Company executives talk business at USU
The 33rd annual Financial Services and Banking Seminar was held Thursday in the Utah State University Eccles Conference Center.
Increasing your company’s performance through partners in business was the theme for this year’s seminar. Individuals from significant economic and business avenues were key speakers, including Roger McOmber, portfolio manager of Carlson Capital, and Harris Simmons, chairman, president and CEO of Zions Bancorporation.
Ross Robson, associate dean in the College of Business at USU, said, “This seminar will help make higher performances in businesses throughout Utah. This is one of the country’s premier forums in performing cutting-edge business.”
McOmber said, “USU has really created a creative niche here that you really shouldn’t take for granted in bringing together academics and the business world.”
Issues, such as making sense of financial statements in the post-Enron era were discussed.
“The Enron story will be a facinating story for years to come. They were able to bring in and predict an energy powerhouse,” McOmber said. “We like risks. You make money by taking risks. The trick is that when you take on risks, you manage better than your competitors.”
Other issues included attracting, rewarding and retaining key officers, while increasing shareholder value and understanding current developments and trends in state and local tax.
The seminar consisted of seven speakers. As the first speaker, Simmons focused on the problems of interpreting financial statements. He addressed the issues of whether accounting rules have replaced consistently-applied accounting principles.
Kraig Thorne, student host and Utah State College Republicans executive committee member, said, “This is the second time I have been to this and I always have a great time when I come. I am always amazed at the speakers they get to come.”
In concurrent sessions, Mel Reeves, managing director of Benmark West, discussed how banks attract and retain top banking talent and increase bank revenues by supplementing the income of key officers.
Scott Baird, president of Strategic Human Resource Solutions, explored releasing employee potential, and Daniel Jensen, Storage Specialist of Vista Computer Technology IBM Premier Business Partner, discussed how to keep data systems safe in case of disaster.
Denise Routson, a senior majoring in human resource management, said, “Every seminar is different, and it was really nice to hear from people so high up in the business world.”
McOmber was the concluding speaker and explained his position as a Wall Street research analyst. He talked about how the media and politicians have misrepresented the problems with Wall Street research, creating a potentially dangerous crisis in capital markets.
“Things are seldom as they seem. I think that’s true here with research analysts and with Wall Street,” he said.
Many students had the opportunity to attend the seminar as part of USU’s Discussion with Business Leaders class.
Nathan Routson, a junior majoring in human resource management, said, “It was really useful information, and I’m really glad that we were able to receive credit for it.”
Other speakers during the day included Jonathan Block, a partner in Pierce Atwood, and Kelly Matthews, executive vice president and economist at Wells Fargo Intermountain Region.
Partners in Business, sponsored by the College of Business at USU, is the only student-run management education program in the United States and features eight seminars each year.
-mmackay@cc.usu.edu