Virtual event: Available on replay
Supporting companies as environmental and social actors
Prioritizing board risk oversight
The recent proxy season revealed that diversity and inclusion, risk management, ESG investor activism and human capital management are on the rise. Stakeholders are increasingly focusing on environmental issues and looking at business resiliency to potential challenges.
To evaluate implications for governance professionals and provide a platform to share best practices before year-end, the Corporate Secretary Forum took place at a perfect time to plan for the year ahead.
Interactive discussions on the big questions facing GRC professionals
The forum took place as a virtual event designed for GRC professionals. It is a best practice event enabling participants to network, discuss, debate and dissect best practices and topical issues in the corporate governance world.
WHY ATTEND OUR VIRTUAL FORUMS?
Timely event: Covid-19 has further demonstrated the importance of identifying emerging risks and prioritizing investment in governance, risk and controls. This event is perfectly positioned to help you take stock of the year-to-date, refocus and plan for 2021-2022
Benchmarking: it is a great opportunity to evaluate where you stand in comparison to your peers, how other companies have managed and overcome similar challenges
Unique format: far from a traditional webinar format, our virtual event platform enables attendees to have intimate discussions and participate in virtual roundtable debates with fellow GRC professionals
Discover something new: learn about new technologies, innovations, and services that are available to help to transform your governance strategy, increase productivity and make better decisions
Network with the community: meet with general counsels, corporate secretaries and experts in the governance, risk and compliance community
This event took place as a virtual experience using our bespoke, cutting-edge technology.
Our virtual event platform closely replicates attending in-person by facilitating interaction with speakers, one-to-one networking with fellow governance professionals, and group roundtable discussions. Going virtual helps you connect with a wider network from the comfort of your desk.
09:30 AM
Platform opens: Meet the attendees
09:55 AM
Welcome to the Corporate Secretary Forum 2021
Opening remarks from the chair
Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
10:00 AM
Assessing the 2022 risk agenda: Prioritizing board risk oversight
As the pandemic along with political and economic volatility continue to affect global companies, corporations need to ensure they are constantly evolving to keep pace with potential disruption. This session is designed to help governance professionals establish the best strategy to support their company’s risk oversight, and act as the key co-ordinator between management and boards. Attendees can learn:
Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Brandon Egren, associate general counsel and assistant secretary, Verizon
Abby Roberts, senior director, product marketing, Datasite
Brian Short, partner, Ballard Spahr
11:00 AM
Refining ESG governance in relation to executive compensation
With the pandemic shining a brighter spotlight on companies’ credentials as social and environmental actors, ESG progress is increasingly acknowledged alongside traditional KPIs. This session will help governance professionals understand both how boards can successfully navigate executive compensation questions and how – or whether – to link those to ESG performance. We will discuss:
Laurie Havelock, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Matthew DiGuiseppe, vice president, research and ESG, Diligent
Rosanna Weaver, wage justice and executive pay program manager, As You Sow
Derek Windham, vice president, associate general counsel, HPE
11:45 AM
Meet the attendees: Networking
Take some time to meet other attendees via a quick, one-to-one video chat. You have five minutes to introduce yourself and share contact details before you’re on to meeting the next person!
12:00 PM
The skills matrix – Reporting on board composition and when to consider board refreshment
In the face of greater corporate focus on specialized issues such as cyber-security and human capital management, it is important to ensure a board’s expertise matches the company’s strategic goals. Coupled with the new rules on board diversity listing standards, establishing a diverse board is crucial to keep up with global trends and requirements. In this session attendees can:
Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Jacob Jenkelowitz, corporate secretary, Brighthouse Financial
Byron Loflin, global head of board engagement, Nasdaq
Lopa Zielinski, EVP, corporate secretary and head of governance USA, HSBC
13:00 PM
Key developments in ESG regulation and reporting
With concerns around the timing and requirements of SEC mandatory ESG disclosures, and the Biden administration’s promises to make climate change a key priority, corporate interest in global and local ESG policies is increasing. This session will round up the latest regulatory developments in the ESG space. Attendees can get updates on:
Michael Rosen, head of ESG strategy and engagement, Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose
Melodie Craft, vice president of legal affairs and risk management, McGrath RentCorp
Granville Martin, head of Americas policy and outreach, Value Reporting Foundation
Phil Redman, offering manager, ESG, OneTrust
13:45 PM
Meet the attendees: Networking
Take some time to meet other attendees via a quick, one-to-one video chat. You have five minutes to introduce yourself and share contact details before you’re on to meeting the next person!
