Keynotes
Margaret Brennan
Bloomberg TV Host of In Business with Margaret BrennanMorning Keynote
Margaret Brennan is the anchor of "InBusiness with Margaret Brennan" (10 AM-12 PM ET), Bloomberg Television's weekday global business program that covers the world of business and investing as well as the top political, economic and consumer news impacting the global marketplace. Based in New York City, Brennan brings together interviews, analysis and perspective as the U.S. trading day gains momentum and European markets close.
Brennan's reporting at Bloomberg Television has brought her around the world for interviews with leading CEOs, investors and heads of state. In January 2010, she hosted a live broadcast from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where she interviewed Saudi Finance Minister Ibrahim bin Abdul Aziz al-Assaf and former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair. Brennan has also reported from the Gulf Coast, the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and was the only journalist to participate in and report on the Global Irish Economic Forum in September 2009.
Brennan joined Bloomberg Television in 2009 from CNBC, where she served as a general assignment reporter and contributed to MSNBC and NBC's "Today Show" and "Nightly News." She began her business news career in 2002 as a producer for financial news legend Louis Rukeyser.
Graduating with highest distinction from the University of Virginia with a bachelor's degree in foreign affairs and Middle East studies and a minor in Arabic language, Margaret Brennan was named an Emmerich-Wright Scholar for an outstanding thesis. As a Fulbright-Hays Scholar, she studied Arabic at Yarmouk University in Irbid, Jordan.
Margaret Brennan is a Whitehead Fellow with the Foreign Policy Association and serves on the Advisory Board of the Smurfit School of Business at the University College Dublin. She speaks Arabic.
Susan Smith Ellis
CEO, (RED)Afternoon Keynote
Susan Smith Ellis is the Chief Executive Officer of (RED), a global marketing company whose partnerships help combat the AIDS pandemic in Africa. Since joining (RED), Ms. Smith Ellis has expanded the company's reach and widened its web of partnerships. In addition, she has launched a number of new initiatives, including (RED)WIRE and (RED)NIGHTS - both of which focus on collaborations with renowned musical artists.
In addition to that, Ms. Smith Ellis helped produce the largest grossing contemporary art auction in recent history, which raised more than $42 million for (RED). As a result of all these efforts, (RED), in roughly three years, has contributed more than $156 million to the Global Fund. This amount exceeds the contributions made to the Global Fund by all but a few national governments.
Aside from her management duties, Ms. Smith Ellis continues to be a tireless spokesperson for (RED). Her efforts have gained her national recognition from media outlets and academic institutions. She was named #25 of the MOST CREATIVE PEOPLE IN BUSINESS 2010 by Fast Company Magazine. Ms. Smith Ellis served as Executive Producer along with Spike Jonze on the documentary The Lazarus Effect, recently aired on HBO.
Prior to joining (RED), Ms. Smith Ellis served as an Officer and Executive Vice President of the Omnicom Group of Companies (www.omnicomgroup.com), the world's largest advertising and marketing services corporation. She has extensive marketing and management experience and has lived and worked in London, Paris, Sydney and Hong Kong.
She serves on the board of Friends of The Global Fight Against Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria.