Tag: ceo summit

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Hruby brings technical, business expertise to CEO Summit keynote

Dennis Hruby headshot
SIGA Chief Scientific Officer and CEO Summit Keynote Speaker Dennis Hruby.

Every day a host of great ideas swirl around college campuses.

While many become research papers, inventions or other innovative creations, there’s a major push now to also find some to become products, startups and companies that can help the economy and create jobs.

Oregon State recently launched its own initiative, the OSU Advantage, which includes a Venture Accelerator to help find OSU research and technologies that are possible candidates for commercialization.

That process of finding ways to partner universities and industry is the focus of the upcoming Oregon CEO Summit, May 7 at the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront.

Giving the keynote will be SIGA Chief Scientific Officer Dennis Hruby, who brings an impressive breadth of experience to the discussion.

Hruby received his Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of Colorado Medical Center and holds an undergraduate degree in Microbiology from Oregon State University.

A specialist in poxviruses, virology and anti-infective research, Hruby spent more than 25 years as a faculty member and other positions with Oregon State University. He’s worked with SIGA since 1996 in a variety of roles including senior scientific advisor, Vice President of Research and now as CSO.

SIGA works to create products for the prevention and treatment of serious infectious diseases, including those that may be used as biological weapons.

With its corporate headquarters in New York, SIGA decided to keep its research and development labs in Corvallis in part because of the access to the facilities, technology and expertise at Oregon State.

That has helped SIGA develop innovative solutions and grow profits, which benefits the company, the university and Oregon’s economy.

Hruby will discuss the genesis of one recent project, and how the partnership between SIGA and Oregon State helped the company produce an effective treatment for a deadly disease.

The Summit will also feature a panel discussion with Oregon leaders in technology and education on the importance of industry partnerships with universities. Panelists include:

Mary Coucher, vice president of IP engineering, operations and geography licensing for IBM Corporation, will serve as the moderator for the discussion.

For more information and to register, go to http://business.oregonstate.edu/CEOSummit

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What to watch for at the CEO Summit

Next week some of the top real estate executives in Oregon will gather to discuss the future of the industry at the Oregon State University College of Business CEO Summit at the Governor Hotel in Portland.

The May 3 Summit features a panel discussion with David Andersen, president of Anderesen Construction Company; Mark Edlen, CEO of Gerding Edlen,; Derrick McGavic, founder and principal of Newport Capital Partners; and John Stirek, president of Western Operations for Trammel Crow.

Diane Detering-Paddison, chief strategy officer of Cassidy Turley, will serve as moderator while Tom Toomey, president and CEO of UDR, Inc., has the keynote on how real estate professionals can do more with less.

The panel will look at the many changes the real estate industry has been faced with over the past decade as consumers and businesses are faced with growing uncertainty and fewer resources, and what must happen to encourage growth in the next decade as the technologically savvy and more urban centered Generation Y continues to dominate the workforce.

Each speaker brings different expertise and experience to the discussion, including the construction industry, multi-family housing, commercial real estate and sustainability practices.

“I view real estate as one of many economic drivers,” Edlen said. “It not only creates the obvious construction jobs but more importantly real estate development creates the spaces within which people can, live work and play.”

While integrally connected with the economy, real estate decisions also inform the desirability of a company and the image it wishes to project, Edlen said.

“Is it space that will give them a hiring advantage when recruiting Gen Y, which is the largest bulge yet to push through the country, or will it conversely cause them to view that company as a less than desirable place to work?” Edlen said. “Where any particular building is located is critical as we see people looking to work and live in livable, sustainable, walkable and culturally rich communities rather than in isolated auto dependent areas.”

The CEO Summit begins at 7:30 a.m. at the Governor Hotel in Portland. Cost is $50, which includes breakfast. Click here more information or to register.