Second Annual BIBA Conference – a success!
This post was written by Chris Lo’Grippo ’16
Second Annual Babson Investment Banking Conference
The planning process for the Second Annual Babson Investment Banking Conference, held on September 19, 2014, began toward the end of 2013. With much thanks to President Emeritus Len Schlesinger, Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs, agreed to serve as the one of the Conference’s keynote speakers. Hiter Harris, Co-Founder of Harris Williams, also joined the Babson Investment Banking Association and its sold-out audience to deliver the second intriguing keynote of the day. Moreover, attendees gathered throughout the day for 5 panels, which consisted of Babson alumni and current industry professionals. With such highly respected keynotes and interesting panels, it is no surprise that the Conference sold out at 450 tickets. The Capital Markets panel kicked off the day, followed by panels on Mergers and Acquisitions, Private Equity, Sales and Trading, and Regulation and Shadow Banking, all of which sparked some new and engaging conversation amongst the students, alumni, faculty and guests of the audience.
As the mission of the Babson Investment Banking Association is to promote the merits of investment banking amongst the student body and to help spread Babson’s name across Wall Street, it was no surprise that the Conference was attended by many who were interested in pursuing a career in the industry. In addition to the opportunities to ask questions during the panels and to speak with the panelists after each session, attendees also took advantage of the networking lunch, where many of the panelists and speakers sat with students to connect further. Through the panels and one-on-one discussions with participants, eager students were able to learn more about the everyday lives of bankers and received helpful advice relevant to landing internships and careers in the field.
Full of information and productive conversation, the day was a success and received extremely well amongst campus. Many attendees provided feedback saying that “the panelists did an exceptional job of explaining their roles and various concepts.” As the Executive Board of BIBA plans the Third Annual Babson Investment Banking Conference, we look forward to providing more networking opportunities, exciting keynotes and panelists, and of course, promoting Babson on Wall Street as a top business school. For photos from the Second Annual Babson Investment Banking Conference, please visit BIBA’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/BabsonIBA.