A highly engaged capacity audience of over 300 students, faculty, alumni, and guests filled the Williamson Theatre at the College of Staten Island on November 20, 2024, for the sixth Careers in Finance, Economics, and Accounting Summit, hosted by the Lucille and Jay Chazanoff School of Business. Inaugurated in 2017 in collaboration with CSI/Macaulay alumnus Thomas Brigandi (Finance, Accounting, Economics – Class of 2012), the yearly event features an expert panel of speakers representing diverse aspects of the financial sector. The panelists speak from their experiences, offering views on the future of the financial industry, pointers, and career planning advice.

The carefully-designed Summit addresses three main goals: it offers students the opportunity to hear about current industry trends and insights from high-level professionals; audience members gain insights into many aspects of professional development; and a reception after the panel offers the opportunity for students to connect directly with the speakers.

Following welcoming remarks by Dr. Susan Holak, Founding Dean of the Chazanoff School, Mr. Brigandi gave an impassioned presentation about the value of connections and networking. Dr. Timothy Lynch, President of the College of Staten Island, remarked on the impressive scale and scope of the event before introducing the program’s Keynote Speaker, Mr. Anthony E. Meyer. A financial and philanthropic entrepreneur, Mr. Meyer currently serves as President of the investment management company Ocean Road Advisors, as well as Chair of the Boards of Directors of Meyer and Company – a merchant banking firm he founded in 2002 – and the CUNY Macaulay Honors College Foundation.

During his keynote, Anthony Meyer recalled pivotal points of his personal journey and his career path, noting the importance of being open to opportunities. He reiterated the value of knowing how to network, as well as stressing the importance of the social aspects of meeting such as shaking hands correctly, and making eye contact. Meyer also praised the quality of CUNY and its students, before handing the microphone over to Jodie M. Gunzberg, who reprised her 2023 role as panel moderator for the remainder of the speaker event. Ms. Gunzberg, CFA, is the Managing Partner of InFi Strategies, an investment strategy consultancy that delivers tailored solutions for asset managers, institutional asset owners, and wealth advisors. Jodie guided a panel discussion with four professionals, several of whom had participated in this event in previous years, representing a spectrum of viewpoints and backgrounds from different sectors of the finance industry.

Topics were wide-ranging and touched upon the individual career paths of the panelists, emerging trends including the rapid rise of AI as an industry tool and industry changes relating to sustainability.  Speakers also shared candid reflections on career challenges and the importance of resilience. This year’s participants included Dave Altman, CFP, a Principal with Bernstein Private Wealth Management; Jonathon Cummings, MPA, an Alliance Manager at Deloitte; Daniel Fridson, CFA, Director and Structured Products Investment Banker with EF Hutton; and Utku Teksoz, PhD, Economist and Policy Advisor with the United Nations.

Following the formal program, the students and panelists gathered in the atrium of the Center for the Arts to continue their discussions one-on-one or in small groups at a dinner reception. Although the event started at 6:30pm, many were still deeply engaged in conversation well after 9:00pm. Malcolm Davis, who is studying Accounting and is interested in the real estate field, spoke at length with the keynote speaker Anthony Meyer, and later connected with him on LinkedIn after Meyer provided him with some guidance on beginning a career in that industry. Economics student Tania Barnes stated that she had picked up on Mr. Meyer’s remarks about the importance of the simple aspects of meeting people, including remembering people’s details in order to demonstrate that you have listened to them – which she then practiced during the gathering session after the main speaker event.

Chazanoff School Dean Susan Holak expressed her appreciation to Tom Brigandi and all the panelists for the generosity of their time, noting the impressive level of expertise and experience represented by the group. “This event makes me proud each year,” Holak noted. “I am always impressed by the speakers and how they connect their own stories to our students, who are at the beginning their careers. It is a privilege to be able to bring these experts to campus and see the impact on Chazanoff School students first-hand.”

Economics student Michael Ciarlo noted that the panelists all said that they did not expect to end up where they eventually did, but rather they took advantage of opportunities as they came up during their career trajectories. Michael said that his main takeaway “best piece of advice” from the speakers was “to take the opportunities presented to you, as you will never know where they’ll lead you.”

Dean Holak applauded Tom Brigandi’s passionate and stalwart support for CSI students and their success. “He has an amazing track record with the Careers Summit, which has become a much-anticipated tradition at the Chazanoff School. We are exceedingly grateful to Tom for his dedication, energy, and commitment.”

By: Warrick Bell