Young Finance Professionals

Kent Bowman, Managing Partner, Tanner LC, July 14th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

Kent M. Bowman
Managing Partner, Audit and Business Advisory Partner, Tanner LC

Years of Professional Experience
30 years, Audit, Accounting and Business Advisory Services
Arthur Andersen LLP        22.0   years
KPMG LLP                           2.5   years
Tanner LC                          5.5   years

Professional Experience
Kent serves a variety of public and private companies in the software, real estate, distribution, franchising, manufacturing, retailing, technology, hospitality and transportation industries.  He has significant experience with SEC financial reporting, mergers and acquisitions, handling multi-location engagements and corporate finance transactions.  Kent has assisted numerous clients with public and private debt and equity offerings, including initial and secondary public offerings.  Kent has expertise with ERISA and DOL rules and regulations.  Kent serves as a concurring reviewer and SEC financial reporting specialist.

Kent was the managing partner of the Salt Lake City office of Arthur Anderson LLP.  He also served as the firm’s director of litigation services for the Salt Lake City practice.  Kent has extensive experience in conducting due diligence investigations for mergers and acquisitions.

Representative Client Experience
1-800 Contacts
American Skiing Company
CR England Trucking
Cadence Design Systems
Deer Valley Resort Company
Franklin Covey
Huntsman Corporation
Stein Eriksen Lodge.
Mrs. Fields’ Original Cookies, Inc.
Nature’s Sunshine Products
OC Tanner Company
Provo Craft
Rio Tinto / Kennecott Copper
SkyWest
Sonic Innovations
Sundance
Utah Ventures
Easton Technical Products

Professional and Civic Activities
•    Member, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
•    Member, Utah Association of Certified Public Accountants
•    Member and Past President, University of Utah School of Accountancy Advisory Board
•    President and Board Member, Guadalupe Schools
•    Member, Rotary Club
•    Past Co-Chair, Bringing Hope to Single Moms
•    Past President, Salt Lake Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants

Education
Masters of Professional Accountancy degree                    June 1980
with an emphasis in Taxation (University of Utah)

•    Recipient of the University of Utah’s Highest Academic Achievement Award
•    Graduated number one in the School of Accounting

Bachelor of Arts degree in accounting (University of Utah)            June 1979

•    Graduated Magna Cum Laude
•    Recipient of the Accounting Student of the Year Award from UACPA
•    Minor in Persian (Middle Eastern Studies)
-    Recipient of the Outstanding Undergraduate Award in Persian
-    Speak, write and read Persian (Farsi)

Passed the C.P.A. exam in advance of graduation and have remained current in all continuing professional education requirements since 1980

Roger Clarke, President of Ensign Peak Advisors, June 29th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

Roger G. Clarke currently serves as president of Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc., an investment management affiliate for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He also currently serves as chairman of the board of Analytic Investors, Inc., a Los Angeles-based investment management firm.

Roger has authored numerous articles and papers over the years relating to quantitative investment management.  He is currently on the editorial board of the Journal of Portfolio Management and the Journal of Investment Management and served previously on the editorial board of the Financial Analysts Journal.  He also serves on the board of the Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance.  He is the recipient of three Graham and Dodd Scrolls from the CFA Institute and the Roger F. Murray Award from The Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance.  Roger has been an adjunct professor with the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University where for ten years he served on the full-time faculty.  Roger received a Ph.D. in finance and an MS degree in economics from Stanford University as well as an MBA and a BA degree in physics from Brigham Young University.

Kyle Whittingham, Head Coach of the University of Utah Football Team, May 18th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

In five years as Utah’s head coach, Kyle Whittingham has been honored as the National Coach of the Year, averaged over nine wins a season, is undefeated in bowl games, led Utah to its best season ever and engineered the biggest win in school history. He is just the second Utah coach–and the first in 100 years–to achieve a winning record in each of his first five seasons, and his 48-17 overall mark includes a 10-4 advantage over BCS schools.

Gary Crocker, Chairman of Merrimack Pharmaceuticals and President of Crocker Ventures, LLC, April 21st, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

Gary Crocker initially invested in Merrimack and joined the Board in 2004, and was elected as Chairman in the spring of 2005. Mr. Crocker is President of Crocker Ventures, LLC, a life science private investment firm. He is in the midst of his second term on the Board of Directors of the Federal Reserve Branch of San Francisco and also serves as a member of the Advisory Board of Sorenson Capital, an LBO private equity fund. He has held senior executive or director level positions in several successful life science firms including service from 1998 to 2003 as Chairman of ARUP Laboratories, as a director of Interleuken Genetics, Inc, and LineaGen Genetics, LLC., and as a co-founder and director of Theratech, Inc. which was acquired in 1999 by Watson Pharmaceuticals. From 1983 to 1997, he was President/CEO and founder of Research Medical, Inc., a publicly traded cardiac device manufacturer acquired by Baxter International in 1997. Prior to Research Medical, Mr. Crocker was Vice President, Business Development and Director of Marketing for the Sorenson Research division of Abbott Laboratories, and an Internal Strategic Analyst for Baxter International. He was recently inducted into the University of Utah Science Hall of Fame, and serves as a director of the University’s Research Foundation. Mr. Crocker earned both his MBA and also graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Harvard University.

