Industry leaders converge on New York.

LEADERS OF THE chemical industry business world were out in full force last month, when they came together for the 2008 Executive Summit at the Waldorf Astoria in New York.

Organised by the Society of Chemical Industry American International Group, the main topic of discussion was the business of chemistry. Keynote speaker Raj Gupta, chairman and chief executive at Rohm and Haas, spoke on the leadership skills that would be needed to take the industry forward into the next decade.

The event was highly successful, with 110 attendees, including top names such as Bruce Bursten from the American Chemical Society; Andrew Liveris, Dow Chemical Company; Nance Dicciani, Honeywell International; and J Brian Ferguson, Eastman Chemical Company.

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Other main guest speakers included Bob Rubin from Citigroup, Rick Wagoner from General Motors Corporation and Stephen Schwarzman from the Blackstone Group.

SCI Chief Executive Andrew Ladds, who also attended, said: 'It was an outstanding event with a great turnout. More importantly, it brought together the business leaders who will be leading the way and shaping the chemical industry into the foreseeable future, with all the challenges which that brings. This is a very crucial time: global issues need global solutions, but this cannot be achieved without the right leadership skills. This event showed that business leaders are willing to work together and share skills and knowledge to take the industry forward.'