Centennial Speaker Series: Joseph Calandro Jr. on Jay Gould and the Union Pacific from the Panic of 1873-1880

Join us for the latest event in the Centennial Speaker Series, featuring Joseph Calandro Jr.

No one in the United States’ financial or business history is as misunderstood and underappreciated as Jay Gould. This presentation will assess Gould’s skills as a corporate executive following his distressed investment in, and subsequent control of, the Union Pacific Railroad (UP). The UP was in distress due to volatility emanating from the infamous financial panic of 1873. Gould executed his turnaround in an economy devoid of monetary stimulus, without a government bailout, and under pressure from the government to pay back the firm’s public loans. Gould employed many modern techniques in his turnaround that are relevant to 21st-century executives. His example also serves as an important historical reminder that successful executives do not require government bailouts.

Agenda
12 p.m.: Welcome Remarks: Donna Rapaccioli, dean of the Gabelli School of Business

12:05 p.m.: Speaker Introduction: David Cowen, president and CEO of the Museum of American
Finance

12:08 p.m.: Discussion: Joseph Calandro Jr.

12:45 p.m.: Audience Q&A

1 p.m.: Closing Remarks: David Cowen

About the Speaker
Calandro Jr. is a managing director of a global consulting firm and a fellow of the Gabelli Center for Global Security Analysis. He is the author of Applied Value Investing (2009) and a contributing editor to the journal Strategy & Leadership, as well as the author of Creating Strategic Value (Columbia Business School Publishing, 2020). In the book, Calandro builds from a historical analysis of traditional value investing concepts to their strategic applications. He surveys value investing’s past, present, and future, drawing on influential texts, from Graham and Dodd’s time-tested works to more recent studies to reveal potent managerial lessons. Offering expert insight into the use of value investing principles in new fields, Creating Strategic Value is an important book for corporate strategy and management practitioners at all levels, as well as for students and researchers.

This event is co-sponsored with the CFA Society New York, the Gabelli Center for Global Security Analysis, and the Museum of American Finance.