FOUNDATION NEWS By Chelsea Neil D Foundation Looks Forward to 2017 With New Research and a New Board EDICATED to inspiring thoughtful innovation and contributing to the betterment of the equip-2016-2017 ment leasing and fi nance industry, the Foundation is fi nishing another strong year. Over the course of 2016, the Foundation released 19 new industry publications including the much anticipated U.S. Equipment Finance Market Study. Th e 20th publication will be the 2017 Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook, released in December. Our current and future projects are possible due to the wonderful fi nancial support from our community of con-tributors and the incredible eff orts of our development team. We are grate-ful for the generous support, with dona-tions totaling over $650,000 to support the development of our research and re-sources. And, our dedicated volunteers who make it all happen are some of the brightest minds in the business. The 2016 fundraising campaign comes with a responsibility to deploy those funds for the betterment of the industry. Each year the Foundation estab-lishes its research agenda based on ideas generated through our Research Committee. Industry professionals who make up this team work to assess criti-cal topics to meet the needs of our dy-namic audience. Th e resulting research is used by our internal and external au-diences for strategic business planning, marketing, operational improvements, adoption of new technologies and much more! Our recent studies on Managed Solutions, Lender Finance and Applied Economics are some of the most down-loaded reports in our history. We ap-preciate your valuable input to partici-pate in our surveys and welcome your ideas for new topics to explore. Th e Board of Trustees met in No-vember in Naples, Fla., to elect 2017 offi cers, approve the 2017 budget and U.S. Equi pment Fina Market St nce udy: set the programming plans. Guided by strong leadership, expertise and dedication, the Foundation strives to continue to be Your Eye on the Future. We are pleased to announce the list of 2017 Trustees: William Verhelle , Harvard Partners, LLC ( Chairman ) Richard Gumbrecht ( Immediate Past Chairman ) Scott Th acker , Ivory Consulting Corporation ( Vice Chairman ) Richard Doherty , PNC Equipment Finance, LLC ( Treasurer ) Ralph Petta , ELFA ( President ) Paul Stilp , ELFA ( Secretary ) Kelli Nienaber , Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation ( Executive Director ) Vince Belcastro , Santander Bank * Jeff Berg , DLL Steven Byrnes , Capgemini Financial Services USA, Inc. Jeff ry Elliott , Huntington Asset Finance * Katie Emmel , International Decision Systems * Eric Hanson , Macquarie Capital Randy Haug , LeaseTeam, Inc. James Johnson , Ph.D, Northern Illinois University Bonnie Michael , U.S. Volvo Financial Services Gordon Scott , CDK Global, LLC * New Trustees Guest Lecture Program Check out the Guest Lecture Program now located on the Foundation’s website. With a fresh look, the presentation deck is designed to help increase awareness of equipment leasing and fi nance and to attract new talent to the industry. Volunteers are encouraged to connect with their local universities and colleges to present the Guest Lecture Program. For more information visit www.leasefoundation.org. For more information about the Foundation, please visit our website www.LeaseFoundation.org . ■ The Foundation booth at the ELFA Annual Convention attracted industry leaders, who stopped by to pick up the latest studies and chat with Trustees. Chelsea Neil is Program Assistant for the Foundation. 52 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 EQUIPMENT LEASING & FINANCE MAGAZINE