C. Richard Schwarz, SVP, Zions Bank, March 29, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

C. Richard Schwarz began his career on Wall Street in New York, NY where he traded U.S. Treasury Securities for a number of bulge bracket firms for 20 years.  Over the past 10 years he has been a resident of Salt Lake City, UT where he is a Senior Vice President at Zions Bank.  He is the Sales & Trading Manager for Zions Capital Markets, Zions Direct, Zions FX and the bank’s Liquid Asset Management.  He is also a member of the Utah Management Council.  Mr. Schwarz holds a B.S. in Economics from Bryant College and a M.B.A in Finance from New York University.

Kimball Rasmussen, CEO, Deseret Power, Feb 24th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

Few CEO’s enjoy the industry perspective Kimball Rasmussen has developed by working for the three power supplier business models. Holding a high senior or CEO position in municipals, cooperatives and investor-owned power utilities, Kimball has strong experience within each segment of the electric power industry.

Kimball launched his career graduating with an Electrical Engineering bachelor’s degree and a MBA degree from the Brigham Young University in 1986. Kimball rose through the power marketing department of Utah Power/PacifiCorp. Major milestones included Director of Power Marketing and Contracts and V.P. of Business Development for PacifiCorp.

In 1998, Kimball became Executive Director and CEO joined Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency with over 600 MW of resources and $150 million in annual revenues. Beginning in January, 2000 Kimball signed on as CEO for Deseret.
He is married and has four children.
* * *
Deseret Power is based in South Jordan, Utah and serves over 50,000 customers in California, Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, Colorado, and Arizona. Established in 1978, Deseret Power is owned by six rural electric cooperatives and operates the 458-megawatt Bonanza Power Plant near Vernal, Utah and the Deserado Coal Mine near Rangely, Colorado. Deseret also has a 100-megawatt interest in Utah Power’s Hunter 2 unit.

Jeremy Neilson, Managing Director, Utah Fund of Funds, Jan 12th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

Mr. Neilson was tapped by State Economic Development to launch the newly born Utah Fund of Funds in 2003. As the first staff member, Mr. Neilson has been working for the program’s success for the past five years, three of which he was the sole management team member.  Mr. Neilson sits on the advisory boards of the Women Tech Council and Upstart Ventures.  Prior to the Utah Fund of Funds, Mr. Neilson was an associate with the University Venture Fund where he spent time working closely with local and national venture capitalists on company due diligence. Mr. Neilson started his professional career at Neilson Elggren, in their Los Angeles office, a fraud and bankruptcy forensic accounting firm, where he worked on a number of matters including Adelphia’s billion dollar bankruptcy and one of Americas largest Ponzi schemes.  Mr. Neilson holds a finance degree from BYU, an MBA from the University of Utah and a Juris Doctorate from Wake Forest School of Law.

Scott Anderson, President & CEO of Zions Bank, Dec 17th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

A. Scott Anderson is president and chief executive officer of Zions First National Bank.  Zions Bank is
Utah’s oldest financial institution and is the only local bank with a statewide distribution of branches.  Zions operates 107 full service branches throughout Utah and 25 full service branches in Idaho.  In addition to a wide range of traditional banking services, Zions offers a comprehensive array of investment, mortgage, and insurance services and has a network of loan origination offices for small businesses, nationwide.  Founded in 1873, Zions Bank has been serving the communities of the Intermountain West for nearly 130 years.

A native of Salt Lake City, Anderson joined Zions Bank in December of 1990.

Anderson received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and economics from Columbia University in New York.  He also received a master’s degree in economics and international studies from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.

Active in community affairs, Anderson is currently serving on a number of business and non-profit boards.

Bill Murray, Chair of the Global Real Estate Group for Orrick, Herrington, and Sutcliff, Nov 16th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Bill Murray, Chair of the Global Real Estate Group, focuses his practice on negotiating and documenting acquisitions and financing transactions, including substantial work for pension fund advisors, construction and long-term lending, ground leasing, sale-leaseback financing, synthetic leases and development transactions. He has been responsible for the leasing of numerous large retail, office, hotel and resort and industrial complexes and has been extensively involved in the workout of troubled financing transactions.

Mr. Murray’s experience includes representing numerous buyers, sellers and developers of real property, including pension funds, individual developers, domestic institutions and foreign investors. He has been active in numerous projects involving securitization of real estate assets, real estate investment trusts, public market financing of real estate companies and pension fund investment in real estate. Mr. Murray also has considerable expertise with large-scale land development projects including representing lenders and developers in numerous golf course and resort projects.

A significant portion of Mr. Murray’s practice is devoted to representing pension funds and other tax-exempt entities and the advisors to such funds and entities. This work involves traditional buying and selling for such entities, negotiating and drafting co investment vehicles, as well as negotiating and drafting agreements for the creation of investment funds.

Before joining the firm, Mr. Murray was a partner in the Real Estate Group at Morrison & Foerster LLP.

Jeff Cardon, CEO, Wasatch Advisors, Oct 26th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

The Chief Executive Officer of Wasatch Advisors, Jeff Cardon is actively involved with the Wasatch family of funds and has been the Portfolio Manager for the Wasatch Small Cap Growth portfolios since 1986.  He joined Wasatch Advisors in 1980 and has spent his entire career in the field of investment management.

Jeff attended the University of Utah, graduating magna cum laude with a B.S. in Finance. He is a past president and current member of the Salt Lake City Society of Financial Analysts. Outside of the investment world, Jeff is active in philanthropy and enjoys skiing and golf.

