Latest Interviews
Showing 1351–1365 of 1,758 transcripts.
Clear all filters- Milken Institute1h 12m
Growth on the Frontier: Insights From African Executives
Jonathan Berman, Paul Hanks, Mimi Alamayo, Brian Orjiaku, Bassem Haider, Bob Diamond
A panel of experts analyzed the transformative impact of Nigeria's 2015 democratic transition and the subsequent strategic pivot required to navigate oil price collapses, South Sudan's instability, and volatile commodity markets. While nations like Ethiopia and Rwanda demonstrate the potential for infrastructure-led growth and regulatory reform, regional leaders emphasized that Africa's demographic surge necessitates private sector-led diversification into local manufacturing and food security to avert youth-driven political unrest. The discourse concluded that sustainable development depends on overcoming critical power and logistics deficits through value-added processing and innovative mobile solutions rather than reliance on raw material exports.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Impact Investing 2.0: Finding Value in Doing Good
Tom Hyland, Dimple Sani, Gary White, Kimball Ganzier, Jacqueline Novogratz
This session convened leaders from Acumen, Water.org, and Soros-backed venture capital to establish impact investing as a discipline requiring clear social intention, rigorous measurement, and transparent stakeholder communication. Panelists demonstrated that mission-aligned funds can achieve market-rate returns, citing a 41% IRR for aligned exits and highlighting hybrid financing models that successfully served low-income populations without compromising financial viability. The discussion concluded that the sector is evolving toward segmented strategies driven by generational demand, necessitating permanent capital structures and standardized metrics to scale solutions for persistent global problems.
- Milken Institute1h 3m
The Future of Higher Education
Carol Quinlan, Eduardo Padron, Mitch Daniels, Steve, Ted Mitchell, Jeff, Mike Milken, William Bonvillian, Michael Schrag, Elizabeth Lee, Elizabeth Bell, Mike Downer, Chris Hartz
A panel of higher education leaders including Eduardo Padron, Ted Mitchell, and Carol Quinlan identifies a systemic failure to convert increased student access into degree completion and employability. The discussion highlights critical barriers such as state disinvestment, regulatory rigidity regarding seat time, and a misalignment between curricula and labor market needs. To resolve these issues, experts propose shifting toward student-centric competency portfolios, establishing seamless regional pathways, and renegotiating the sector's social contract to prove tangible value to taxpayers.
- Milken Institute54 min
Beyond the Headlines: Global Leaders Explore Africa's Future
Mindy Silverstein, Bronwyn Nielsen, Tony Blair, H.E. Paul Kagame, Scott Minerd, Patrice Motsepe, Strive Masiwa, Bob Collymore, Jay Ireland, Fred Swannaker, John Rice, President Uhuru Kenyatta
The Milken Institute launched the Africa Business Fellowship Program, a reciprocal exchange initiative partnering with Strive Masiwa, Safaricom, and the Dangote Group to place up to 15 American entrepreneurs in African firms over six months. Supported by high-profile speakers like President Paul Kagame and Tony Blair, the event utilized demographic projections showing Africa's population could double by 2050 to argue that regional integration and private sector infrastructure investments are critical for unlocking a continent identified by the IMF as home to the world's fastest-growing economies. Panelists including Scott Minnert and Patrice Motsepi concluded by dismissing security concerns as manageable barriers and calling for immediate U.S. capital deployment to fuel the rising middle class and consumer industries across Sub-Saharan Africa.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Technology and Jobs: Should Workers Worry?
