London Corporate Visits

        Today we left our home in Cambridge and returned to London to gain some insight on the state of global commerce and finance from two of the largest multinational firms in the world.  Our first stop was the UK headquarters of Royal Dutch Shell, the world's second largest energy/oil company.  We were given a fairly thorough overview of the current oil market, as well as projections of how the world's demands for different types of fuel and energy sources will change in the near and medium terms.   The presentation was interesting and engaging, and our presenters were happy to continue chatting with us over lunch afterwards.

          After leaving the Shell Center, we took the tube to Canary Wharf, a bustling financial area, and home of the Barclays PLC, the world's 4th largest financial services provider.  There we were given a presentation by Carleton alum John Winter, head of European Investment Banking and Debt Capital Management, regarding the current state of the world's financial markets and institutions, particularly how they were recovering following the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the U.S. and it's spillover into the world economy.  He and a member of their University recruiting team also gave advice on how to prepare for, and how to get a job in the investment banking industry.

After the corporate visits, a small group celebrated Michelle's birthday with an Italian dinner and a visit to Queen's Theatre for a showing of Les Miserables.