Roger McOmber, Partner, Sawtooth Investment Management, Sept 25th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Roger McOmber is a partner of Sawtooth Investment Management, a hedge fund firm he started with three partners in the Boise area. Roger McOmber began his career on Wall Street at Salomon Brothers as a research analyst in 1990 covering the electric utility industry. During the following 11 years he worked at Oppenheimer, Brown Brothers, and Lehman Brothers as the senior utility research analyst. While at Lehman Brothers, Mr. McOmber was a senior vice president over the equity electric power group covering over 80 companies including electric distribution, generation, natural gas distribution and fuel cell technology. He was twice named the utility sector’s Top Stock Picker by the Wall Street Journal. He was also highly ranked for earnings estimate accuracy.

The Institutional Investor Magazine named Mr. McOmber as one of the top industry analysts. In 2000, Mr. McOmber moved to the buy-side to work at an energy hedge fund. During the past three years, he worked at Nomura as a managing director where he built and managed an energy hedge fund and then with Carlson Capital, L.P., managing a larger utility book. Mr. McOmber has published numerous reports and articles on the electric power industry. He has been featured or quoted by news organizations such as CNN, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. He received a BA in American studies from Brigham Young University and an MBA from Utah State University.

Eric Jacobsen, Managing Partner & Co-founder, Dolphin Capital, Aug 19th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Eric is the managing partner and founder of Dolphin Capital, a boutique private equity fund which focuses on investments in companies with significant growth capital. Eric was CEO of Winder Farms for two years after Dolphin acquired the company and transformed it from a no-growth milk delivery company into the nation’s fastest growing grocery home delivery company.

Before Winder Farms, Eric founded Home Financial Network, a pioneer in the online banking space. That company sold to Sybase in 2000. Mr. Jacobsen also purchased and ran MECA Software, a consumer product tax software company. Under his direction, the company went public and then sold to H&R Block in 1994.

Beyond being an avid entrepreneur, he sits on a number of boards including Ragnar Events, Winder Farms, Dynamic Confections, Little Giant Ladder and St. Paul’s School in Concord, NH.

He is a dedicated adventure racer and recently traveled the world for seven months with his family.

Eric received a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University.

Click Here to view Eric’s Presentation

Exec Team from CHOICE Humanitarian, July 17th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

We are pleased to announce that the Executive Team from CHOICE Humanitarian will be speaking to the group on July 17th. CHOICE Humanitarian, based here in Salt Lake City, is a global leader in the fight against poverty in third world countries. CHOICE’s Executive Team will highlight some of the successful strategies employed for sustainable rural development and the importance of maintaining a global social perspective. Since 1997, more than 40 villages have graduated from the CHOICE model and continue to improve the standard of living in their communities. CHOICE is currently working with villages around the world in countries such as Bolivia, Nepal, Guatemala, Kenya and Mexico.

This will be a unique opportunity to hear the experiences of those on the front lines of the fight against poverty and to learn more about what we can do as a group, and individually, to get involved. We hope you will join us for this special presentation.

Bruce Bingham, Founding Partner, Hamilton Partners, May 15th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Bruce Bingham is a founding partner of Hamilton Partners with the responsibility for overseeing office, industrial and retail development, marketing, leasing, acquisition and management activities in Salt Lake City and Utah.  During the past 30-years, he has been responsible for the development of approximately 5 million square feet of office and industrial properties with a value of approximately $225 million dollars.   Mr. Bingham has had extensive experience in land planning, zoning, entitlement and the development of vacant land and the subsequent use of the property for commercial development.

Prior to joining Hamilton Partners, Mr. Bingham was a partner with the Trammell Crow Company in Chicago.  While at the Trammell Crow Company, he was responsible for the development, leasing and management of suburban industrial properties.

Since moving to Utah to open an office of Hamilton Partners, Mr. Bingham has been involved in the purchase of several office buildings in downtown Salt Lake City including the Newhouse Building, the Boston Building, the Broadway Centre, and the development of a 459,000 square foot Silver LEED certified 22-story office building on Main Street.

Bruce Bingham earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah and his Masters in Management from the Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.

Civic responsibilities in the Salt Lake area include serving on the Executive Committee of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, serving as the Chair of the Downtown Alliance, serving as President of the Days of ‘47 Pioneer Celebration, serving on the Executive Committee of Enterprise Mentors International and serving as President of the English Skills Learning Center.

Greg Miller, CEO, Larry H. Miller Group of Companies, April 21st, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

As chief executive officer of the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies, Greg Miller oversees all automotive, sports and entertainment, and real estate divisions.  These holdings include 40 automotive dealerships and one motorcycle dealership located throughout six Western states; credit, insurance and advertising agencies; two professional sports teams; a motorsports park and an arena; an independent television station; restaurant and catering companies; a sports apparel retail chain; movie theaters; and an office complex.

Miller assumed his current position in July 2008 but has worked in the family business since 1979, when his father, Larry H. Miller, purchased his first auto dealership – a Toyota store located in Murray, Utah.  Greg Miller, who was 13 at the time, began his career by sweeping floors and working in the parts department.  Since then, the group has expanded into one of the nation’s 200 largest privately-owned companies.

Miller has 29 years experience working in a variety of positions that enabled him to learn the family business firsthand.  During that time, he focused on areas ranging from finance to minor league hockey.  His many accomplishments include: starting up Performance Automotive, which provides chemicals, printing and specialty products to auto dealerships; managing several multimillion dollar construction projects; and serving as general manager of both a Toyota and a Honda dealership.