14:00 PM
Proxy season takeaways: Environmental accountability and the key rise of shareholder proposals
The 2021 proxy season has proven to be a potential disrupter for governance professionals, with record levels of support for shareholder proposals in a number of environmental and social areas. As companies assess findings from this year’s proxy season, it is important to start looking ahead to next year, plan your report and ensure best practice for the year ahead. To help corporate secretaries get prepared, this session will cover:
Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Mary Francis, corporate secretary and chief governance officer, Chevron Corporation
Rose Marie Glazer, deputy general counsel and corporate secretary, AIG
Krishna Veeraraghavan, partner, Paul Weiss
14:45 PM
Evolving the discussion on diversity, equity and inclusion: How is the industry progressing?
Diversity, equity and inclusion efforts have been among the top governance priorities over the last year. As the industry looks ahead to 2022, it is important to assess where the industry stands now, how governance professionals can support a company’s progress and where to focus your attention. In this session, attendees can discuss:
Steve Wade, head of event content, Corporate Secretary
Nita Chhinzer, associate professor, department of management, University of Guelph
Courtney Kamlet, vice president, associate general counsel and corporate secretary, Vontier
Marvin Owens, chief engagement officer, Impact Shares
15:30 PM
Meet the attendees: Networking
Take some time to meet other attendees via a quick, one-to-one video chat. You have five minutes to introduce yourself and share contact details before you’re on to meeting the next person!
15:45 PM
How governance professionals can improve shareholder engagement in a digital world
With people spending more time online than ever before, the potential marketing benefits of embracing digital strategies are enormous. From AGMs to internal communications with the board, this session will discuss:
Steve Wade, head of event content, Corporate Secretary
Richard Babineau, director of issuer solutions, Mediant
16:15 PM
Beyond the AGM: Navigating meetings uncertainty
As the industry grapples with continued ambiguity around guidelines and industry interest in in-person meetings, before year-end is a good time to discuss how to structure and plan an effective approach. To help companies leverage both in-person and virtual elements for the greatest success, in this session attendees can:
Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Simon Bryan, managing director, Americas, Lumi
Kristina Fink, vice president, deputy corporate secretary, American Express
Eileen Kamerick, non-executive director, ACV Auctions, Legg Mason Closed End Funds, AIG Funds, Associated Banc-Corp and Hochschild Mining
17:00 PM
Closing remarks and end of forum
To inquire about speaking at a future forum, please contact [email protected] or call +44 20 3865 8103
Richard Babineau
Director of issuer solutions
Mediant
Rich has been in the financial services industry since 1987 with most of his career focused on shareholder communications and proxy event management.
Rich is the Director of Issuer Solutions at Mediant, responsible for overseeing the delivery of investor communication solutions to funds, annuities, alternative investments and corporate issuers. Rich and his team support Mediant’s distinctive high tech and high touch approach, delivering technology leadership with an unparalleled white-glove service model. Rich brings his extensive experience in the proxy lifecycle to support Mediant’s continued growth across all issuer types.
Prior to joining Mediant, Rich managed corporate issuer programs at Georgeson LLC, where he designed and executed successful solicitation strategies to support long-term corporate governance goals. Prior to Georgeson, Rich spent over 12 years in leadership roles at Broadridge Financial Solutions, where he was responsible for client services, operations and product management for mutual fund proxy solicitation services. He has held management roles at D.F. King & Co., leading call center operations for corporate issuer and mutual fund proxy solicitation campaigns and John Hancock Signature Services, where he led shareholder and broker service teams. Earlier in his career, Rich held the position of assistant vice president of legal operations at Putnam Investments where he led all proxy efforts including vendor selection and oversight.
Rich is an active member of leading industry associations including National Investment Company Service Association (NICSA), Insured Retirement Institute (IRI), Investment Company Institute (ICI), Society for Corporate Governance, Institute for Portfolio Alternatives (IPA), and National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI).
Rich is graduate of the Securities Industry Institute, sponsored by SIFMA and The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds a certificate from the Corporate Governance Bootcamp Program at New York University’s School of Law. Rich attended Northeastern University where he studied organizational leadership.
Simon Bryan
Managing director, Americas
Lumi
Simon Bryan heads up the North American arm of Lumi, and has over 20 years knowledge and experience of delivering successful annual meetings and stakeholder engagement events for some of the largest organisations across the US. Working with all the leading TA’s in the market, as well as directly with Issuers, Simon’s extensive market knowledge has helped companies successfully harness the power of virtual meetings, and coupled with Lumi’s market leading on-premise capabilities, delivered hundreds of successful hybrid meetings.
