Miami Student

Issue date: 4/4/08 Section: Campus

Scott David, president of retirement services for Fidelity Employer Services Company, speaks on his experiences and warns students about getting too deeply in debt. Fidelity hopes to increase recruitment on Miami's campus.

Though the national economy might not be as strong as it once was, it is still possible to succeed, according to Scott David, president of retirement services for Fidelity Employer Services Company.

David, an alumnus from Miami University's class of 1988, spoke Tuesday afternoon at Hall Auditorium as a guest speaker in the Farmer School of Business's Executive Speaker Series.

He focused on his experiences in the financial services industry and advised students on how to be successful in their professional and financial lives.

"Many of you might be sitting there thinking, 'I'm just starting my career, how can I be viewed as a leader?' … Your generation, Generation Y, will be the largest portion of the United States workforce in 10 years," David said. "You will be called upon very quickly, faster than any generation before, to provide leadership in your chosen course."

David spoke about Fidelity's "profile" for successful leadership, advising students to be well-rounded in character, expertise and how they perform in their fields.

He said his personal principles include maintaining open dialogues within one's business, being aware of how business is done in its entirety (beyond his own involvement), remaining technically competent and keeping a "brutal focus."

To demonstrate what he meant by such a focus, he related how early in his career he became the top account manager in his organization by meeting all 1,000 of his clients face-to-face.

David also cautioned students that in order to be truly successful, they must learn to manage their money and save it, as opposed to spending until they are deeply in debt. He reported 46.2 percent of all American families carry credit debt, with many of them unable to quickly pay it off.

"Your (financial) future is fundamentally different than your parents or my parents," he said. "Clearly we are a country in crisis as it relates to savings."

So that they can have enough money with which to retire, David said, it is beneficial for students to begin saving money early, as it will accumulate interest over time.

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