Commerce Society’s 50th Annual Business Dinner featuring SMU’s Robert Kelly
Written by Simon Auffrey Arsenault
Picture taken by Simon Auffrey Arsenault
On March 21st at the Westin Nova Scotian, the Sobey School of Business Commerce Society welcomed hundreds of commerce students, faculty, sponsors, alumni, and most importantly, Robert P. Kelly to their 50th annual business dinner. It took place at a somewhat symbolic location, as the very first business dinner was hosted at the very same location back in the 1970s.
Guests began their arrival at the hotel around 5 pm, where they were welcomed to a beautiful venue that offered plenty of space for students, faculty, and alumni to mingle and create meaningful connections with each other. Perhaps the main attraction of the evening was this year’s guest speaker Robert P. Kelly, who graduated from Saint Mary’s in 1975 with his bachelor’s degree in commerce, and also obtained his Doctorate in Commerce in 1997.
When Co-Presidents of the commerce society Jay and Elijah gave the floor to Kelly, the audience was taken through his career, a career which involved relocation, new challenges, and meaningful insight. Robert’s career in the banking and finance industry ultimately began at Toronto Dominion Bank (commonly known as “TD”), where after having held several positions, he became one of the main managing figures, overseeing several branches and employees. He described this experience as one filled with fun, and highlighted the importance of working in a field that you love.
After having lived and worked in Toronto for a number of years, Kelly found himself working in North Carolina, as the Chief Financial Officer of Wachovia Bank. He held this position for about 5 years, until moving on to Mellon Financial Corporation as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). During his time at Mellon, the firm merged with the Bank of New York (BNY) to become BNY Mellon, at which he remained chairman and CEO for a number of years, including during the 2008 financial crisis.
Picture taken by Simon Auffrey Arsenault
This was perhaps one of the most interesting parts of his career, as he explained to the audience how he had to meet with high governing figures, including the president of the United States of America, to discuss financial matters. He described working during a very uncertain time, brought about by a financial crisis, as a captivating experience as he got to see first hand the effects of big events like the financial crisis had on the markets and on industries as well.
After spending several years in the United States, Robert and his wife moved to London where he took on the chairman role with the Santander Asset Management firm. This is a position he held for a few years until making his way back to his home country of Canada, to be assigned chairman of the Canadian Housing and Mortgage Corporation. In recent years, he has occupied the role of board member for S&P global, and has now settled in Florida.
As an audience member at the business dinner, I was able to experience firsthand the positive impact that Robert’s presentation had on the audience, composed of hundreds of commerce students from our University. What is perhaps most impressive and motivating to witness is the value of education and hard work, as Kelly , who is a proud SMU Alumnus, has shown. Many students took the opportunity to ask questions to the event’s guest speaker, who enjoys interacting with others and providing his knowledge to current students, alumni, and others. He was much appreciated by the audience, who found his insight incredibly valuable for a career in finance and accounting ( note: Kelly also earned his CPA designation and MBA following graduation from Saint Mary’s!).
To conclude his time on the stage, Robert had final remarks and advice for the audience. Perhaps most importantly, he highlighted the importance of having passion in his work. He followed hispassion and interests, eventually finding himself living and working in several countries, in a field he loves, and that is critical to society. He also demonstrated that changing locations for work brings on opportunities, by having worked locally in Canada, along with work terms in the United Kingdom, and United States.
By inviting alumni guest to speak to a crowd of students at the undergraduate, and graduate levels, is a great way to initiate motivation among them to pursue their passion, and to not let challenges that present themselves along the way stop them from pursuing their dreams and goals. It is also found to be a great way to create connections with other individuals at a personal and most importantly a professional level, which will only be beneficial in a students’ long term success and career.