-FS Symposium, and mail to the University of Rhode Island Financial Services Symposium 2007, College of Business Administration, University of Rhode Island, 7 Lippit Road, Kingston R.I., 02881-0802. Students wishing to attend will have to register but the fee will be waived. Individuals may also register online with their credit cards by going to http://wwwcba.uri.edu/home/alumni/fss/. For additional information, please call Dean Chen at 401-874-4339.