Media Finance Focus 2018, Crystal City, VA, May 21, 2018 - Nicole Temple, a Senior Accountant at Turner, and , are this year’s recipients for the Steve 2018 Steve McIntosh Memorial Scholarship, which is awarded by MFM, the Media Financial Management Association, and its BCCA subsidiary, the media industry’s credit association. The scholarship covers the registration and hotel expenses associated with attending Media Finance Focus 2018, the association’s 58 annual conference, which is being held this week at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, VA.
An active member of both MFM and BCCA and a forward-thinking member of the media industry, Steve McIntosh was Vice President & General Manager of Belo Advertising’s Customer Services unit until his sudden and unexpected death in April of 2011. MFM’s Board of Directors established the scholarship to honor McIntosh’s many contributions to the industry and to help inspire rising stars in the media industry's financial departments by providing them the opportunity to attend the industry’s premiere educational event for financial management professionals.
To be eligible for the scholarship, candidates must be employed by a media provider (defined as any company eligible for MFM industry membership), have fewer than five years’ industry experience and be under 35 years of age.
“Nicole and Lauren stood out from among this year’s applicants as two outstanding and deserving individuals who are also very likely to have the kind of impact on their companies and our industry as the scholarship’s honoree, Steve McIntosh; we were delighted to support them both by providing two scholarships for the first time in the award’s seven-year history,” said Mary M. Collins, President and CEO of MFM and BCCA.
Nicole Temple, a Senior Accountant at Turner, was promoted to that position in August 2015 following serving as a Level II Staff Accountant the previous year. She joined the company in 2013 as a Level 1 Staff Accountant after holding a similar post at an international apparel design, sourcing and marketing company. Temple attended Georgia State University, where she earned a BBA Degree in Accounting and a Master of Professional Accountancy Degree.
Lauren Woodward has been a Staff accountant at Meredith since 2015, where she is a member of the media organization’s Atlanta HUB finance team. She previously worked as an Accounts Payable Specialist at an Atlanta-based data management firm. A double major student at Georgetown University, Woodward earned a B.S. Degree in Communications and Media Studies and a B.S. Degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Finance. She is currently engaged in post graduate studies and working toward her CPA at Kennesaw State University.
The three-day education conference opened today with keynote presentations by Mitch Lowe, CEO of MoviePass, and Frederick J. Ryan Jr., Publisher/CEO of The Washington Post, who received MFM’s Avatar Award, the Association’s highest honor.
Additional keynotes for the three-day conference include a panel comprised of executives representing the NAB, NCTA, News Media Alliance and entertainment software trade associations; a keynote address by Nia-Malika Henderson, Senior Political Reporter for CNN concerning the Trump Presidency and the 2018 mid-term elections; and a presentation on the future of advertising by Todd Beilis a Principal with Deloitte Consulting.
All told, the conference will feature presentations from over 150 industry experts who will provide timely information on topics relevant to media industry finance professionals, including accounting, economic projections, valuations, M&A, taxes, legal, regulatory, and technological developments. New in 2018 is a track of sessions dedicated to finance professionals working with video games and other entertainment software. Full tracks are also slated to address key topics of interest for the industry’s credit and collections, internal audit and tax professionals. Additional information about Media Finance Focus 2018 may be found on the conference website.
About MFM and BCCA:
Media Financial Management Association (MFM) is the premiere resource for financial professionals for media industry education, networking, and information sharing throughout the U.S. and Canada. More information about MFM is available on its Web site: http://www.mediafinance.org and via its updates on Linkedin, Facebook and Twitter. Its BCCA subsidiary serves as the media industry’s credit association. BCCA’s revenue management services encompass a variety of credit reports on national and local media advertisers and agencies, including Media Whys, a credit report for media businesses which offers a credit score based on industry-specific aging combined with trade data from Experian or D+B. More information about BCCA is available at http://www.bccacredit.com as well as its updates on Linkedin, Facebook and Twitter.