Nita Chhinzer
Associate professor, department of management
University of Guelph
Dr. Nita N. Chhinzer is an Associate Professor of Human Resources at the Department of Management, University of Guelph. Her research is concentrated on Strategic Human Resources Management, with a strong focus on downsizing practices, procedures and ethics. Having completed her MBA in 2000, Nita Chhinzer went on to work in management positions at various companies including HP and Nortel. It was then she recognized that the execution, decisions and implementation of downsizing have significant individual, organizational and societal outcomes, prompting her to return to academe to advance our understanding of downsizing. She completed her PhD in Management from McMaster University in 2006, focusing on HR. Accordingly, her research area is largely focused on downsizing activities, antecedents, consequences and decision making.
She was the recipient of the 2019 Emerald Literati Award (Education +Training) based on her research about how employers define graduate student employability and in 2016, she was recognized as one of the top 25 HR Professionals in Canada.
She also co-authors the Human Resource Management in Canada textbook (now in its 14th edition) and the Management of Human Resources textbook (now in 5th edition).
Melodie Craft
Vice president of legal affairs and risk management
McGrath RentCorp
Melodie Craft is a corporate lawyer and business advisor with more than two decades of experience strategically advising public and private companies nationwide. Melodie has a Certificate in Sustainable Capitalism and ESG from University of California Berkeley and chairs her Company’s ESG Committee. Melodie currently serves as VP of Legal Affairs and Risk Management, and Corporate Secretary for a publicly traded portfolio company. She was previously a senior partner at a large national law firm. In addition to her JD, Melodie has a Master’s Degree in Human Resources and Industrial Relations, as well as a Certificate in Strategic Decision Making and Risk Management from Stanford and a Certificate in Global Business through Yale and the Global Network for Advance Management.
Matt DiGuiseppe
Vice president, research and ESG
Diligent
Matt DiGuiseppe is the Vice President of Research & ESG at Diligent Corporation, leading provider of secure board communication and governance, risk and compliance software used by over 700,000 corporate leaders globally. In his role, Matt leads the ESG (environmental, social and governance) Center of Excellence and a research team focused on ESG topics. He is also responsible for ensuring that Diligent meets its ESG commitments, including a pledge to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040.
Previously, as Head of Americas Asset Stewardship at State Street Global Advisors, Matt and his colleagues were responsible for developing and implementing SSGA’s global proxy voting policies and guidelines across all investment strategies and managing SSGA’s proxy voting activities and issuer engagement on material ESG issues. He was also a member of the internal Proxy Review Committee. Prior to this role he held a similar position on the Nuveen (fka TIAA) Stewardship & Corporate Governance Team.
Brandon Egren
Associate general counsel and assistant secretary
Verizon
Brandon Egren is Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary at Verizon. He advises on corporate governance policies and procedures, securities law compliance matters, subsidiary governance, and Delaware corporate law matters. His responsibilities include, among other things, overseeing activities relating to Verizon’s annual meeting of shareholders, including preparation of the proxy statement and management of shareholder proposals; preparing governance-related filings and reviewing periodic reports pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; overseeing domestic legal entity management activities; and supporting internal legal restructuring initiatives.
Prior to joining Verizon, Brandon practiced in the capital markets groups of Jones Day and Hogan Lovells US LLP in New York City and Washington, D.C., respectively. He holds a J.D. from New York University School of Law and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.
Kristina Fink
Vice president and deputy corporate secretary
American Express
As the Deputy Corporate Secretary, Kristina is an advisor and resource to the American Express Board of Directors and to senior management providing strategic advice and counsel on board responsibilities and corporate governance matters. Kristina leads a team that provides governance support to the American Express National Bank, its committees, as well as American Express’s global subsidiaries. In addition, she drafts and oversees the annual proxy statement process for the Corporate Secretary’s Office. Kristina joined American Express on June 2017 as Corporate Governance Counsel and Assistant Secretary and she was promoted to Vice President and Deputy Corporate Secretary in May 2020.
Kristina is an Officer and Advisory Board member of the NY Chapter of the Society of Corporate Governance Professionals, and a member of the Shareholders Relations Society as well as an active participant in several other governance groups and forums.
