Dive Brief:

• Saudi Aramco CFO Ziad T. Al-Murshed’s talk Thursday at the MIT Sloan CFO Summit in suburban Boston was interrupted by about 10 to 12 individuals who took the stage shouting things like “oil kills babies,” according to a description of the incident shared by Lieutenant Amanda Henrickson of the Newton, Massachusetts Police Department. 
• Al-Murshed was only a few minutes into the half hour talk that was billed as a fireside chat alongside a senior lecturer from MIT when the protesters interrupted him, Beth Kurth, the conference’s executive producer, told CFO Dive. The stage was ultimately cleared of the protesters but Al-Murshed did not return to resume the talk, she said. 
• “It is unfortunate that a small group of protesters chose to disrupt the event and prevent our final speaker from delivering his full remarks on a topic of interest to so many,” Kurth said in a statement. Kurth said that it is the first time that the event has drawn protesters in its 22-year history.

Dive Insight:

The incident came at the end of the conference that drew about 450 finance leaders who lunched on mini lobster rolls and light salads and listened to panels on such subjects as leadership, CFO best practices, artificial intelligence, and interest rates. 

Most speakers on the panels did not refer to President-elect Donald Trump by name, although some noted that there was a sense of relief because the presidential election was concluded, along with optimism that his administration would usher in a more business-friendly climate. That relative equanimity was shattered during the closing panel. 

According to Newton police, at about 4:14 PM EST officers responded to a report of a disturbance by a group of protesters at the hotel. By the time police arrived, the group had already left the area. 

The hotel manager was told by staff that the protesters had "taken over the stage" in the conference area and “‘chased’ the keynote speaker off stage,” Henrickson said in an email, adding that there appear to have been no injuries or property damage that were reported to police, that no one was arrested or criminally charged, and that the incident is “closed.”  

Before the disturbance, Al-Murshed talked about the oil company’s investment plans and emphasized the need for higher energy production, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported the incident, along with a video which showed conference goers watching the protesters on stage, and one person taking a poster, which had the word “murderer” written on it, from a protester who was on stage. 

“It was very disruptive,” Kurth told CFO Dive, noting that it was an unfortunate ending to a good conference and that Al-Murshed had also talked about bringing energy to developing regions that want more access. 

Jack McCullough, founder and president of the CFO Leadership Council, witnessed the incident and noted that the people who took the stage were nonviolent. But he questioned whether such a disruption was an effective way to bring issues to business people’s attention. If a person was “on the fence” on the climate issue, the approach “could push them in the other direction,” McCullough said. “They were obnoxious to the point that the message got lost.”  

Saudi Aramco did not respond to a request for comment.