The Risk Institute’s 2018 Annual Conference brought together C-suite executives and senior risk professionals from around the globe to explore topics at the forefront of a number of industries, including managing talent pipelines and workforce development in the face of massive technological change and economic upheaval.

The event featured keynotes from Jeff Eggers, executive director of the McChrystal Group, and Eddie George, Ohio State football legend. For attendees, the conference provided an opportunity for risk professionals to continue a dialogue about risk management successes, challenges and best practices related to the evolution of risk.

“Our Annual Conference is an incredible opportunity for professionals and thought leaders to engage in a comprehensive examination of an x-factor that is prevalent in every industry, line of business or academic discipline: risk,” said Phil Renaud, executive director of The Risk Institute. “We were proud to welcome leaders from companies from around the world to join and advance the conversation around risk management.”

The conference provided attendees access to 15 talented speakers, each of whom shared a unique perspective on workforce talent, changing technology and economic upheaval. Marcie Merriman, chief culture hacker at EY, spoke about the distinctions between millennials and Gen Z, and how the latter segment is able to quickly evaluate and prioritize relevance and genuineness.

Professor Joseph Fuller, from Harvard University’s Future of Work Initiative, shared insights into how Baby Boomers are managing the rapidly changing skills required to do their current jobs, or ones from which they’ve recently retired.

George (BSLA ’01) returned to his alma mater to share his journey from professional football, to entrepreneurship, to academia, to wealth management and to the performing arts. Throughout it all, he said, a constant has been his ability to be comfortable feeling uncomfortable.

George’s insights underscored the overall message of the annual event: change — be it a career change, shifting demographics or in the way risk is understood and leveraged — is the only constant in today’s world.