Battle of the Economic Experts III The Economy: Are We There Yet? And, Where is There?

Following our two previous battles, “The Age of the Great Uncertainty” and “The Economy: Where are we? Where are we headed?” it is time to dive back and ask our experts “Are we there yet?” and, maybe, more importantly, “Where is there?” The global economic outlook remains uncertain despite modest fits and starts of progress. High unemployment and slow growth continue to dog the economy. Dissatisfaction with government response in the U.S. and across the globe continues to grow. What does it all mean as we look towards 2012 and beyond? Please join us for a lively debate on the state of the U.S. economy. Panelists Jack Ablin of Harris Private Bank, Gail MarksJarvis of the Chicago Tribune, Giulio Martini of Currency Strategies and Kobus van der Zel from Global Turnarounds Inc. will provide their insights on where exactly we are and where we might be headed. This open discussion will be moderated by Tom Goldblatt of Monomoy Capital Partners and Joe Gromacki of Jenner & Block.

Thursday, December 8, 2011 7:30 am Networking Breakfast

8:15 am to 9:30 am Panel Discussion Jenner & Block Conference Center 353 N. Clark St., 45th floor, Chicago, IL

Panelists:

Jack Ablin, Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Harris Private Bank Responsible for establishing investment policy and strategy within the Personal Investment Management Group of Harris Private Bank, Jack also chairs the Harris Private Bank Asset Allocation Committee, which determines the strategy for investment portfolios for Harris Private Bank. He is the author of the Wall Street Journal’s 2009 best-seller list, “Reading Minds and Markets: Minimizing Risk and Maximizing Returns in a Volatile Global Marketplace.” Jack is a frequent contributor to CNBC, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal and Barron’s and was named one of the top 100 Wealth Advisors in North America, by CityWealth Magazine in 2006 and 2010.

Gail MarksJarvis, Financial Columnist, Chicago Tribune One of the nation’s most respected personal finance columnists, Gail’s Chicago Tribune columns reach millions of readers in leading metropolitan newspapers throughout the U.S. She has been named “Best Financial Columnist” by Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, and has received 17 other journalism awards for her work. She is the author of the best-selling book: Saving for Retirement without Living Like a Pauper or Winning the Lottery. Gail is a regular commentator for PBS’s Nightly Business Report, WGN-TV and CLTV, and has appeared on CNBC, the CBS Early Show, Fox Business and National Public Radio.

Giulio Martini, Chief Investment Officer, Currency Strategies Giulio was appointed to head a newly created currency team focused exclusively on currency alpha and overlay strategies in September 2005. Previously, he was head of the currency and quantitative strategies team within the global value equities unit. Giulio was named chief international economist with responsibility for currency strategies and senior portfolio manager on the international and global value equities team in 1992. He was a member of the International, Global and Emerging Investment Policy Groups from their inceptions until 2009. From 1985 to 1992, Giulio served as a senior economist concentrating on US research. Prior to joining the firm in 1985, he conducted economic research at the Institute for Employment Policy at Boston University and also taught there for three years. Giulio earned a BA from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and an MA in political economy from Boston University. He also completed all course and examination requirements for the PhD program in economics at Boston University. Giulio has been a member of the Foreign Exchange Committee—Asset Manager Subcommittee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York since 2007.

Kobus van der Zel, Founder & CEO at Global Turnarounds Inc Kobus van der Zel has over 20 years manufacturing management experience including business improvement and turnaround engagements where 100% of the fees were tied to achieving monthly bottom line results. He graduated from the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa in 1989 with a mechanical engineering degree and in 1995 with an MBA. He was certified by the Turnaround Management Association as a Certified Turnaround Professional (CTP) in 2005. Kobus is the author of The Forces of Progress.

Moderators: Tom Goldblatt, Monomoy Capital Partners Tom Goldblatt sources distressed middle market manufacturing and distribution companies for acquisition by Monomoy Capital Partners. Tom has a law degree, M.B.A, C.P.A, CTP-D (certified turnaround professional) and experience as a CEO, turnaround consultant and distressed investor.

Joseph P. Gromacki, Partner, Jenner & Block The Chair of Jenner & Block’s Corporate Department and Co-Chair of the Firm’s Securities Practice, Joe has deftly structured and negotiated high-value and complex deals for clients such as General Motors, General Dynamics, Sam Zell/Equity Group Investments, J.P. Morgan Securities and the Chicago Board of Trade. He will use his considerable skills to help shape a meaningful discussion on the direction of the economy.

Please RSVP by clicking below by Monday, December 5

Space is limited.

For questions or more information, please call Diana Townsend at 312-923-7073 or email at [email protected]

The reception is underwritten by Jenner & Block.