Association of Independent Schools in New England (AISNE) Annual Governance Conference – Keynote Speaker Juan Enriquez

Photograph by Kris Krug

Yesterday, four BCD trustees and I attended the Association of Independent Schools in New England (AISNE) annual Governance Conference.  After an inspiring and informative talk presented by Pat Bassett, President of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), I attended two workshops.  At “Post-Recession Fund Raising: Where To, and How Bumpy?,” Bill Jaques, President and Principal of Jaques and Company, presented his perspectives about fundraising trends and offered advice during this uncertain economy.  During “Managing Enrollment in Challenging Times,” Geordie Mitchell, Director of Enrollment Management at Buckingham Browne & Nichols School discussed various aspects of enrollment management, including: the identification and determination of enrollment management priorities, a review of tools and data that can be useful for strategic planning, and outreach ideas.  I am grateful for the commitment of our trustees, whose attendance at the AISNE conference each year ensures that new perspectives are considered that may inform our strategic thinking and plans for the future of BCD.

Particularly thought-provoking was the afternoon keynote speech presented by Juan Enriquez.  I have embedded two videos below.  The first is a TED talk that Mr. Enriquez gave in 2009, and the second is an interview in 2010.  Mr. Enriquez is a “bestselling author, businessman, and academic, and he is recognized as one of the world’s leading authorities on the economic and political impacts of life sciences. He is currently Chairman and CEO of Biotechonomy LLC, a life sciences research and investment firm. He was the Founding Director of the Harvard Business School Life Sciences Project, and author of the global bestseller As the Future Catches You: How Genomics & Other Forces are Changing Your Life, Work, Health & Wealth. (Selected by Amazon’s editors as one of the best business books of the year). His latest book, The Untied States of America: Polarization, Fracturing, and Our Future, which explores why some countries are successful while others disappear, was published by Crown Business in November of 2005.  Harvard Business School Interactive picked Mr. Enriquez as one of the best teachers at HBS and showcased his work in its first set of faculty products.  Fortune profiled him as Mr. Gene. Time asked him to co-organize the life sciences summit commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the discovery of DNA. Seed picked his ideas as one of fifty that “shaped our identity, our culture, and the world as we know it.” (2003 Biotechonomy)

“Juan Enriquez thinks and writes about the profound changes that genomics and other life sciences will cause in business, technology, politics and society.” (2009 TED).  The following is a TED talk that Mr. Enriquez presented in 2009: