The keynote address at the Forum was given by: Wayne A. Abernathy, Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions, United States Treasury Department. The lunch keynote was given by: Bill Gradison, Member, Public Company Accounting of Securities Dealers. Closing remarks were given by Lynsey Graham, Minority Counsel, Senate Banking Committee and Carter McDowell, Chief Counsel, House Financial Services Committee.
The Forum addressed leading corporate governance issues ranging from the role of audit committees, nominating committees and compensation committees, and Sarbanes-Oxley. The event was developed for senior level executives and directors of NASDAQ Listed companies from a variety of sectors. NASDAQ CEO Bob Greifeld and Gordon Macklin, Founder of the Macklin Business Institute, kicked off the Forum with opening remarks. Mr. Greifeld spoke about the importance of investor confidence and its relation to trading activity and governance standards. Mr. Macklin focused on the increasing importance of understanding and abiding by high governance standards. Gordon Macklin stated, "The Macklin Business Institute and Center for Entrepreneurship at Montgomery College are committed to educating entrepreneurs and executives and are excited to be partnering with NASDAQ to encourage dialogue among executives, board members, and policy makers on this complex and critical topic."
"Corporate governance is a critical underpinning to NASDAQ's market structure. We believe that good corporate governance drives investor confidence. The industry has made tremendous progress on governance issues and as a result we support continued reform and educational programs focused on ongoing evaluation of key corporate governance principles," commented Bob Greifeld, NASDAQ CEO.
There were various panels throughout the day including:
- "The Role of the Audit Committee After Sarbanes-Oxley Increased Accountability, Responsibility and Liability"
- "The Nominating and Compensation Committees - Attracting and Compensating the Ideal Board"
- "Business Ethics - The Necessity, Difficulty, Cost and Rewards of Conducting Business Ethically."
The Gordon and Marilyn Macklin Business Institute (MBI) at Montgomery College is a distinctive honors and mentoring program that provides a wide range of innovative, high quality business education opportunities to sophomore-year business students. As a result of a generous endowment by Gordon and Marilyn Macklin and the vision of Dr. Charlene Nunley, Montgomery College President, and her staff, Montgomery College is able to offer outstanding business transfer students this very special program. The Institute has also established a Center for Entrepreneurship that focuses on assisting business and government efforts to foster growth in the region. The Center has provided assistance to small businesses, business incubators, and companies seeking public offerings. Independently and through partnerships with NASDAQ and others, programs, such as this one, continue to keep the focus on education and sharing knowledge. For more information about Montgomery College and the Macklin Business Institute, visit the College's website at www.montgomerycollege.edu or the Macklin website at www.macklin.org .
NASDAQ is the primary market for trading NASDAQ listed stocks. Approximately 54% of NASDAQ-listed shares traded are reported to NASDAQ systems. For more information about NASDAQ, visit the NASDAQ Web site at www.NASDAQ.com or the NASDAQ NewsroomSM at www.NASDAQnews.com.