Josh Barrow, Brad DeLong, Amy Webb, Gerald Huff, Jeremy Howard, Jonathan Zittrain
Brad DeLong, Amy Webb, Jeremy Howard, and Gerald Huff analyze the impact of automation on the labor market, arguing that current unemployment stems from macroeconomic mismanagement rather than robot displacement, even as AI rapidly outperforms humans in cognitive and manual sectors. While experts identify specific industries like banking, legal services, and manufacturing as vulnerable to disruption, data shows that the vast majority of economic activity remains in traditional service roles that are difficult to automate. The panel concludes that without proactive policy shifts toward solutions like universal basic income or reduced work hours, society risks a dystopian concentration of wealth as the traditional link between labor scarcity and income distribution breaks down.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
The Economic Implications of Climate Change
Susan Goldburg, Gérard Araud, Amy Christensen, John Cochran, Mark Tercik, John Holdren, Peter Passell, Matt Boghossian, Lawrence Bender, Mark Scotland, Michael Sterling
A diverse panel of policymakers, business leaders, and diplomats established a consensus that a uniform, revenue-neutral carbon price is the most efficient mechanism for global climate mitigation, surpassing current command-and-control regulations in promoting decentralized innovation. This framework aims to accelerate the transition to clean energy while managing security risks, with specific proposals suggesting a tax trajectory starting at $16 per ton to fund an 80% emissions reduction by 2050. The strategy leverages historical U.S.-China alignment and corporate commitments to drive the upcoming Paris Conference, emphasizing that economic incentives must be paired with nature-based adaptation and diplomatic flexibility to accommodate sovereign differences.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Silver Strategies: Capitalizing on the Longevity Economy
Dr. Joe Coughlin, Gretchen Addy, Paul Irving, Lisa Sunin, Jenny
A recent analysis highlights the Longevity Economy as a $7.1 trillion global market driven by the spending and innovation of the 50+ demographic, yet current venture capital and product design often fail to address this group's $100 billion annual anti-aging spend due to ageist biases and poor human-centered design. Experts like Lisa Sunin, Gretchen Addy, and Paul Irving argue that overcoming these barriers requires shifting from an illness-based narrative to lifestyle-focused strategies, specifically targeting high-opportunity sectors such as dementia care, home-based aging services, and preventive digital health. By reimagining products for active "third-age" living and fostering intergenerational workforce integration, stakeholders can unlock significant growth in a sector where investors like Peter Thiel and Larry Ellison are increasingly directing capital.
- Milken Institute1h 4m
Investing in Emerging Markets: The Returns Are in the Details
Bridget Posh, Bob Diamond, Ana Maria Caresquilla, Jingdong Huang, Penny Foley, Victor Chiu
Industry leaders from Atlas Merchant Group, Fondo de Reserva Latinoamericano, and the IFC analyzed high-growth potential in Nigeria's demographic dividend and the Pacific Alliance's unified infrastructure sector. The panelists assessed global emerging market fixed income stability while addressing China's sustainable economic evolution and Africa's infrastructure financing gaps. Ultimately, experts forecasted that measured Fed normalization and strategic risk pricing will enable private capital to capture significant long-term value across these distinct regional opportunities.
- Milken Institute1h 4m
Breakthrough Medicine: Will Finding a Cure Be Just the Start of Saving Lives?
Louise Perkins, Jill DeSimone, Omid Hamid, Daniel Hilferty, Gideon Bollig, Wyatt Decker
Led by the Melanoma Research Alliance and Mayo Clinic, this event synthesizes breakthroughs in immunotherapy and genomic medicine that are transforming late-stage melanoma from a fatal diagnosis into a manageable chronic condition. Panelists addressed critical barriers to patient access, including high drug costs, reimbursement lags, and the need for updated clinical training, while proposing public-private partnerships to streamline regulatory pathways. The discussion concluded with a strategic vision to scale personalized care to millions of patients, aligning incentives across payers, providers, and researchers to extend these life-saving advances to broader diseases.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
The Talent Crisis: Strategies to Build a Skilled Technology Workforce and Assure Diversity
Freda Kaeper-Klein, Byron, Hope, Jackie, Jamal, Bonin
A projected shortage of 1.5 million skilled US tech workers is driven not only by a leaky educational pipeline but primarily by employer reliance on credential-based hiring that excludes capable candidates from underrepresented groups. Strategic shifts toward mastery-based recruitment, exemplified by initiatives like TechHire and the LaunchCode model, have already doubled revenue and reduced turnover for participating firms while addressing demographic gaps. Successful resolution of this crisis requires systematic reforms in hiring heuristics and early K-12 exposure to unlock the potential of millions of untapped workers currently excluded by traditional degree requirements.
