Chelsea Neil 2016-11-15 12:30:32
Foundation Looks Forward to 2017 With New Research and a New Board
DEDICATED to inspiring thoughtful innovation and contributing to the betterment of the equipment leasing and finance industry, the Foundation is finishing 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. The 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 financial support from our community of contributors and the incredible efforts of our development team. We are grateful for the generous support, with donations totaling over $650,000 to support the development of our research and resources. 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 establishes its research agenda based on ideas generated through our Research Committee. Industry professionals who make up this team work to assess critical topics to meet the needs of our dynamic audience. The resulting research is used by our internal and external audiences 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 downloaded reports in our history. We appreciate your valuable input to participate in our surveys and welcome your ideas for new topics to explore.
The Foundation booth at the ELFA Annual Convention attracted industry leaders, who stopped by to pick up the latest studies and chat with Trustees.
The Board of Trustees met in November in Naples, Fla., to elect 2017 officers, approve the 2017 budget and 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 Thacker, 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.
Jeffry 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
For more information about the Foundation, please visit our website www.LeaseFoundation.org.
Chelsea Neil is Program Assistant for the Foundation.
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 finance 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.
Industry Confidence Increases to Six-Month High in October
ACCORDING TO the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s Monthly Confidence Index, confidence in the equipment finance market was 56.0 in October, an increase from the September index of 53.8 and the highest level since April, despite continued concerns about the November elections.
When asked about the outlook for the future, MCI-EFI survey respondent Frank Campagna, Commercial Equipment Finance Business Line Manager, M&T Bank Corporation, said, “We continue to see strong demand from our core commercial and industrial business throughout all regions of our footprint and via all finance product sets and asset classes. Our business optimism is tempered somewhat by the continued downward price pressure by some of our competitors, but that does not discount the fact that our customers are in the market and acquiring equipment. Some sectors related to infrastructure, albeit softer than in years past—especially those related to energy—continue to provide equipment financing opportunity and are poised for some significant growth in 2017.”
Foundation Monthly Confidence Index
Key Findings:
Access the latest Monthly Confidence Index at www.leasefoundation.org/research/mci.
Survey Comments from Industry Executive Leadership:
“ Demand seems constant as businesses begin to wrap up their equipment acquisition plans for 2016. The elephant in the room is the elections. I believe the issues that are not being addressed may have significant ramifications for small to mid-size businesses in 2017. It is too early to tell, but the political climate is not adding to anyone’s confidence levels.”
Valerie Hayes Jester, President,
Brandywine Capital Associates
“ Despite political and economic uncertainty, pockets of robust growth exist in the U.S. equipment finance market.”
Alan Sikora, CEO, First American Equipment Finance, a City National Bank Company
“ The uncertain political environment seems to be causing some of the smaller medium-size businesses to delay equipment purchases. Hopefully, this will change after the elections.”
William H. Besgen, Senior Advisor, Vice Chairman
Emeritus, Hitachi Capital America Corp.
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