Prior to his current position, Miller oversaw construction and had operational oversight of Miller Motorsports Park, in Tooele, Utah.  During his tenure, he was instrumental in developing and improving sales and marketing operations.  The state-of-the-art motorsports park garnered international recognition within its first year of opening.

Miller has served on the boards of several philanthropic organizations including: Larry H. Miller Charities; the Ron Boone Golf Classic benefiting the Huntsman Cancer Institute; the Utah Bicycle Coalition; and the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation.

An avid cyclist, Miller logs thousands of miles on his bike each year, and his interest in cycling led to several family vacations at the Tour de France.  He currently is chairman of the Tour of Utah, a multistage bicycle race that climbs 30,000 feet and is over 300 miles long.  Miller has played a significant role in the race’s growth and success.

During his teens, Miller developed an interest and appreciation of cars that continues today.  He still owns his first automobile, a 1965 Mustang fastback.

Miller has three brothers and one sister, and is the oldest child of Larry H. and Gail Miller.  He is married to Heidi Black Miller.  They are the parents of six children (three sons and three daughters), and their family resides in Sandy, Utah.

Cecil Samuelson, President of BYU, March 27th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Cecil O. Samuelson began his work as the 12th president of Brigham Young University on May 1, 2003.

President Samuelson is a Salt Lake City native who has served at the University of Utah as professor of medicine, dean of the School of Medicine and vice president of health sciences. Prior to his call as a full-time General Authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he was senior vice president of Intermountain Health Care. He holds a bachelor of science degree, a master’s degree in educational psychology and a medical degree from the University of Utah.

Dr. Samuelson fulfilled his residency and held a fellowship in rheumatic and genetic diseases at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina. He has received numerous scholastic honors and is the author or co-author of 48 original publications, eight books or chapters of books and 13 abstracts. He also has served as a director, officer or member of several national medical and hospital organizations.

Elder Samuelson was called in 1994 to serve the Church of Jesus Christ as a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy. At the time of his assignment to BYU, he was a member of the Presidency of the Seventy. He has served the Church of Jesus Christ also as a regional representative, stake president, stake high councilor, branch president and missionary and as an area president in the Utah North Area and the Europe North Area. He and his wife, Sharon Giauque Samuelson, have five children and 11 grandchildren.

Kent Misener, Chief Investment Officer for DMBA, Feb 20th, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founders Room

KENT A. MISENER, CFA, CEO of Crossroads and Chief Portfolio Manager, graduated from Utah State University in 1976 with Bachelor of Science degrees in economics and finance. Kent also obtained his MBA from Utah State University in 1977. Since then, he has served as a bond portfolio manager, treasurer, and, currently, Chief Investment Officer managing over $6 billion in assets for a large private insurance company. Kent has served as a member of several corporate boards and committees including: the Corporate Asset and Benefits Finance Investment Committees for Intermountain Healthcare; the Investment Committee for Beneficial Financial Group; the Investment Committee for Utah State Insurance and Reclamation office; and Chairman of the Board of Deseret First Credit Union. He has appeared as an expert witness concerning market trends and investment returns in state and federal trials. He has also been a guest speaker at national conferences concerning global and national equity markets , and has lectured on the benifits of active investing.

Robert Nydegger, Portfolio Manager for Ensign Peak Advisors, Jan 21st, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Rob recently relocated to Salt Lake City and currently works as a portfolio manager for Ensign Peak Advisors.  Prior to this, he worked in New York City for nearly 15 years for Credit Suisse First Boston and UBS across many responsibilities including proprietary trading and investing, research, structuring and investment banking.  For a large part of his career, he focused on opportunities in the Emerging Markets and also in distressed debt.  For the past several years he built and managed Credit Suisse’s special opportunity business which was responsible for proprietary investing across the capital structure.  He is a CFA and graduate of the University of Utah.

Rick Alden, Founder & CEO of Skullcandy, Dec 18th, noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Rick Alden is the founder and CEO of Utah based Skullcandy, creators of headphones, mp3 player watches, audio accessories and other audio-enabled products, such as backpacks with built-in speakers and iPod controls. Alden’s Park City, UT business hit $35.7 million in sales last year (2007), according to Inc. (magazine).

While working for his Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Colorado at Boulder, Alden co-founded his first company, National Snowboard Inc (NSI), with Jim Gardner in 1986. Alden later sold NSI to the American Ski Association in 1991. After years of snowboarding, Alden launched his second venture in 1995, designing and patenting the first ever step-in snowboard boot and binding system. This venture was co-founded with snowboard industry veteran Brett Conrad, and launched under the brand name, Device Manufacturing. Four years later, Alden sold Device Manufacturing to Atomic Ski Company.

In 2003, Alden formed Skullcandy. The first Skullcandy product – the Skullcandy™ Portable LINK – was introduced at the 2003 Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas, where it won its first Design and Innovation Award. A few weeks later, the brand was launched to the action sports industry at the Snow Industries America (SIA) show.

The CEO of Skullcandy, Alden, was named one of vSpring Capital’s “Top 100 Venture Entrepreneurs” of 2008, and holds a patent for technology that integrates mobile phones and music players.

In September 2008, Alden was featured on CNBC’s The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, starring Donny Deutsch. In 2008, he was also featured in Inc. (magazine) “Inc 5000 Award” for Skullcandy’s three-year (2004-2007) growth of 24,077.4%.

