2019 Critical Governance Issues Forum

Join Directors, Senior Executives and Governance Experts at this exclusive event. Gain an understanding of three critical issues facing boards today – Blockchain Technology, System Failures and Disruption – while reconnecting with fellow directors and executives.

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2019 Critical Governance Issues Forum

Join governance experts, board directors and senior executives at this exclusive event. You will gain an understanding of three critical topics facing boards today while reconnecting with fellow directors and executives.

image depicting the concept of blockchain

Blockchain: Opportunities and Limits of This Emerging Technology

Blockchain technology has had mixed press over the past couple of years, primarily due to the frenzy caused by wild speculation in the unregulated cryptocurrency markets. However, it is important for Directors to understand that blockchain, the underlying technology behind cryptocurrencies, and when it is likely to be value to businesses.

Blockchain can potentially streamline business processes and transactions, strengthen supply chains, boost customer relationships, reduce costs and provide opportunities for business expansion. This session will provide you with an understanding of the opportunities and limits of this emerging technology, as well as the key questions to ask your management to ensure they are building a robust digital strategy.

Meltdown: Why Our Systems Fail and What We Can Do About It

From train derailments and massive oil spills to bankruptcies and medical errors, Directors are increasingly facing complex and challenging system failures. These crises can threaten an organization’s reputation, profitability and future viability. Instead of reacting, Directors need to understand how to work with their management teams to prevent such failures.

In this session, András Tilcsik will discuss his groundbreaking research on how complexity causes failures in a variety of modern systems – from social media to air travel – and how we can prevent meltdowns in business and life. By understanding what lies behind these failures, we can transform how we make decisions, build our teams, design our systems, and prevent the kinds of meltdowns that have become all too common.

Each participant at the 2019 Rotman Governance Forum will receive a copy of MELTDOWN: Why Our Systems Fail and What We Can Do About It, published by Penguin Press in 2018.

Disruption: Thriving in a Rapidly Changing World

As a Board Member, how can you tell which new competitors pose a real threat to the business and which ones you are safe to ignore? Once you identify coming disruptions, how do you respond without wasting valuable time and resources? This speech will reveal the secrets of how Silicon Valley companies think when they are disrupting and how the most agile companies in the world respond and thrive under disruption.

2019 Critical Governance Issues Forum

April 4, 2019
8:30–3:15 pm
Rotman School of Management

Schedule

Time	Event	Instructor
8:30–9:00 am	Breakfast
9:00–9:15 am	Welcome	Richard Powers Associate Professor, Rotman School of Management National Academic Director, Rotman-ICD Directors Education and Governance Essentials Programs
9:15–10:45 am	Blockchain: Opportunities and Limits of This Emerging Technology	Joshua Gans Jeffrey S. Skoll Chair of Technical Innovation and Entrepreneurship Professor of Strategic Management Chief Economist, Creative Destruction Lab
10:45–11:00 am	Break
11:00–12:30 pm	Meltdown: Why our Systems Fail and What We Can Do About It	András Tilcsik, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Strategic Management Canada Research Chair in Strategy, Organizations, and Society
12:30–1:30 pm	Lunch
1:30–3:00 pm	Disruption: Thriving in a Rapidly Changing World	Nicolas Darveau-Garneau, MBA Chief Search Evangelist, Google Mountain View, California Co-Founder and Board Member; Liquor.com Advisor; famo.us and Poka Inc.
3:00–3:15 pm	Closing Remarks	Richard Powers

Attending the Rotman Critical Governance Forum qualifies for 5 Institute of Corporate Directors CEU’s

2019 Critical Governance Issues Forum

Rotman Executive Program faculty are known for their ability to translate the latest research into practical applications for the workplace, and to transmit skills to participants with the best teaching techniques. Industry leaders contribute to our programs to bring you the most up-to-date best practices and a wealth of real-world experience.