- Milken Institute1h 3m
Say This, Not This: The Words to Use and the Words to Lose
The presentation analyzes the critical impact of communication styles on political trust and corporate branding, highlighting how figures like Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio leverage authentic, unscripted delivery to resonate with voters amidst record-low congressional approval ratings. In the corporate sector, the speaker argues that phrases emphasizing tangible benefits and transparency, such as "no fine print" and "living wage," outperform traditional buzzwords in rebuilding consumer confidence while specific visual and psychological strategies enhance demographic engagement. Ultimately, the event advocates for a shift toward raw, human-centric interaction over polished staging, asserting that physical proximity and linguistic sincerity are essential for overcoming national cynicism and fostering genuine connection.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Boom or Bust: Opportunities and Risk in M&A
Stuart Cable, Ray McGuire, Steve Kruskos, Peter Schoenfeld, Leon Wagner, David Solomon
The current M&A market is experiencing a robust boom driven by $5 trillion in corporate cash reserves and strategic buyers outpacing private equity in mega-deal valuations exceeding $80 billion. Accelerated by rising activist hedge funds that have shifted boardroom defenses toward proactive capital reallocation, deal volume is surging across healthcare, TMT, and natural resources sectors while valuations approach historical peaks. Panelists predict a near-term resurgence in hostile bids and a geographic shift toward Europe, even as the mid-market continues to serve as the primary engine for total transaction count.
- Milken Institute59 min
Innovative Cities: Transforming the Urban Ecosystem
Ross Duvall, Andy Cohen, Claire Cockerton, Shirley Franklin, Ned Couric, Perry Wong, Rasmus Silkaitisenkovskiy, Eric Schmidt, David Plylar
This analysis examines how rising global urbanization rates are driving innovations in vertical architecture, sustainable transportation, and inclusive community models like Purpose Built Communities. Key developments include Gensler's mixed-use "Dragon's Tale" skyscraper in Shanghai, Toyota's infrastructure expansion for hydrogen vehicles, and public-private partnerships transforming distressed areas in the US and Hong Kong. While these advancements offer pathways for economic vibrancy and environmental resilience, experts warn that without equitable policy implementation, such rapid growth risks exacerbating social segregation and affordability crises.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
The Future of Work: How to Survive and Thrive Amid Creative Disruption
Jody Miller, Beth Steinberg, Alexander Santamon, Diana O'Brien, Peter Grauer, John Bischke
Industry leaders from Deloitte, Bloomberg, Intello, and BrightRole converge to address the impending shift where a majority of work will be performed by non-traditional employees amidst a massive boomers retirement and the rise of the gig economy. These executives outline evolving talent strategies, ranging from predictive analytics to identify flight risks and "access-over-ownership" models like GLG's peer-learning platform, while emphasizing the critical need to bridge knowledge gaps through mentorship and revised leadership development. The discussion further highlights how forward-thinking organizations are integrating diversity and sustainability into core commercial strategies to navigate legal complexities and secure long-term retention in an era defined by rapid skill obsolescence.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
The Art and Science of Capital Structure
Industry leaders from Crescent Capital, Leonard Green, and Canyon detail how post-2008 regulations have transformed US banks into public utilities, driving a $75 trillion expansion in shadow banking and alternative financing structures. Panelists highlight specific investment opportunities in capital structure arbitrage, OpCo/PropCo splits, and the European vacuum for operating finance companies to capitalize on market volatility. Ultimately, these firms advocate for disciplined balance sheet restructuring and private credit strategies while avoiding regulated banking entities to mitigate liability and regulatory risk.