WELCOME LETTER

Dear Friends of the Millstein Center,

I would like to welcome you to the 2009 Yale Governance Forum.  Our fourth annual gathering aims to explore what is required to restore trust in the financial system and to examine in-depth what changes are needed going forward to avoid future crises.

As you can imagine, the Center’s mission has become even more relevant and crucial in light of the recent financial crisis and corporate governance failures.  The Governance Forum is a crucial venue which aims to foster dynamic discussion.  Our mission is to promote practical recommendations for the future based on the input of people who “are there and doing it.”  A prime example is our recent report Chairing the Board (on our website), which is based on discussions and recommendations of corporate leaders. It received prominent coverage in the Wall Street Journal and elsewhere.

The Center will continue to study the inter-relationships of management, the board of directors, shareowners and stakeholders in helping companies create long-term corporate and shareholder value in today’s complex and competitive economy, while at the same time meeting heightened expectations of society.  In the recent crisis trust was lost in both the systems and in organizations that make up that system. The Center strongly believes that trust in global capital markets can only be restored, first, through the proactive involvement of private sector institutions in developing those corporate governance structures that will serve them – and society -- in the future.  Second, restoration of confidence hinges on public sector financial market reforms that address the long-term needs of business, investors and stakeholders. Flaws which have been exposed in this crisis must be taken seriously and addressed thoughtfully.  This is the current focus of our work.

Our annual Governance Forum will prove useful again.  This year’s program consists of four plenary sessions and eight specific topic sessions, which will provide the opportunity for discussion in depth of current key topics. It will allow participants to meet and interact with fellow practitioners and leaders. Our goal is never merely to engage in surface discussion, but to sort out and explore key issues which will affect policy and action in the future.

We are grateful that so many of our distinguished friends and colleagues are available to participate in this year’s Forum.  We hope you will find the discussions as rewarding as we always do.

We would also like to express our sincere thanks to our many sponsors, partners, and friends, who throughout these past three years have supported, promoted, advanced, and constructively criticized the numerous projects and research the Center has undertaken.

Please enjoy the 2009 Yale Governance Forum!

Sincerely,
                               
Ira M. Millstein
Senior Associate Dean for Corporate Governance
Yale School of Management