Keynote Speaker Presentation
Woodward on Washington: An Economic, Policy and Political Outlook
January 23 | 9:00 a.m.
Joan Woodward, Executive Vice President of Public Policy at Travelers, will share her economic, public policy and political outlook in this data-driven analytical presentation. She will also discuss the most pressing challenges facing Congress and the Biden Administration in 2024. What do higher interest rates, coupled with elevated inflation mean for your business and can the U.S. avoid a recession? Will legislation recently passed by Congress, such as the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS Act, bring relief to consumers and businesses? Joan will explore those issues, as well as what the upcoming election might mean for insurance, tax policy, and the economy. Also, as President of the Travelers Institute, Joan will give a preview of the Institute’s 2024 initiatives.
Joan K. Woodward, Executive Vice President, Public Policy, The Travelers Companies, Inc.
Joan Woodward is Executive Vice President of Public Policy for Travelers and President of The Travelers Institute. She is a member of the company’s Management Committee, Operating Committee, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Committee, and also serves on The Diversity Council, and the Travelers Foundation Board.
Woodward joined Travelers in 2008 from Goldman Sachs to establish The Travelers Institute as the company’s thought leadership and public policy platform.
Prior to her current role, Woodward worked at Goldman, Sachs & Co. for ten years, where she was the founding Executive Director of the company’s Global Markets Institute, the firm’s international public policy and institutional investor educational platform. She also served as Founding Director of Washington Equity and Bond Research for Goldman Sachs’ Global Investment Research where Institutional Investor magazine recognized her as a top Washington analyst for investors.
Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Woodward worked on Capitol Hill for 12 years, as Deputy Chief of Staff for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee working for Chairman Bill Roth, where she was instrumental in creating the Roth IRA. She also was the Chief Economist for the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee and the U.S. House Budget Committee under Chairman John Kasich.
She serves on the Board of Directors of the United States Chamber of Commerce Foundation, is Vice Chairman of the Board of the RAND Institute for Civil Justice, and a member of the President’s National Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Export Council. Reactions Magazine named her to the Top 50 Women in Insurance, and in 2016, she was named to the Hot 100 in Insurance list by Insurance Business America Magazine. In 2017, she received the 2017 Power Women’s Leadership Award by NY Moves magazine.
Woodward holds bachelor’s degrees in economics and political science and a master’s degree from The American University. She also studied at the University of London.