Yale School of Management Cosponsors NYC Panel Discussion on the Financial Crisis

In response to growing concerns on the spread of the financial crisis, the Yale School of Management, in partnership with the Wall Street Journal and CNBC, organized a roundtable discussion in New York on September 23 that brought together business leaders and scholars from Yale, Wharton, NYU, and the Columbia and Harvard business schools to discuss the unfolding situation in the markets and the economy more broadly, as well as the proposed Treasury Department bail-out plan currently being discussed in Congress.

Participating business leaders included Yale University alumni William Donaldson ’53 BA, 27th Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Founding Dean of the Yale School of Management; Allen & Company Managing Director Nancy Peretsman ’79 MPPM; investor Wilbur Ross ’59 BA; Scott Schoen ’80 BA, Co-President of Thomas H. Lee Partners; the Blackstone Group’s Stephen Schwarzman ’69 BA; and George Wyper ’84 MBA, Managing Partner of Wyper Capital Management, among a host of distinguished practitioners that included the former Executive Chairman of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation; the President and CEO of Marsh & McLennan Companies; and the President and CEO of Credit Suisse Investment Banking.

The organizer of the event was Yale School of Management Senior Associate Dean Jeffrey Sonnenfeld. “We were inspired by the outpouring of interest and the quick response to this event. We started planning on Sunday night, and by Tuesday afternoon, we had everyone around the table to share their incredible insights. That we could get everyone together so quickly is a signal of both their leadership and their concern in this growing crisis. Peer-driven learning is what is required, as there is no clear map to follow for navigating this worst financial crisis in 80 years. Each day’s headlines defy predictions. This objective forum, pooling the cutting edge knowledge of expert scholars and experienced financial titans is just the sort of way this school and this university can help address major society challenges.”

Yale SOM Dean Joel Podolny, who presided over the roundtable, remarked, “We couldn’t have asked for a more distinguished and thoughtful group, with perspectives from both practice and academia. It was an extraordinary gathering by any measure, and a reflection of these extraordinary times. We are grateful to all of the participants for taking the time to take part, and especially grateful to the Wall Street Journal and CNBC for their support.”

View list of roundtable participants.

Video coverage of the full roundtable will be posted as soon as it is available.

Related Articles:

The following articles require an online subscription to The Wall Street Journal.

View video from roundtable participants:

The Blackstone Group’s Stephen Schwarzman and W.L. Ross & Co. CEO Wilbur Ross (2:24)	Yale SOM Associate Professor Jonathan Koppell (3:25)
Yale Economist Robert Shiller (4:58)	Former SEC Chairman William H. Donaldson (2:16)
Yale SOM Senior Associate Dean Jeffrey Sonnenfeld (3:33)	Marsh & McLennan CEO Brian Duperreault (2:09)

Story contributed by the Yale School of Management: original article »