Know Thyself: Words of Wisdom at the 14th Annual GFA Conference

Know thyself. Words variously attributed to Heraclitus, Pythagoras, Socrates and more recently Professor Charles Murphy, the featured speaker at this year's GFA Conference. Professor Murphy's words underscored the philosophical tone of the day's speakers, each of whom discussed personal journeys, difficult decisions, and the importance of remaining true to oneself, all within the context of a career in finance.

On Friday, November 6th the Kimmel Center once again played host to the annual Graduate Finance Association Conference. Organized by conference chairmen Victor Hwei and Blake Stuchin, the event featured three speakers, a series of seven panel discussions and concluded with a firm expo and cocktail reception.

Jacob Silverman, Chief Financial Officer of Duff & Phelps, a provider of financial advisory and investment banking services, kicked off the event as the first keynote speaker. Mr. Silverman, who began his career as an analyst at Furman Selz LLC and was instrumental in bringing Duff & Phelps public in 2007, spoke about his early desire to "be his own boss". It was this determination that drove him to leave various jobs before finally establishing his own M&A advisory firm and ultimately joining Duff & Phelps as CFO in 2004. Mr. Silverman urged attendees to know who you are, understand what drives you, and find a role that complements you as a person. As GFA President Marsha Kublall said, "Jacob perfectly conveyed Professor Murphy's message of knowing yourself when it comes to managing your career. He has built a very successful career even though he chose not to follow a conventional path. I hope everyone, especially students who may still be on the fence about what career to recruit for, takes this valuable message to heart."

As the featured speaker, Professor Murphy shared with attendees some anecdotes and words of wisdom from his over three decades on Wall St., which began in 1976 as a research associate at First Boston. During his storied career, he held various positions across the Street, eventually rising to head Credit Suisse's global investment banking department. Professor Murphy spoke candidly about his experiences and regaled the audience with musings about both investment banking and life in general. But perhaps the most poignant moment in his speech was when he urged attendees to "know thyself". He went on to explain the importance of knowing and understanding yourself early in life. Know what drives you, know when you need a change, and most importantly know when you're burning out. Professor Murphy emphasized that it's possible to work in a demanding field, such as banking, and still maintain a stable family life. He pointed out that he himself is evidence of this notion and went on to describe his life as, "same house, same wife, same kids…boring." Attendees certainly didn't find Professor Murphy boring and clearly enjoyed his unique and thoughtful perspective.

After imparting his words of wisdom, Professor Murphy introduced the day's second keynote speaker, Ray McGuire, Head of Global Banking at Citi. The pair first met each other over twenty years ago when Mr. McGuire arrived at First Boston, where Professor Murphy had already risen to a senior position. In his comments, Mr. McGuire discussed the global nature of business and the extent to which investment professionals need to be cognizant of this new landscape. Much like the two speakers before him, Mr. McGuire stressed the importance of taking hold of your own career and, when facing a crossroads, listening to the people that we trust most, since those are the people that often know us best. As John Hutcheson, GFA Executive Vice President, said, "Ray did a great job connecting with the audience. After an inspiring keynote address, Ray brought his larger than life persona off of the stage and into the crowd displaying his fondness for music, knowledge of global events and ability to entertain."

After the keynote speeches, attendees had the opportunity to participate in two rounds of panel discussions on topics with titles such as "Managing Risk in Capital Markets", "A Focus on Cross-Border Transactions", and "The Role of Corporate Finance in the Financial Services Industry". Conference attendee Jack Kuhns said of the M&A panel, "The panelists all came from different spaces in M&A and as a result were able to collectively provide a rich review of emerging trends." While most panel discussions seemed noticeably more sanguine than in 2008, some were still somewhat cautious about the outlook for the domestic economy, even going so far as to suggest we may see a dramatic second leg down over the next few months.

The conference concluded with a cocktail reception, featuring representatives from companies such as JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Thomson Reuters, among others. Attendees had the opportunity to engage with company representatives in an intimate and conversational setting.

With roughly 200 attendees, over twenty speakers, and more than fifty representatives from twelve companies, the Graduate Finance Association once again offered students a unique opportunity to listen to and speak with leading professionals from nearly all corners of finance. As co-chair Blake Stuchin said, "Our goal was to put on a broad-reaching event with speakers who would be not only informative but also fun and engaging. Based on GFA member suggestions, we expanded the program this year to include three terrific keynote speakers and seven different panel discussions featuring more than two dozen industry professionals from a wide range of fields including corporate finance, hedge funds, sales and trading, private wealth management, and investment banking. Judging from what we've heard from attendees, we were thrilled with the turnout and the responses for this year's conference."