During a time when ethics in business are in question and privacy is in jeopardy, DePaul University is hosting a one-day academic symposium, “Privacy, Ethics and Customer Relationship Management” on June 6.

DePaul’s Interactive and Direct Marketing Institute, part of the College of Commerce, and the Chicago Association of Direct Marketing Educational Foundation (CADMEF) are co-sponsoring the free symposium that is open to communication, journalism and marketing faculty from Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Iowa. It will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the DePaul Club, 11th Floor, DePaul Center, 1 E. Jackson Blvd.

“This gives us a chance to bring in specialists to talk about some important issues in business and allows academicians to bring back information to the classroom,” said Steven Kelly, director of the institute, which offers certificate programs to marketing professionals in direct, database, interactive and electronic marketing.

The Chicago Association of Direct Marketing, CADM, is an 1,800-member organization that has been in the city for more than 50 years. CADM started the educational foundation 20 years ago as a way to fund scholarships and to create programs to educate academics and undergraduates in the Midwest, explained Philip May, executive vice president of Cramer-Krasselt and chairman of CADMEF.

The privacy and ethics topic is one of the hottest areas of concern right now for business leaders, educators and consumers alike, noted Susan K. Jones, a CADMEF trustee and marketing professor at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Mich.

The Rev. John P. Minogue, C.M., DePaul’s president, will deliver the luncheon address, “Is Business Ethics An Oxymoron?” at noon in the DePaul Club.

Other speakers and their topics include:

· Charluata B. Pager, partner with Hall, Dickler, Kent, Goldstein & Wood, Chicago: “Hot Issues in Consumer Privacy.”

· Michelle Blechman, vice president with Grey Direct, Downers Grove, Ill.,: “How Credit Bureaus Acquire, Use and Sell Data.”

· Michael Stanfield, president of Intersections Inc., Chantilly, Va.,: “The Business of Credit and Consumer Privacy.”

· Sheila Colclasure, a business leader for privacy practices with the ACXIOM Corp., Little Rock, Ark.,: “Legislative Climate Regarding Privacy, Consumer Attitudes Regarding Protection of Customer Privacy.”

· Mitchell Lieber, president of Lieber & Associates, Chicago,: “Teleservices in the Newly Re-regulated Environment.”

· Oscar Marquis, counsel on corporate finance and technology practice with Hunton & Williams, Atlanta,: “In Summary – What the Future Holds.”

Editor’s Note: The symposium is not open to the public. However, media are invited to attend. If interested, please contact Steven Kelly at 312/362-8130.