Creative Approaches to Global Health Problems

Combating deadly diseases in developing countries has grown from a purely humanitarian and development focus to an imperative for global business operations, particularly in light of mounting risk for HIV/AIDS, malaria and avian flu. As civic attention wanes and public development assistance is spread ever more thinly, creative and long-term private sector approaches to these challenges have become essential. This session will explore innovative strategies to fund initiatives and combat global health problems. Representatives from both the corporate and foundation worlds will discuss recent successes, lessons learned, and prospects for future solutions.

Multinationals and Corruption

New anti-corruption policies by organizations such as the World Bank and the U.S. government are making it increasingly difficult for poor countries to receive development aid. This panel will examine how national and international organizations are operationalizing new anti-corruption policies and what the overall effect has been. Special emphasis will be given to the private sector and how it is affected by both corruption and the new anti-corruption efforts.

Nonprofit Boards - Succession Planning: Attracting and Retaining Executive Leaders

This panel will discuss the challenges faced by nonprofit boards in attracting and retaining top executive leaders. Panelists will share experiences regarding the challenges of managing a proactive succession planning process and discuss the different dynamics created when hiring an outside executive director versus promoting from within. Panelists will share and contrast views from the perspective of a board member as well as executive director.

Revisiting Corporate Social Responsibility: Are Companies Really Doing Well by Doing Good?

In the past, advocates of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) argued that companies have an obligation to respect the needs of all of their stakeholders while its critics believed that CSR activities were unethical to the extent that they reduced shareholder return. Today, that debate has quieted significantly, giving way to the recognition that firms must demonstrate socially responsible behavior to compete for increasingly demanding 21st century consumers and employees and the idea that it is possible for firms to "do well by doing good." But as CSR and its corollaries -- cause marketing, strategic philanthropy, and corporate citizenship-- grow in popularity, it seems important to question their effectiveness. Are companies really doing well by doing good? What do the initial results of CSR initiatives tell us? Should companies always try to do well by doing good? Is it appropriate for companies to align charitable activities to business objectives when doing so could neglect less appealing but equally important causes? Panelists for this session, representing practitioners, business association leaders and academics will be asked to respond to this new debate.

NETWORKING LUNCH — 12:00pm to 1:15pm

KEYNOTE — 1:30pm to 2:30pm

BREAKOUT 2 — 2:45pm to 4:00pm

Renewable Energy

In light of recent irrefutable evidence of the urgent problem of global warming, businesses must look closely at new energy sources to reduce costs and emissions and prepare themselves for new legislation designed to protect the environment. Discussion will include topics such as: keeping renewable energy costs on their downward track; fixing problems at the retail level; the goals and effects of legislation; and investment. Panelists will include industry members, private equity investors, and legislators.

The Role of Private Equity in Emerging Market Development

Last year an estimated $21 billion was raised by private equity funds for investment in emerging markets. Given the significant role that private equity will play in emerging market economies it is important to try to understand what impact private equity investment has on development. Is there an inherent trade-off between returns and development? If funds are generating returns for investors in emerging markets, is this enough to say that they are having a positive development impact? If not, to what extent can or should investors sacrifice returns for development goals? This panel will engage a range of emerging markets actors in this discussion, including a large scale return-focused fund, a for-profit SME fund, a quasi-public investor such as the IFC, and a non-profit market-based fund such as Acumen.

The Impact of Private Equity on Education

A combination of economic, political and technological factors has transformed the education industry into a rapidly growing investment opportunity for private equity firms in the last decade. There has been an explosion of for-profit education companies in different areas of education offering innovative ways to supplement or replace traditional education systems. This panel will discuss the trends and opportunities in K-12 and post- secondary education, explore the benefits and challenges of the for-profit model, and examine the elements that contribute to a successful for-profit education solution.

BREAKOUT 3 — 4:15pm to 5:30pm

Real Estate Investment and the Future of American Cities

Big cities across the country are experiencing remarkable levels of revitalization. Urban centers in New York, San Francisco, Boston and Washington, DC are magnets for wealthy professionals drawn by low crime rates, job opportunities, and a desire to live near cultural amenities. This demographic shift to wealthy residents has attracted a great deal of private capital. The recent proposed sale of Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village, the largest privately developed middle-income housing in Manhattan, is a symbol of this movement. In reaction, many claim that this urban boom comes at the cost of middle and working-class residents, who are increasingly being squeezed out of America’s largest cities. How will this income stratification affect the future of America’s big cities? How can cities help make housing more affordable? Is there a role for public/private partnerships to support public income diversity goals? Can other existing or new economic development initiatives be employed to maintain or increase the economic diversity of neighborhoods? Panelists including nonprofit and for-profit developers and public sector officials will discuss these issues.

Local Initiatives for Economic Empowerment

Over 1.7 million New York City residents are living below the federal poverty line, and 12% of the city’s working adults are living in households that lack sufficient food. This panel will look at innovative programs being used to provide opportunities for the economic advancement of New York City’s underserved communities. These initiatives employ a variety of methods ranging from micro-loans and technical assistance to “equity like” investments and grant funding. Panelists will discuss how these programs meet the varying needs of low-income individuals, small businesses, and non-profits. Emphasis will be placed on evaluating the effectiveness and limitations of these programs.

Bottom of the Pyramid: Merging Competitive Strategy with Social Mission

The demise of the cold war at the end of the 20th Century and the ensuing movement toward economic globalization, trade liberalization and privatization created the potential for social and economic advancement for the world’s poor. The results, however, were mixed at best. Wealthy and developed nations grew richer while the majority of the poor were further marginalized, eventually leading to the rise of anti-globalization. Companies seeking new markets in the face of anti-globalization sentiment, to be successful, must develop strategies using the lens of inclusive capitalism. The four billion people at the bottom of the economic pyramid thus present a new strategic opportunity for businesses to create profitable enterprises and achieve the goals of sustainable development. Converting the poor into active market participants requires radical innovations in business models and technology. This panel will focus on how companies can create, and have created, profitable enterprises that simultaneously raise the quality of life for the world's four billion poor.