Keynote Speaker

Jonathan Woetzel, Director, McKinsey Global Institute and Senior Partner, McKinsey & Co.
 
 
According to Jonathan Woetzel of the McKinsey Global Institute and our Economic Forecast’s Keynote Speaker, our economy is undergoing a dramatic transition due to the confluence of four fundamental disruptive forces:

• The Age of Urbanization
• Accelerating Technological Change
• Responding to The Challenges of an Aging World
• Greater Global Connections

During the Industrial Revolution, society only had to deal with only one new force. Today, we must deal with four disruptive forces, any of which would be enough to disrupt the global economy by itself.
Hear from Jonathan about how these unprecedented trends will disrupt established institutions and impact our global, national and regional economy. Our panel of experts will also explore how these disruptive forces have contributed to our region’s shrinking middle class, and what we can do as civic, business and educational leaders to change the current paradigm.

Jonathan Woetzel Bio:

Based in China since 1985, Dr. Jonathan Woetzel has been instrumental in building McKinsey & Company’s China office. In addition to his work helping Chinese and other Asian businesses prepare for global growth, Jonathan is a director of the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), McKinsey’s business and economics research arm. He also leads McKinsey’s Cities Special Initiative and is responsible for convening McKinsey’s work with city, regional, and national authorities in more than 40 geographies around the world. He is a co-chair of the non-profit think tank, the Urban China Initiative—a joint venture of Columbia University, Tsinghua University, and McKinsey—that aims to develop and implement solutions to China’s urbanization challenges.
Jonathan has led numerous research efforts on global economic trends, including growth and productivity, urbanization, affordable housing, energy and sustainability, e-commerce, and the economic impact of the Internet, as well as on productivity growth and economic development in China and Asia.

Featured Speakers

Dr. Manuel Pastor, Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity, University of Southern California 
Pastor currently directs the Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) at USC and USC’s Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII). He holds an economics Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and is the inaugural holder of the Turpanjian Chair in Civil Society and Social Change at USC.
Dr. Pastor’s research has generally focused on issues of the economic, environmental and social conditions facing low-income urban communities – and the social movements seeking to change those realities. His recent book Equity, Growth, and Community: What the Nation Can Learn from America’s Metro Areas, co-authored with Chris Benner (UC Press 2015), argues how inequality stunts economic growth and how bringing together equity and growth requires concerted local action. Dr. Pastor speaks frequently on issues of demographic change, economic inequality, and community empowerment and has contributed opinion pieces to such outlets as the Los Angeles Times, the San Jose Mercury News, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Sacramento Bee, the Huffington Post, and many others. He served as a member of the Commission on Regions appointed by California’s Speaker of the State Assembly.
 
Dr. Steven Banks, Ph.D., Chief Economist, LAEDC
A longtime resident of Southern California, Dr. Banks specializes in spatial analysis, demographics, and predictive and policy analyses. He has experience developing proprietary models to enhance accuracy of economic, sector and industry forecasts. He has served in senior leadership roles providing economic forecasting and analysis at Warner Bros, Trust Company of the West, General Motors, and Caterpillar.
For the past ten years Dr. Banks has served as Director of Forecasting and Analytics at Integral Economics, providing CEOs, CFOs and Boards of Directors at various clients with analysis of industry trends and economic and business risks. Dr. Banks has also served on the faculties of Pepperdine, Texas A&M, and Illinois State universities. He will unveil his first economic outlook for Greater LA County at LAEDC’s annual Economic Forecast.

Panelists

Jim Mayer, President & CEO, California Forward
Panel Discussion Focus: Workforce Development to Grow our Middle Class – Human Development and Job Creation

 For over 10 years, Jim Mayer has served as the President and CEO of CAFWD, an organization committed to inspire better decision-making by government at all levels. His dedication to public service and the public interest has long been the focus of his career. Mayer has worked tirelessly towards important objectives like reducing crime and violence as well as improving education and employment in California. He has enjoyed a career as an accomplished journalist with conscious considerations for civic prosperity and environmental well-being.
Under Mayer’s leadership, California Forward has played a key role in helping California modernize. The main mission set for CAFWD is to empower voters, to encourage bipartisan solutions and to restore public trusts in the institutions. He has shepherded these efforts and continues to lead sustainable and equitable prosperity for all in California.
 
Michael Innis-Thompson, Managing Director, Head of Community Lending & Industry Relations, Union Bank
Panel Discussion Focus: Addressing the Housing Affordability Needs of the Middle Class in Los Angeles County
Michael is Managing Director–Head of Community Lending & Industry Relations with Union Bank. He is responsible for directing and managing the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and Multi-Cultural lending strategy and leading engagement of strategic relationships with key industry organizations. In 2010, he was named Chief Compliance Officer for the Bank’s Consumer Lending group. Prior to joining Union Bank, Michael spent four years with Bank of America in leadership roles as Business Development Executive and Home Loans and Fair Lending Executive; six years with Freddie Mac where he served as Senior Director, Expanding Markets; Director Affordable Lending Sales; and Product Marketing Director. His earlier experience includes Vice President, Fair Lending Risk Management at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and Vice President, Regulatory Compliance for Mellon Mortgage Company.
 
Mary Lee, Deputy Director, PolicyLink
How can the Los Angeles County Community Affect Change with Public Policy
Mary Lee helps guide the PolicyLink Center for Health Equity and Place, and provides technical assistance and training to public and private agencies collaborating to build healthy communities. A graduate of Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, Mary is a practicing attorney with more than 25 years of experience using civil rights, land use, and economic development strategies to revitalize neighborhoods and enhance public participation in the policy arena. At PolicyLink she has co-authored reports on access to healthy food, the built environment, and the impact of place and race on health. She also teaches courses on law, public policy, and civil rights. Mary stays true to her motto “think globally, act locally” by remaining active in local politics in Los Angeles.

Program will include

Frank Mottek, KNX 1070 Newsradio
Presenting as master of ceremonies at Economic Forecast, Frank Mottek is the voice of business news in Los Angeles. He is the Senior Money Anchor on CBS all-news station KNX 1070 Newsradio anchoring the morning drive business updates. He also hosts Mottek On Money at 11am Saturdays and 8pm Sundays on KNX. Mottek On Money is also podcast at Play.it. Frank is an award winning broadcaster with more than 30 years experience in radio and television news including KCAL-9, CBS-2 and KTLA Channel 5 in Los Angeles as well as The Nightly Business Report on PBS.
Thanks to KNX 1070 Newsradio!