Kristina joined American Express from The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America in June 2017 where she was Assistant Corporate Secretary supporting the Board of Directors, its Committees and subsidiaries for three years. Before joining Guardian, Kristina was a senior associate at Clifford Chance US LP for six years where she was part of the Capital Markets group, and provided corporate governance advice to clients and worked on company periodic reports and securities offerings. She began her legal career at Bear Stearns as an in-house securities lawyer where she worked for five years.
Kristina grew up in Westchester County, NY and graduated from Tulane University cum laude majoring in History and graduated from Brooklyn Law School where she served as an Articles Editor of The Journal of Law and Policy. Kristina resides in New York City with her husband Zack, her daughter Serena and their dog.
Mary Francis
Corporate secretary and chief governance officer
Chevron Corporation
Rose Marie Glazer
Deputy general counsel and corporate secretary
AIG
Jacob Jenkelowitz
Corporate secretary
Brighthouse Financial
Jacob Jenkelowitz is Corporate Secretary of Brighthouse Financial. In his current role, Jacob is responsible for managing the corporate governance for Brighthouse Financial, Inc. He also advises on a wide range of matters including executive compensation and corporate and securities laws. He is also the corporate secretary for Brighthouse Financial’s operating subsidiaries. Before becoming Deputy Corporate Secretary, Jacob was senior counsel, general corporate law, and assistant secretary at MetLife. Jacob joined MetLife in 2011, bringing with him a diverse set of experiences and skills, including general corporate law, securities law, mergers and acquisitions and litigation.
Jacob is active in corporate governance professional organizations. He currently serves as the chair of the Small and Mid-Cap Companies Committee of the Society for Corporate Governance (formerly known as the Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals) and has previously served as president and program chair of the Society’s New York Chapter.
Jacob graduated from Columbia University with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
Eileen Kamerick
Non-executive director
Associated Banc-corp, ACV Auctions, Hochschild Mining and Legg Mason Closed End Funds
Courtney Kamlet
Vice president, associate general counsel and corporate secretary
Vontier Corporation
Ms. Kamlet is Vice President, Associate General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Vontier Corporation. Prior to joining Vontier in November 2019, Ms. Kamlet served as in-house securities and governance counsel, with roles of increasing responsibility, for several mid- to large-cap companies. Ms. Kamlet started her career as an Attorney-Adviser in the Division of Corporation Finance at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Ms. Kamlet has a J.D. degree (2001) and B.S. degree (1998) from the University of Florida. Ms. Kamlet serves on the Society for Corporate Governance National Board andchairs its Membership Committee. Ms. Kamlet also co-created a podcast, Women Governance Gurus, highlighting women in the field of corporate governance.
Byron Loflin
Global head of board engagement
Nasdaq
Byron Loflin is the Global Head of Board Engagement at Nasdaq, where he leads the Board Engagement team in providing a strategic, collaborative, and technology-based approach to support boards’ efforts in strengthening governance effectiveness.
The portfolio of governance services and products includes a variety of board, CEO, and management evaluations, streamlined Directors’ and Officers’ Questionnaire and pre-proxy disclosure processes, and the Nasdaq Boardvantage board portal.
Byron is the founder and former CEO of the Center for Board Excellence (CBE), which was acquired by Nasdaq in 2019. His experience and expertise are in the design and administration of evaluations, as well as advising boards, board chairs, CEOs, and executive management on board strategy.
Granville Martin
Head of Americas policy and outreach
Value Reporting Foundation
Granville Martin is Head of Americas Policy and Outreach at the Value Reporting Foundation (VRF, formerly Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)) where he leads engagement with US and Latin American regulators, corporates and trade associations.
Prior to joining VRF, Granville was Senior Vice President for Policy & Advocacy and General Counsel at the Society for Corporate Governance where he led the Society’s advocacy efforts related to corporate governance, securities law and regulation and other related issues. Granville also led the Society’s ESG-related efforts including assisting members in navigating the increased demands for disclosure and engagement, creating dialogue among issuers, investors and other stakeholders, and representing Society views in a variety of forums.
Prior to joining the Society, Granville was a Managing Director of Sustainable Finance for JPMorgan Chase & Co. where he led a range of ESG-related initiatives, including working with investment and commercial banking units to manage environmental and social risks, engaging with clients and external stakeholders and advising the senior management and the Board. Key sectors included oil and gas, mining, timber, prison services, firearms, and other sectors with significant environmental and/or social impact.
After graduating law school, Granville joined the Office of the Counsel to Governor George Pataki of New York working on environmental issues such as wastewater treatment, New York City watershed protection and green buildings. He also worked on local government and mental health issues and negotiated with the State Legislature. After leaving the Pataki Administration, Mr. Martin represented the Financial Services Forum prior to joining JPMorgan Chase in 2005.
Mr. Martin earned a B.A. from Boston University and a J.D. from University of San Francisco and is admitted to the bar in New York and California.
Marvin Owens
Chief engagement officer
Impact Shares
Marvin J. Owens, Jr. currently serves as Chief Engagement Officer for Impact Shares. In this role, Marvin has engagement responsibility for both fund managers and corporations, as well as cultivating and maintaining relationships with financial intermediaries with the goal of AUM growth. Marvin is also responsible for strategic relationships with our social advocacy partners, and leads the firm in broader social impact and advocacy conversations. Prior to joining Impact Shares, Marvin served as Senior Director of Economic Programs for the NAACP. In this role, Mr. Owens was responsible for the NAACP’s national economic inclusion agenda, including asset and wealth creation programs with efforts that support financial education, homeownership, minority business development, franchising, workforce development and diversity, advocacy and sustainability initiatives with efforts around economic justice and social impact investing and research with ongoing efforts to track and report economic conditions, as well as recommended public policy changes.
Prior to joining the NAACP, Mr. Owens served as a consultant, lecturer, and technical assistance provider in the areas of community and economic development, small business development and community organizing. Mr. Owens serves as an Advisory Board Member of the Stonehenge Capital NMTC fund.. Guest lecturer credits include Oxford University’s Saïd School of Business on the subjects, “Responsible Leadership,” and “Economic Development in the Black Church.” Prior to becoming an independent consultant, Mr. Owens served as Vice President for Economic Empowerment at the National Urban League (NUL) where he managed all aspects of NUL’s corporate, foundation, and government relationships with specific focus on affiliate economic development activities, small business development, and finance.
Phil Redman
Offering Manager, ESG
OneTrust
Abby Roberts
Senior director, product marketing
Datasite
Abby Roberts is responsible for developing Datasite’s corporate product marketing strategy. Prior to Datasite, Abby was VP, Strategy at Pearson and Global Editor of Mergermarket at Acuris. As a financial journalist, Abby covered the consumer, eCommerce and retail industry. She received her JD from Georgetown University Law Center and BA from Bard College.
Michael Rosen
Head of ESG Strategy and Engagement
Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose
As Head of ESG Strategy and Engagement, Michael leads outreach and engagement with corporate issuers, the buy side and sell side, and other capital markets participants and service providers to rewire the capital markets towards the long term. Michael joined CECP from the sell side where he was most recently a Director of Investor Access at UBS Investment Bank. In this role, he advised Investor Relations Officers (IROs) on the development and implementation of investor marketing programs as well as educated IROs on broader industry trends including MiFID II and the mainstream shift by active investors toward integrating financially material ESG factors into their investment processes. Prior to joining UBS, Michael held various positions on both the buy side and sell side including at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Morgan Joseph TriArtisan Group, and Citi Global Markets. Michael has an MBA from Temple University’s Fox School of Business and a BA in Political Science and Spanish from the University of Michigan. He is also a SASB FSA Credential holder and was named to NIRI’s 40 under 40 class of 2020.
Brian Short
Partner
Ballard Spahr
Brian Short is a corporate transactional attorney and Co-Leader of the firm’s Securities and Capital Markets practice. He focuses on securities, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, venture capital, corporate finance, and general corporate matters.
Brian represents companies, private equity firms, and investment banks in a range of corporate transactions, including negotiating and executing public and private securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions, strategic alliances, and joint ventures. He counsels public and privately held companies on corporate governance and board issues, compliance matters, and periodic reporting.
Brian also represents investors and companies in capital financings, handling both structuring issues and the negotiation of deal documentation. He advises corporate clients across a range of industries, including life sciences, technology, aerospace and defense, business and financial services, and consumer products.
Prior to joining the firm, Brian was a partner at an AmLaw 50 firm and General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer of a publicly-traded international engineering, information technology, and staffing services company.
Krishna Veeraraghavan
Partner
Paul Weiss
A partner in the Corporate Department, Krishna Veeraraghavan is a member of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group. Krishna focuses his practice on a range of corporate matters and has extensive experience advising public and private companies on domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts and other transactions. He also regularly advises boards of directors and special committees on activist defense, proxy contests and the full range of corporate governance matters.
