Class 5 Finance

Instructor: Paul Ward, Vice President Finance, Hollingsworth & Vose Company (2005)

* Directed the day to day functions of the Treasury Operations and Information Technology Departments of a privately owned international specialty manufacturing company with eleven worldwide operating locations and sales of $350 million.

* Coordinated the annual preparation of the company's long range financial plans and operating budgets; managed the firm's international banking relationships; partnered with international senior finance managers and external auditors on tax planning issues; assessed the adequacy and effectiveness of internal controls; administered multiple qualifying and non-qualifying retirement plans; and actively participated in numerous acquisition and divestiture activities.

* Measured and monitored working capital employment; asset utilization; return on investment for capital projects; and the company's cash flow to provide for maximization of shareholders' returns.

* Interfaced directly with the board of directors on pension and benefit programs, risk management, capital appropriations, banking relationships and audit activities.

Speaker: Joff Smith, Founder & CEO of the Group Insurance Exchange

Joff Smith of Worcester, MA became the youngest person ever elected at age 24 to the Worcester City Council in November of 2005, as a representative of District 1. He won re-election in 2007 to a 2nd two-year term, and is currently running for a 3rd term this year in Worcester, which is the 2nd largest city in New England. He has also been elected as a state delegate to the MA Democratic State Convention from 2006-2009. Joff was also appointed by Governor Deval Patrick to serve on the Board of Trustees of the State Library of MA in 2008. In addition to his duties as a City Councilor, Joff also is the Founder & CEO of the Group Insurance Exchange which he formed as a start-up company in 2009 that operates an online reverse auction platform for larger companies, governments, and colleges to save money on their group employee benefit plans such as health insurance. Joff has been recognized for his drive and ambition by the Worcester Business Journal, who named him to their prestigious 40 under Forty list in 2006, and by The Pulse Magazine, who named him one of their 25 to Watch in 2005.

Mr. Smith is an active participant in charitable endeavors as well. He danced in the Salsa with Worcester Stars charity event to benefit Centro Las Americas, and also helped organize and host the Karaoke for a Cure charity event to benefit cancer research in 2008. In 2006 and 2007 Joff organized the Joff Smith Celebrity Auction charity event which raised over $50,000 for Worcester area charities. An avid athlete, Joff participated in the "Give Kids a Fighting Chance" charity boxing event to benefit the Worcester Boys & Girls Clubs in 2005 and 2006. Mr. Smith is a member of the Worcester Young Businessmen's Association, the Worcester Economics Club, and is a Reserve Deputy Sheriff for Worcester County. A Magna Cum Laude graduate of the University of Hartford with a B.S. in Business Administration, majoring in Economics and Finance, Joff also played Division 1 baseball there, and had several major league tryouts.