Volume 67, Issue 7

Yeshiva Represented at Business Today International Conference
by Ari Yasgur

Harvard, Yale, Oxford, Princeton and the London School of Economics. These renowned and illustrious institutions, as well as many others are only some of the remarkable answers I received when I asked fellow attendees of their current academic status.  One might wonder where I encountered such a plethora of bright, young college students. The answer is at The 28th Annual Business Today International Conference.

The Business Today International Conference is geared towards providing students with an exclusive and priceless opportunity to meet, interact, and learn from high-level executives and political leaders. Held in the heart of New York City, in Times Square, this conference brought together approximately 200 students from across the country and around the world to discuss and share perspectives on current business issues, and benefit from the knowledge and experience of the current leading generation. Organized by students at Princeton University, this conference is the largest of its kind in the country and has been a perennial success throughout the recent decades.

This year the International Conference was entitled “Leadership Under Fire: Overcoming the Challenges of Turbulent Times.” CEO’s of fortune 500 companies and other prominent executives discussed the issues their companies were currently facing, and how they have tackled them. As one could imagine, due to the current economic conditions and events, many of the discussions resulted in discussions about profitability concerns, and naturally, business ethics. Pat Gnazzo, Vice President of United Technologies, stressed the importance of an ethical working environment. “In business, there are no personal ethical decisions. Everything is about the business, and everything effects the business in the long run.”

Other rousing speakers included: Ralph Nader, consumer advocate; William McDonough, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; Catherine Kinney, the NYSE President; and Jim Donald, CEO of Starbucks.

As students, it is imperative that we envelop ourselves with superior role models.  The International Conference granted me the opportunity to listen to advice and experiences of people whom I, as well as many other business students admire. Jim Donald stressed personal differentiation and its importance in order to achieve success. “We all must try to be like a salmon; swim upstream while others swim down.” We must all capture Jim’s advice and not seek to yearn to be typical; after all, it is our differences that craft each individual as a unique and desirable intellectual.¨

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