Goizueta Investors

For my 13th birthday, my grandmother gave me ExxonMobil stock. I was not excited. Growing up in a house filled with toys and games (my father is in the family toy business), I was accustomed to receiving tangible gifts that supplied me with countless hours of entertainment with friends, not some piece of paper that went straight into an envelope to be mailed to who-knows-where. It was not until several years later that I learned to appreciate and understand just how powerful and lucrative this gift truly was.

Starting junior year in high school, I was fortunate to work for MSD Capital, L.P., Michael Dell’s private investment firm, in both investing and technology groups. MSD Capital exposed me to finance in a way that I could never have imagined when I opened my grandmother’s seemingly dull present. When I arrived at Emory, I was excited to learn more about the financial markets, as well as join a fraternity, play sports and take part in all the other great things that College has to offer. I became increasingly enveloped in the financial markets, surrounding myself with students who shared my interest. However, as a freshmen, finance classes at Goizueta were years away and I could not find any immediate opportunities to learn about the markets. I am not talking about the world of academia and the Efficient Market Hypothesis; rather, I am referring to what I saw flying across the 21" LCDs, gleaming back at every trader at MSD. I found three students who shared my vision and together we created Goizueta Investors.

Today, Goizueta Investors (GI) is Emory's premier Investment Club with over 462 participating members. GI is for students who are interested in learning about finance. Created with the beginner investor in mind, GI provides free educational content that is jargon-free and helps to bridge the gap between academia and the real world. Through meetings, specialty seminars, advanced workshops and an elite GI Roundtable, Goizueta Investors seeks to teach BBA and pre-BBA students about global financial markets in a fun and dynamic environment. We are also developing several new programs that we hope will continue to bridge the gap between the world, which I am leaving, and the one, which I am entering.

It is from this experience that I can now speak to my grandmother about Exxon not only as a consumer, but also as an investor.

I invite you to view our website for information on upcoming events at www.GoizuetaInvestors.com. If you are interested in sponsoring a GI event, please contact invest@learnlink.emory.edu. We would also be happy to hear any questions or comments from you.

Michael Becker, BBA08, President and Co-Founder of Goizueta Investors