Rosanna Weaver
Wage justice and executive pay program manager
As You Sow
Rosanna Weaver has been working in the governance and compensation fields since 1992. She began her work in governance with a position in the Corporate Affairs office at the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, supervising research on corporate governance and management practices. She has served as a panel member at a number of conferences including: the Practicing Law Institute’s Corporate Governance Institute; and an Investor Relations Business conference on “Understanding and Responding to Shareholder Activism” and appeared on “Your World with Neil Cavuto.” She joined the Investor Responsibility Research Center (IRRC) in 1999 and served as an expert on labor shareholder activism, writing reports on labor fund activism, executive compensation shareholder proposals and golden parachutes. At Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), she worked on the executive compensation team as a senior analyst until 2010, with a particular focus on change of control regarding single triggers, modified single triggers and excise tax gross-ups. At ISS, Ms. Weaver also participated in policymaking and meetings with corporations and analyzed “say on pay” resolutions. From 2010 to 2012 she was governance initiatives coordinator at Change to Win. Ms. Weaver holds a BA in English from Goshen College and a Masters in American Studies from the University of Notre Dame.
Derek Windham
Vice president, associate general counsel
HPE
Derek Windham is currently Vice President, Associate General Counsel at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, leading the Corporate, Securities, and Finance legal team. Prior to that, he was Vice President, Securities and Executive Compensation at Del Monte Corporation, after having served as corporate counsel at the firms of Morrison & Foerster, O’Melveny & Myers, and Shearman & Sterling. He received his J.D. From Harvard Law School in 2002, and B.A. in economics from Yale University in 1999.
Lopa Zielinski
EVP, corporate secretary and head of governance USA
HSBC
Laurie Havelock
Editor-at-large
Corporate Secretary
Laurie Havelock is a journalist, writer and podcaster who has worked with IR Magazine for almost a decade. Outside of writing about investor relations, corporate governance and green finance, he also works for the i newspaper as a news editor and culture writer. Away from writing, he works on several comedy podcasts including Podshambles and Idle Fantasy and was formerly a radio DJ, and hosted a weekly show on Shoreditch Radio called What’s Your Plan B? He lives in London with Mischa, his dog.
Ben Maiden
Editor-at-large
Corporate Secretary
Ben Maiden is the editor-at-large of Corporate Secretary, an IR Media publication, having joined the company in December 2016. He is based in New York. Ben was previously managing editor of Compliance Reporter, covering regulatory and compliance issues affecting broker-dealers and asset management firms in the US and Europe. Before that, he was editor of Euromoney Institutional Investor’s International Financial Law Review and IFLR’s Americas editor, working in London and New York.
Steve Wade
Head of event content
Corporate Secretary
Steve Wade is a content researcher and conference producer at IR Magazine where he is responsible for crowd-sourcing intelligence on the big global issues facing investor relations. Steve also creates events where the IROs and the wider financial community can discuss, debate and learn about ways to develop the IR function.
Prior to IR Magazine, Steven’s background has been in corporate social responsibility and responsible investment. During his time at Ethical Corporation (now Reuters Events), Steve launched the ESG symposium, an event focused on connecting the socially responsible investment community with corporate sustainability leaders at listed companies. Steve was a judge for the Deloitte Green Frog Awards, celebrating the best corporate reporting in Eastern Europe. Steve also presented research at the Global Sustainable Event Summit in London and has spoken about extra-financial reporting with the United Nations Global Compact, the World Bank and the Polish Ministry of Finance.
Steve has a degree in Event Management and enjoys playing rugby in his spare time.
Our attendees are leading GRC practitioners with an established track record and strategic GRC role within their company.