In addition to Alden’s entrepreneurship, he is the holder of numerous patents in the snowboarding, audio and electronics industry and fly fishing industries, including a design patent for the Orvis Batternkill Large Arbor Fly Fishing Reel.

He is a known resident of Park City, Utah where he lives with his wife (Holly) and four children (Preston, Brooklyn, Autumn, Tyler). He and his wife, Holly Alden, have been married since 1989.

Fred Zirkle, Founder & CEO of IndustryPro, Nov 19th, noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Fred has personally built, bought and sold businesses in 11 countries. Fred has served as president and ceo for both public and privately-held companies including president and ceo of Key Tronic Corp. (computer hardware, $180 MM annual revenues), president of Alpnet, Inc. (computer software/services with offices in 12 countries) and president of VentureSum (venture capital). While based in London, Fred acquired and managed the integration of companies in 11 countries.

An astute individual, Fred has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, London Financial Times, Forbes, Fortune and Business Week.  He has consulted with numerous businesses concerning financing, expansion and strategic planning. Fred is past president of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA), past chairman of M&A Source, a Certified Business Fellow, and past president of ACG-Utah. Upon receiving his B.A. at Duke University, Fred was drafted by the NY Jets, but chose to pursue a business career.

Marsh’s New Reality of Risk Panel Discussion and Webcast - “Managing Your Insurance Portfolio in Times of Economic Distress”

The ongoing global economic crisis has prompted many companies to sharpen their attention on all aspects of risk management, with a special eye on risk transfer decisions. On Wednesday, October 22, at 11:00 a.m. (EDT), Marsh’s New Reality of Risk Webcast series will address many of these issues in a panel discussion, “Managing Your Insurance Portfolio in Times of Economic Distress.”

A panel of risk experts will address issues and strategies for managing and balancing a commercial insurance program in the current turbulent economic conditions, along with developments in the insurance industry, including impacts on reinsurers, insurance market security, and other issues that may affect commercial insurance programs.

Scheduled speakers are: - Timothy J. Mahoney, Jr., president of Marsh’s Global Risk Management division; - Janice Ochenkowski, managing director, Jones Lang LaSalle, and president of the Risk and Insurance Management Society, Inc.; - Bob Howe, leader of Marsh’s Global Property Practice; - Lou Ann Layton, a managing director in Marsh’s Directors & Officers Liability Practice; - Sean Mooney, chief economist, Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC; and - Paul Sherbine, a managing director in Marsh’s Global Partner Analysis Group.

If you have specific questions or issues you would like our panel to address, please let us know in advance by sending a message to questions@marsh.com. We will start the event on time, so please dial in at least 10 minutes before the scheduled start time so you won’t miss valuable information.

To join the audio portion of the webcast, please dial: 1-877-502-9273 (Toll-free US/Canada) or 1-913-312-1273 (Toll-other locations) Please mention reference confirmation code # 4672123

To join the Web-Ex portion of this program on the day of the event, please go to: https://marsh.webex.com/marsh/onstage/g.php?t=a&d=756432537

We look forward to sharing our insights with you on October 22 at 11:00 a.m. (EDT).

Sterling Jenson, CFA, Regional Managing Director of Wells Capital Management, Oct 20th, noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Sterling Jenson is a Regional Managing Director of Wells Capital Management, a unit of Wells Fargo & Company. Mr. Jenson is responsible for separate account portfolio management in the mountain region states from Idaho to Texas with combined assets of over $4 billion. Mr. Jenson has extensive experience in both investment management and financial services. Prior to joining Wells Fargo in 1990, he worked in various capacities, including Manager of Trust Investments for First Interstate of Nevada and Moore Trust Company; Director of Equity Research for Smoot, Miller, Cheney & Co.; Portfolio Manager for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Investment Department; and Financial Analyst for Ford Motor Company. Mr. Jenson received a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and an M.B.A. from Brigham Young University .

Fraser Bullock, Co-Founder and Managing Director Sorenson Capital-Sept 24th, noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

Mr. Bullock is a co-founder of Sorenson Capital and a Managing Director. Mr. Bullock was the President and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 2002. He joined the Organizing Committee in May of 1999 and acted as its Chief Operating Officer until his appointment as President and CEO in April 2002. As COO, Mr. Bullock directed Games Operations, and as CFO, he played a key role in balancing the budget of $1.31 billion for staging the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, ultimately generating a $100 million profit. The Salt Lake Games are widely recognized as one of the most successful and best operated in history.

Mr. Bullock was an original Partner of Bain Capital from 1984 to 1986. Prior to his experience at Bain Capital, Mr. Bullock was employed by Bain & Company, initially as a consultant and later as a manager.

In 1996 Mr. Bullock founded Alpine Consolidated, LLC, a company specializing in effecting business consolidations, and served as a Managing Director until 2002. In this capacity, Mr. Bullock sourced companies for consolidation, raised the requisite money and negotiated terms.

Mr. Bullock received a Master of Business Administration and a B.A. in Economics from Brigham Young University.

Considering options in a Tax Deferred Exchange

8-18-page-9Please refer to the article I wrote in the “Enterprise” here attached. Thanks.  - Mark

Blog and Other Things

Ok, now for some more really exciting stuff.

