Ex-Felon Shares MCI White-Collar Crime Story

Walt Pavlo shared his very personal story of white-collar crime during the Ethics Track of TMA's 2010 Annual Convention in Orlando on Friday morning.

Walt provided a candid look into the motivations, actions and consequences of the crimes he committed while working as a senior manager at MCI Telecommunications. His unique perspective provided great insight into the process of how white-collar crimes are committed.

At MCI, Walt was responsible for the billing and collection of nearly $1 billion in monthly revenue for MCI’s carrier finance division. Along with another member of his staff and a business associate outside of MCI, Walt began to perpetuate a fraud involving a few of MCI’s customers. When the scheme was completed, there had been seven customers of MCI defrauded over a six-month period resulting in approximately $5 million in payments to the Cayman Islands.

Bush Offers Turnaround Suggestions During Keynote Address

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush offered three suggestions for the turnaround of the U.S. during the opening session of the TMA Annual Convention this morning.

1.) Roll back the power of the government.

2.) Embrace American exceptionalism on the domestic front.

3.) Leadership matters in effecting transformation.

What are your thoughts? Please share your opinion by using the comments feature of this blog.

Golf and Tennis Tournaments Provide Unique Networking Experiences

(From L-R: Pat Lagrange, Mark Beceu,
Bob Eckback, Tom Kim)

We had a great golf tournament today - weather was excellent, but for a little wind. We had a full house and a robust competition. First place went to the team of Jeffrey Cohen, Bill Forrest, Mark Reynolds and Jim Whitney, with a score of 69. Second place went to Henry Baer, Amy Lynne Long and Mike Von Lehman with a score of 70 (they won the tie breaker since there were two teams at 70). Third place went to David Baker, Don Giuseppi, Tom Pabst and Robert Schwartz, also with a score of 70.

There were two skills competitions - one each for women and men. The closest to the pin was won by Maria Chang and Greg Hengehold. Long drive was won by Maria Chang and Dan Kerrigan.

Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to all who participated.

A special mention and thanks to our golf tournament sponsor, Hilco. Thanks also go to Cole Taylor Business Capital and Myron Bowling Auctioneers for sponsoring our refreshment cart. Lastly, thank you to O'Keefe & Associates and Anderson Bauman Tourtellot Vos & Company for their hole sponsorships.

TMA also held a tennis tournament at the JW Marriott Grande Lakes. Congratulations to the first place winners, Peter Seckel and Richard Hauer, and the second place winners, Morten Kucey and Paul Kelly.

For both the golf and tennis tournament participants, this was a great way to start the 2010 convention experience and to spend quality time together. We look forward to a great 2010 TMA Annual Convention.

Congratulations to the 2011 Officers!

Congratulations to the 2011 TMA officers, who were approved during yesterday's TMA Board of Directors meeting at the Annual Convention in Orlando:

Chairperson
Lisa M. Poulin, CTP
Partner, CRG Partners Group LLC
Bethesda, MD

President
Mark S. Indelicato
Managing Partner, Hahn & Hessen LLP
New York, NY

Immediate Past Chairperson
Patrick C. Lagrange
Managing Director, Carl Marks Advisory Group LLC
New York, NY

Vice President - Chapter Relations
J. Scott Victor
Managing Director, SSG Capital Advisors LLC
West Conshohocken, PA

Vice President - Education
Noel Boeke
Attorney, Holland & Knight LLP
Tampa, FL

Vice President - Communications
Cathy L. Reece
Attorney, Fennemore Craig
Phoenix, AZ

Vice President - Finance
Thomas M. Kim, CTP
Senior Managing Director, r²advisors, llc
Denver, CO

Vice President – International Relations
Alan Tilley
Principal, BM&T LLP
London, GBR

Vice President - Membership
David F. Cohen
Partner, Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Vice President - Conferences
Brad Coulter, CTP
Director, O’Keefe & Associates Consulting
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

Vice President - Certification
To be Nominated by the
Certification Oversight Committee

Corporate Secretary
Ronald R. Sussman
Partner, Cooley LLP
New York, NY

TMA Governance Behind the Scenes

The Opening Reception at TMA's Annual Convention is one of our industry's most important networking events of the year. Nearly all attendees make sure that they are at the convention site in time to attend the reception before heading out to one of private dinners that are usually held that evening.

What many of our members don't focus on when making their plans is the full day of TMA governance meetings that precede the start of the convention. At these meetings, our Board of Directors, Executive Committee, Chapter Presidents' Council, Certification Oversight Committee and a number of other task forces and committee meet to conduct the business of our association. The meetings usually are the culmination of months of behind the scenes work by TMA's dedicated volunteer leaders and staff. Conferences and webinars are planned, chapter leaders share best practice ideas, and the overall direction of the association for the upcoming year is set.

At the Board of Directors meeting on Tuesday, our Board will elect TMA's new officers from a slate recommended by our association's Nominations Committee, which began work back in April.

All Board of Directors meetings are open to the entire membership. If you want to know more about the direction of our association, please come... and of course, please don't hesitate to raise your hand to join one of our committees. Committee membership is one of the best ways to get more value from your TMA experience. You will have a chance to work closely with other professionals and get to know them while at the same time helping advance the mission of TMA.

So consider this your open invitation to join us at the Board meeting and to get involved in your association.

See you in Orlando.