Below is a sample of some of our virtual attendees:
Job title | Company | Job title | Company | |
CEO and founder | Canadian Corporate Board Advisory Services | Senior counsel, governance & chief of staff | Tyson Foods | |
Chief corporate affairs & communications officer | Vanda Pharmaceuticals | Senior governance specialist | Marathon Oil | |
Chief counsel | CSG Systems International | Senior manager, governance | Viatris | |
Chief executive officer | Flux Power | Senior manager, legal affairs | Banque Nationale | |
Chief legal officer | Premier Financial | SVP | Global Atlantic | |
Chief legal officer | Universal Technical Institute | SVP & chief human resources officer | HASI | |
Corporate paralegal | RELIX | SVP & deputy corporate secretary | CNA Financial | |
Deputy general counsel & secretary | Huntington National Bank | SVP & general counsel | AIG | |
Director counsel | Target Corporatoin | SVP, finance & investor relations | Organon | |
Director, corporate governance & managing attorney | Sempra Energy | SVP, general counsel & corporate secretary | Murphy Oil Corporation | |
Director, ESG | South Jersey Industries | SVP, chief legal officer & corporate secretary | Meritor | |
Director, legal services, governance & assistant CS | Cameco Corporation | SVP, corporate governance | Columbia Bank | |
Director, sustainability | Micron Technology | SVP, deputy general counsel & CS | Yelp | |
ESG director | Splunk | SVP, general counsel & secretary | Xenia Hotels & Resorts | |
EVP – general counsel and secretary | NCINO | VP | Hannon Armstrong | |
EVP & general counsel | Chugach Alaska Corporation | VP & associate general counsel | VeriSign | |
EVP, general counsel & corporate secretary | Ryder System | VP & associate general counsel | Avery Dennison Corporation | |
EVP, general counsel & secretary | Focus Brands | VP, chief compliance officer & CS | NW Natural Gas Company | |
Executive director & corporate secretary | DTCC | VP, chief SEC counsel and secretary | American Water Works Company | |
Legal counsel & corporate secretary | Antigua Commercial Bank | VP, corporate legal | Dolby Laboratories | |
Manager, governance | Payments Canada | VP, general counsel and secretary | National Fuel Gas Company | |
Managing attorney | Paycom | VP, legal and general counsel | Gibson Energy | |
Managing chief counsel | McKesson Corporation | VP, legal, corporate secretary | MGRC | |
Managing director | KPMG | VP, senior counsel, corporate & deputy secretary | Henry Schein |
Why partner with us?
The Corporate Secretary Forum brings together some of the most influential people in the GRC community.
The event offers an effective approach to targeting clients when they are exploring how they can improve their GRC practice. Through our unrivalled knowledge of the subject matters and commitment to in-depth agenda research, our events are guaranteed to attract a qualified audience.
The unique buzz we create at our virtual events – a far cry from a webinar – makes them multi-faceted and highly interactive with great engagement in particular from leading GRC practitioners. This allows our partners to have meaningful conversations with corporates who are deciding which parts of their GRC program to invest in, which service providers to engage and consultants to retain. By partnering with us on an event, you can generate leads, showcase your thought leadership and position yourselves as the partner of choice to the GRC community.
We’d love to have a chat with you about how you can get in front of a truly engaged and motivated audience at the Corporate Secretary Forum. Get in touch with Adam Dar or call on +1 212 430 6895.
In the last 12 months, Corporate Secretary’s virtual events have attracted the highest, most diverse and senior attendees and experts in governance
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Forum Partners
Ainstein AI has launched on Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform to offer integrated AI driven financial and ESG analysis for funds, boards and advisors. The service, developed by US fintech boutique StockSmart, deploys three-dimensional Cubes to spotlight hidden risks for 35,000 global issuers and ETFs that can be assessed across markets, industries and stock exchanges.
For more information, please visit our website here: azuremarketplace.microsoft.com/stocksmart.ainstein-ai
Ballard Spahr LLP is a national firm of more than 600 lawyers in 15 offices across the country. Our attorneys provide counseling and advocacy in more than 50 areas within business and transactions, finance, intellectual property, litigation, and real estate. We represent a diverse cross-section of clients, ranging from large public companies and privately held entities to government bodies and nonprofit organizations. Our practices span the financial, industrial, real estate, private equity, retail, and other sectors that are critical to growth in today’s marketplace.
For more information, please visit our website: ballardspahr.com
Datasite is a leading SaaS provider for the M&A industry, empowering dealmakers around the world with the tools they need to succeed across the entire deal lifecycle. For more information, visit www.datasite.com
Diligent is the largest governance, risk and compliance (GRC) SaaS provider, serving more than one million users from over 25,000 organizations around the globe. Our modern GRC platform ensures boards, executives and other leaders have a holistic, integrated view of audit, risk, information security, ethics and compliance across the organization.
Diligent brings technology, insights and confidence to leaders so they can build more effective, equitable and successful organizations. We empower 79% of the Fortune 500, 90% of the FTSE 100 and 83% of the ASX 200 to improve their bottom line, keep pace with stakeholder expectations and create lasting, positive impact on the world.
For more information visit www.diligent.com.
Lumi is the leading digital platform facilitating in-room, hybrid and virtual AGMs for the world’s largest corporations, membership organisations, associations, legislative bodies, faith based organisations and partnerships.