A few months ago we started kicking around the idea of starting a blog for a few reasons:
1) in order to bring knowledge to our members
2) In order to enhance our online presence
3) In order to increase our membership base

We’re excited to announce that the blog has finally come to fruition. We have enlisted the help of the professional community and beginning this week expert bloggers from the areas of finance, venture capital, law, personal finance, real estate, and other areas will be posting about whatever they feel would be important to young finance professionals.

We are also looking for more bloggers so if you would like to be one of our bloggers or know somebody who would like to be one of our bloggers please let us know through the contact page.

In addition, we are looking for an in kind sponsor to help with the website. If you or anyone you know would be willing to help me add a few more features and maintain the site please let me know.

Lane Beattie, President Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce - Aug 28th, noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

For over 25 years Lane Beattie has been a real estate broker and developer by profession. 

Lane Beattie was elected to the Utah State Senate in 1989. In 1991 he served as Senate Majority Whip and in 1992 became Majority leader and in 1994 was elected Utah Senate President. He served as president for six years until June 2000.

Senator Beattie was chairman of Business, Labor and Economic Development Standing committees in his first year in the Senate.

Beattie proposed and implemented some of the most sweeping changes in the legislative process in several decades, including total internet access for legislators as well as the public. This made the legislative process significantly more efficient and allowed more legislator and citizen involvement. 

The president is highly respected among his colleagues. Senator Craig Peterson, former Senate Majority Leader, made the following observation: “Under President Beattie’s leadership, the Senate has become more efficient, productive, professional, and more open to the public. He led the Senate in major tax reforms and reductions across the state which have saved taxpayers millions of dollars.”

W President Beattie has been a guest speaker and lecturer locally, nationally, and internationally.

In 1996 President Beattie was invited to address the European Union in Florence, Italy to speak on Federalism and State’s rights.

In 1998 President Beattie was elected as Chairman of the National Senate Presidents Forum representing all United States Senate Presidents.

In 1999 President Beattie was invited to head a delegation from the United States on an official visit to China as a guest of the Vice-President of China.

After 12 years in the Senate in March of 2000, President Beattie surprised both local and national leaders by announcing he would not seek re-election and was returning to private business.

In June 2000, Governor Leavitt asked Lane to accept the post as Chief State Olympic Officer for the State of Utah to oversee and manage the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. 

President Beattie assumed leadership of the Salt Lake Chamber on July 1, 2003. By unanimous vote, the Chamber Board of Governors chose Beattie after an exhaustive process that considered 95 candidates from across Utah. “We were looking for someone who needed no introduction,” says A. Scott Anderson, Chamber Board of Governors co-chair. “Lane has the experience and reputation to help the Chamber play a bigger role in our community and state. He has been around for a long time and knows all the key players. He has seen where Salt Lake has been and has the vision to take it into the future.”

President Beattie and his wife, Joy, are the parents of three children and the proud grandparents of three wonderful grandsons and a beautiful granddaughter. President Beattie enjoys golf, skiing, and raises quarter horses and is a Utah State Quarter Horse Team-Penning Champion. 

David Carter, Serial Entrepreneur and Experienced Investor - June 26th, Noon, Zions Bank Founder’s Room

Having a long history of both entrepreneurship and involvement with venture capital, David Carter continues to enjoy seeing new technologies reach market adoption. Currently a Manager at private venture firm Upside Investments LLC, Mr. Carter has served on the board and invested in several companies including Cerberian (sold to Blue Coat (NASDAQ: BCSI), Zorch (sold to First Consulting Group (NASDAQ: FCGI), and Oakley Networks (funded by Kleiner Perkins and sold to Raytheon (NYSE: RTN).   Mr. Carter is currently a board member and early investor in CrimeReports, a developer of online law enforcement and public communications technology.  

At one of his own technology ventures, Mr. Carter served as founder, President and CEO of S5 Wireless, a world-leading developer of ultra-low cost, long-range, next-generation wireless location and telemetry technology that is successfully being implemented in consumer, enterprise and government applications.  Under his strategic direction, S5 Wireless has executed key milestones marking core technology developments, creating strategic partnerships, recruiting key management, and raising over $20 million from influential investors.  S5 Wireless is now poised for a strong entrance and leading role in the growing Location-Based Service (LBS) applications market—a sector that ABI Research values at $25 billion dollars by 2010. 

Prior to joining S5 Wireless, Mr. Carter was an Entrepreneur in Residence for Wasatch Venture Fund (Epic Ventures), a Draper Fisher Jurvetson affiliate.  In this role, he consulted the fund’s portfolio companies, providing strategic management expertise and financing support.  

From 1997 to 2000, Mr. Carter was Founder, President and CEO of Thoughtstar, the internet application developer of QuickTeam.  There, Mr. Carter developed the idea for the business’ principal product, QuickTeam.  His efforts led to the eventual enterprise sale of the software to Cisco, and subsequent acquisition of the company by iManage (NASDAQ:  IMAN), now Interwoven (NASDAQ:  IWOV). 

Mr. Carter made his first foray into the world of technology start-ups in 1988 with Vertical Technogies. Under his leadership as founder, President and CEO, the products Bar-One^TM and Barcode Anything^TM were developed and brought to market, quickly becoming the market leaders for retail barcode software.  In 1995, Vertical Technologies received the Utah 100 Award from the Mountain West Venture Group for the 20^th fastest growing company in Utah.  The company was subsequently sold to Zebra Technologies (NASDAQ: ZBRA), where Mr. Carter served as President of the newly created subsidiary.  Under his continued strategic direction, sales tripled in less than six months.   

