• DAY 1: Wednesday April 3
• DAY 2: Thursday April 4
• DAY 3: Friday April 5

Matt Botein , Managing Director, Head of BlackRock Alternative Investors, BlackRock

Moderator
Jeff Goldfarb, Assistant Editor, Breaking Views 

William A. Ackman, CEO, Pershing Square Capital Management

Moderator
Robert Wolf, Founder & CEO, 32 Advisors

Will investors be putting more money with hedge fund managers in the coming year -- or less? What are they looking for in a manager these days? How important are fees and redemption rules? What kind of investors will be allocating to hedge funds? Are insurance companies ready to jump into hedge funds??

Moderator:
Irwin Speizer, Conference Manager, HedgeWorld

Panelists:
Diane Garnick, CEO, Clear Alternatives
Inna White, Founder & CIO, Althea Group
Tim Jackson, Partner, Gapstow Partners

It is one of the oldest and most widely practiced hedge fund strategies. But with so many managers crowding into long-short equity plays, is this still a viable way to generate alpha? What is the future of the long-short strategy?

Moderator:
Andrew Beer, CEO, Beachhead Capital

Panelists:
Dan Niles, CIO, AlphaOne Capital Partners
Robert Sanborn , Partner & Portfolio Manager, Sanborn Kilkollin Partners
Andrew Sandler, Director/Portfolio Manager, Sandler Capital Management

Have hedge funds made progress in creating governance structures with more institutional standards? How are they handling issues like independent directors and succession? Our panel will discuss some of the latest thinking on hedge fund governance and practices.

Moderator:
Michael Poisson, Managing Director, Sales & Marketing, Investor Analytics

Panelists:
Don Seymour, Founder & Managing Director, DMS Offshore Investment Services
Kurt Locher, CFO & Partner, One William Street Capital Management
William Woolverton, Senior Managing Director & General Counsel, Gottex Fund Management

Activism has played an increasingly important role in today’s markets, from the shorts against troubled companies to the concentrated long positions that some managers use to influence corporate decisions. What is the outlook for activist managers, and where do their future opportunities lie? Will there be more market battles like the recent shorting frenzy against Herbalife stock?

Moderator:
Carl Youngman, Chairman, Youngman & Charm

Panelists:
Andrew Dakos, Principal/Portfolio Manager, Bulldog Investors
Thomas Sandell, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Sandell Asset Management
Eric Rosenfeld, CEO, Crescendo Partners

Keynotes:
Jason Huemer, President, Visium Asset Management