It is the only platform that digitises the entire lifecycle of an AGM in a single solution that enables sophisticated meeting facilitation before, during and after the live meeting – including authenticated registration, live secure polling, Q&A management and relevant reporting.
Lumi is headquartered in Hampshire, UK where central functions including finance, product development and marketing are based, but has offices in 11 countries across EMEA, APAC and the Americas. Highly differentiated in the majority of markets where it is active, Lumi benefits from extremely strong, experienced and renowned MDs who head up each in-country team.
Its mobile solution enabled Lumi to facilitate the UK’s first electronic AGM held by a listed company, Jimmy Choo, in June 2016. The onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic rapidly accelerated the adoption of the Lumi virtual meeting platform, and Lumi has run over 2500 virtual and hybrid AGMs during 2020, in 35 different countries, including several hundred here in Canada.
For more information, visit www.lumiglobal.com.
Mediant provides technology that is smarter, faster and better to help our broker, issuer and fund clients take control of their investor communications in a transparent and seamless way. Our solutions are driven by leading technology and strict compliance with industry regulations, which allows clients to balance innovation with requirements. Find out more at mediantinc.com.
Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a leading global provider of trading, clearing, exchange technology, listing, information and public company services. Through its diverse portfolio of solutions, Nasdaq enables customers to plan, optimize and execute their business vision with confidence, using proven technologies that provide transparency and insight for navigating today’s global capital markets. As the creator of the world’s first electronic stock market, its technology powers more than 90 marketplaces in 50 countries, and 1 in 10 of the world’s securities transactions. Nasdaq is home to approximately 3,900 total listings with a market value of approximately $13 trillion. To learn more, visit: business.nasdaq.com
OneTrust ESG simplifies the gathering, storing and assessing of your company’s ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) data and metrics. OneTrust ESG comes with a powerful assessment platform, that helps identify and track both internal and third-party risks and manage ESG goals to make a successful ESG program.
OneTrust ESG is a part of OneTrust, the #1 most widely used privacy, security and governance platform used by more than 10,000 customers and powered by 150 awarded patents. OneTrust ESG is powered by the OneTrust Athena™ AI and robotic automation engine, and integrates seamlessly with the full OneTrust platform, including OneTrust Privacy Management Software, OneTrust DataDiscovery™, OneTrust DataGovernance™, OneTrust Vendorpedia™, OneTrust GRC, OneTrust Ethics, OneTrust PreferenceChoice™, and OneTrust DataGuidance™.
To learn more, visit OneTrust.com or connect on LinkedIn.
Paul, Weiss (paulweiss.com) is a firm of more than 1,000 lawyers with diverse backgrounds, personalities, ideas and interests who provide innovative and effective solutions to our clients’ most complex legal and business challenges. We take great pride in representing the world’s leading companies in their critical legal matters and most significant business transactions, as well as individuals and organizations in need of pro bono assistance.
For more information, please visit our website.
About Sidley: With 2,000 lawyers in 20 offices around the globe, Sidley is a premier legal adviser for clients across the spectrum of industries. Follow Sidley on Twitter @SidleyLaw.
For more information, please visit our website.
ZRG Partners’ mission is to bring talented candidates to leading companies. We adhere to a set of core values that allows us to fulfil our clients’ needs on an optimal scale. We take pride and care to ensure that the core values we instill in our staff help our clients acquire strong leadership within their company.
For more information, please visit our website.
Corporate Partners
American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is a leading global insurance organization. AIG member companies provide a wide range of property casualty insurance, life insurance, retirement solutions, and other financial services to customers in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions. These diverse offerings include products and services that help businesses and individuals protect their assets, manage risks and provide for retirement security. AIG common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Additional information about AIG can be found at www.aig.com.
Graybar, a Fortune 500 corporation and one of the largest employee-owned companies in North America, is a leader in the distribution of high quality electrical, communications and data networking products, and specializes in related supply chain management and logistics services. Through its network of more than 260 North American distribution facilities, it stocks and sells products from thousands of manufacturers, helping its customers power, network and secure their facilities with speed, intelligence and efficiency.
For more information, visit www.graybar.com or call 1-800-GRAYBAR.
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) was formed on June 30, 2000 and is one of the world’s leading providers of technology, communications, information and entertainment products and services. Headquartered in New York City and with a presence around the world, Verizon generated revenues of $128.3 billion in 2020. The company offers data, video and voice services and solutions on its award-winning networks and platforms, delivering on customers’ demand for mobility, reliable network connectivity, security and control.
For more information, please visit verizon.com.
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