Today, Mr. Carter is a member of the National Advisory Council for Weber State University, the Technology Advisory Council for Westminster College, and of vSpring v100. He also participates in Utah Angels, the investment committee for Kickstart Ventures, and he sits on the board of a number of charitable organizations.  

Mr. Carter has spoken at numerous industry events and has been quoted in major publications including Financial Times, Forbes, Business Week, The Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, the San Jose Mercury News, The Seattle Times, USA Today, Conde Nest Portfolio, Motley Fool, Kiplinger, and many others. 

Mr. Carter received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from Weber State University.

CFO Panel - May 21st, Noon, Zion’s Bank Founder’s Room

CFOs – Kay Hall (Zions Bank), Randy Plant (Alphagraphics), and Jeff Morrin (APX Alarm) / Moderator – Tom Stringham

Bio’s

Tom Stringham  
Tom Stringham is a Director in the ROTH Capital Partners Corporate Finance Group. Prior to joining ROTH Capital, Mr. Stringham worked for Merrill Lynch & Co. in the Investment Banking Group in New York, where he worked with companies in diverse industries including: paper and forest products, transportation, consumer products, apparel and electronics. He also worked with Merrill Lynch & Co. as a specialist with expertise in private equity transactions; alternative investment and asset allocation strategies. Mr. Stringham is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate from the University of Utah, where he also served as a member of the University Board of Trustees. Mr. Stringham’s MBA is from Harvard Business School.
 
Kay Hall 
Kay B. Hall is executive vice president and chief financial officer of Zions First National Bank. He has over 17 years of banking experience. He began his career at Zions in 1990 as an internal auditor. In 1993, he was promoted to the position of assistant controller and then to controller. Kay received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Utah and his master’s degree from Westminster College.
 
Randy Plant 
Randy Plant joined AlphaGraphics, Inc. as CFO in August of 2003. His most recent position was Chief Financial Officer for Flying J Oil & Gas Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Flying J Inc. From 1985 until 1997, Plant was vice president and controller for Huntsman Corporation, which was then the largest privately held chemical company in the U.S. His experience also includes nine years with financial consulting firm Arthur Andersen & Co. Plant earned a B.A. from the University of Utah and an M.B.A. from Northwestern University. He is a certified public accountant and is a member of the American Institute of CPAs and Financial Executives International. He is an active member of his community, serving several youth sports programs as coach.
 
Jeff Morrin 
Jeff is currently the CFO of APX Alarm. Prior to APX Alarm, Jeff worked in various roles such as Vice President of Finance and Director of Finance for large companies, namely, InSight Health Corp., Black & Decker, MultiLink Technology Corp., Honeywell, and Ford Motor Company. Jeff graduated with a degree in Business Management from Brigham Young University and followed with an MBA, emphasis in finance, also from Brigham Young University.

Jordan Clements, Managing Partner of Peterson Partners - Apr 23rd, Noon, Zions Bldg Founder’s Room

Jordan Clements has been managing partner of Peterson Partners since its inception in 1995. Prior to co-founding Peterson Partners, Jordan was a partner in a San Francisco Bay Area law firm, where he practiced corporate and business law. He holds a law degree from Brigham Young University. He currently serves on the boards of several portfolio companies, including Energy Solutions and 3form.

 Recap
Jordan spoke of many important principles in buisiness and investing. Among them were:
1) Borrow skills from others to complement your weaknesses.
2) There is no coorelation between successful entrepreneurs and formal education.
3) Beware of excessive goal setting; things can happen outside of your control that
     can prevent you from achieving them.
4) Be patient with your career. Career planning is a process of elimination.
5) The golden rule is definitely true in business. Treating others well is in your best
     economic interest.

Jake Boyer, President of The Boyer Company - March 26th, Noon, Zions Bldg

Jake Boyer took over the position as president in June 2006. Jake has been instrumental in the development of The Gateway, a 2.1 million square foot mixed-use development, one of Utah’s largest mixed-use projects. In addition to The Gateway, Jake also has extensive experience in developing medical, office and retail projects for The Boyer Company. Jake’s community participation includes serving as an Executive Committee Member of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, a Membership Committee Chairman with the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce Alumni Advisory Council, and has President of Valley Services (Valley Mental Health Subsidiary) (2000-2006), New Vision Campaign Chair for M.I.T. Center For Real Estate, and is a lecturer for Brigham Young University, University of Utah, the Urban Land Institute, and the International Convention of Shopping Centers. Jake is also a member of NAIOP. Jake received his Bachelor of Science (Finance Major) from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah and his Master of Science in Real Estate Development at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Clark B. Hinckley, Senior VP of Investor Relations and Communications for Zions Bank - Feb 20th, Noon, Zions

Clark B. Hinckley is senior vice president of Investor Relations and Communications for Zions Bank. Hinckley began his banking career with Citibank in New York City in 1973, and also worked for Michigan National Corporation before joining Zions in 1985 to establish the Company’s banking operations in Arizona. He became a senior vice president of Zions Bancorporation in 1994 and began his present position in 2000. Hinckley is a former officer and director of the Arizona Bankers Association. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Brigham Young University and an M.B.A. from Harvard University.

Click on the link below to download Clark’s presentation.
[Clark Hinckley Presentation]

David Winder, Former Exec Director of UT Dept. of Community & Economic Development - Jan 18th, Noon, Wells Bldg.

Mr. Winder will be discussing the state of the Economy. He is a corporate director and currently serves on multiple boards including Utah Retirement Systems as chairman, Energy Solutions, Alsco, Inc., NACD board chair of Utah chapter and others. He has also served in board and chair positions for the Economic Development Corporation of Utah, Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, Utah Housing Corp. and more.

As Chief Economic Developer for the state, Mr. Winder served in Governor Leavitt’s Cabinet. He has also served as a special assistant to Utah Governors Leavitt and Walker. He worked as the Managing Partner for KPMG’s Salt Lake office and chaired several firm-wide committees and CPA associations. Mr. Winder also holds a degree from Stanford University with highest honors.

Bob Hatch, President of Wells Fargo Utah Dec 13th, Noon, Wells Fargo Building

Mr. Hatch will be speaking to us at our next lunch meeting on Dec 13th. Please see his bio below.

Mr. Hatch began his banking career as a Trust Administrator with First Security 39 years ago after graduating with honors from the UofU in political science and economics.  He has since served in various banking positions including SVP, Trust Manager, President over the Community Banking Group, and currently serves as President of Wells Fargo Utah.  He also graduated with honors from the prestigious Pacific Coast Bankers School.  He has served and currently serves on various community and economic advisory boards.  The breadth and depth of his experience is too great to fit into one paragraph.

Recap:
Mr. Hatch shared with us “Ten Strategies I Found Helpful”. We have posted the list below:
1. Do not look back - only forward.
2. Tell the truth.
3. If you are going to be somewhere - be there.
4. For every hour you spend on improving technical skills, spend 2 hours on personal skills.
5. Nobody makes it alone.
6. Get connected to each other.
7. Deliver on what you promise.
8. Have some fun in your life - laugh more.
9. Listen to your gut, not just your mind.
10. Find something in your life that makes you sing.

Kent Madsen Managing Director Wasatch Venture Fund

Mr. Madsen is a Managing Director with the Wasatch Venture Fund and Zions SBIC.  He was also President, CEO and Director of MACC Private Equities, a later stage publicly traded private equity firm with interests in multiple industries.

Previously, Kent worked for Ford Motor Company in the Advanced Technology Group.  At Ford, Kent developed mathematical and computational models analyzing vehicle aerodynamics and thermodynamic properties.  He then transferred to China Operations where he helped write, present and negotiate joint venture proposals.

Kent is responsible for the oversight of the following Wasatch portfolio companies:  Pivot Solutions, Q Therapeutics, LeftHand Networks, S5 Wireless, Akimbo, Everdream and Linux Network.

Mr. Madsen has taught courses in Engineering Thermodynamics and co-authored the Solutions Manual for Fundamentals of Classic Thermodynamics.  He has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania, a M.S.E. from the University of Michigan, a M.A. in International Studies, and a M.B.A. from Wharton.

Recap: Kent gave a very informative presentation about venture capital and venture capitalists. He said that although venture capital investments create jobs, boost the economy, maintain competitiveness, and improve the quality of life venture capitalists are all about making money and they like entrepreneurs who aren’t necessarily motivated by money alone but by changing the world (stay away from entrepreneurs who drive a German car). He also said that he looks for revolutionary change in the company’s business model and to avoid analysis paralysis meaning it’s easy to get stuck in the analysis stage for too long and sometimes you just need to “move” and trust your gut.

John Lunt, President and Director of Lunt Capital

John has managed investment portfolios across asset classes for more than a decade.  He has a recognized expertise in constructing portfolios using absolute return investment strategies and alternative asset classes. 

He has been a board member of Utah Retirement Systems, a multi-billion dollar public pension fund, since 2001, and was elected by his fellow board members as board president from 2004-2007.  He was recognized this year by Utah Business Magazine as one of Utah’s Top 40 under 40.  He completed the Program for Advanced Trustee Studies at Harvard Law School. 

John graduated with honors from BYU with a degree in Economics and received an MBA from NYU.

Click Here to view John’s presentation

Gary D. Kennedy–President and CEO, RemedyMD

Mr. Kennedy is the founder and managing partner of Double Eagle Ventures, a private venture fund. Mr. Kennedy was the first investor in TenFold Corporation, where he served as President and Chief Executive Officer. Prior to TenFold, Mr. Kennedy was President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of PRC, Inc., a systems integration company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Black and Decker. Prior to joining PRC, Mr. Kennedy served in various management and executive positions at Oracle Corporation from its inception including SVP of Oracle and President of Oracle USA. He was one of the first 10 professional employees of Oracle. Prior to joining Oracle, Mr. Kennedy served as a Marketing Manager for Intel Corporation. Mr. Kennedy received a B.A. in Finance from the University of Utah and an MBA from Northwestern.

Recap: We had a great turn out with nearly sixty people attending our inaugural event.  Mr. Kennedy spoke to us about the many facets of risk using lots of colorful personal examples from his career.  In one experience, he enthusiastically told his dad he was going to leave Intel to work for the then little-known Oracle that had a 25% chance of success.  His dad was shocked and retorted that meant a 75% chance of failure.  With the huge success of the software giant, Oracle, Mr. Kennedy showed that playing it safe sometimes is the biggest risk.  We thank Mr. Kennedy for his insightful comments and for sharing his thoughts on risk.