PTDA 2008 Industry Summit Session Descriptions
Make Some Waves: Opening Keynote
Address
Navigating Turbulent Seas: Closing Keynote
Address
Freeing Up Your Lines with VoIP: Concurrent
Workshop
Develop a Shipshape Crew: Concurrent
Workshop
Salsa Your Way South of the Border: Concurrent
Workshop
Make Some Waves
Opening Keynote Address ESP
Ken Schmidt
Branding Guru and Former Director of Communications for
Harley-Davidson
Friday, October 31
8:45 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.
The former director of communications for Harley-Davidson Motor
Company, Ken Schmidt has a fascinating story of building an entirely new
corporate culture, rekindling relationships with customers, and reaching
out to new ones in completely untraditional ways.
“How the people of Harley-Davidson were able to turn this great
company around, as successfully as we did, makes for one of the best
business stories of all time,” Schmidt says. After all he has
accomplished, his philosophy of life and business has remained the same:
“Never do what’s expected, make yourself as noticeably
different as possible, and have a lot more fun than you’re
supposed to.”
His lessons in maintaining relationships with veteran customers and
innovatively pursuing new ones with a successful corporate culture will
resonate with any business manager.
Read Ken Schmidt’s biography.
Navigating Turbulent Seas
Closing Keynote Address ESP
Alan Beaulieu
Institute for Trend Research
Saturday, November 1
1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
He’s back! Alan Beaulieu returns one year later to update
us on his forecast for the economic future. Take a look into
trends affecting the economy and Beaulieu’s prediction on the next
economic wave. Get the information you’ll need to make
timely and effective decisions that enhance profits and market
positions. These decisions can be made with confidence when they are
formulated in the context of thorough, accurate and understandable
economic forecasts. You will benefit from Beaulieu’s
comprehensive—and entertaining—forecasts.
Beaulieu will discuss specific management objectives suited for the
next few years as well as identify the leading indicators you will be
using for years to come. Specifically, he’ll look at
interest rates, demographics and the changing political landscape.
He’ll also discuss the markets in China, India and Europe in terms
of growth potential and partnerships with the United States.
With forecasts that are 96% accurate up to six quarters out, Beaulieu
is as close as you can get to a crystal ball!
Read Alan Beaulieu’s biography.
Concurrent Workshops
Freeing up Your Lines with VoIP
Stephen Leaden
President of Leaden Associates and Past President of the Society of
Telecommunications Consultants
George Flolo
The Flolo Corporation
Friday, October 31
10:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
1:45 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. (Repeat of morning session)
 
If you could reduce your operating costs but improve the quality and
performance of a system, wouldn’t you do it? Many business
owners are turning to VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) systems to get
the most out of their telecommunications expense. VoIP is a
proven, robust technology. Stephen Leaden, a leading VoIP expert
and independent telecommunications/IT consultant, is the perfect person
to answer all of your questions about VoIP. Come discover how VoIP
can reduce your costs and leverage key ROI areas. Leaden will also
discuss the key steps involved in a successful VoIP deployment and the
pitfalls you can avoid with careful planning. Then hear from one
of PTDA’s own—George Flolo will give us his personal
perspective on the VoIP implementation he recently completed for his own
firm, The Flolo Corporation.
Read Stephen Leaden’s biography.
Read
George Flolo's biography.
Develop a Shipshape Crew
Rob Sullivan
Rob Sullivan Productions, Inc.
Friday, October 31
10:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
1:45 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. (Repeat of morning session)
ESP
Do you really know who is on your team? Do you have a complete
picture of the true depth and breadth of your employees’
experiences? Companies routinely let top performers slip through
their fingers because they haven’t taken the time to understand
what these people are actually contributing—or could
contribute. If you don’t help employees understand and
recognize their value, you risk losing people who may be having a
substantial positive impact on your company and bottom line. This
is an expensive mistake to make, but a relatively easy one to fix.
For ideas on how you can gain a deeper appreciation of the depth and
breadth of your employees’ accomplishments, capabilities, and
aspirations, you won’t want to miss this session.
Read Rob Sullivan’s biography.
Salsa Your Way South of the
Border ESP
Daniel Grimes
Vice President, Latin American and Caribbean of UTi
Friday, October 31
10:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
As North American markets start to cool off, many businesses are
turning to Latin America to develop new business. As a provider of
end-to-end supply chains solutions, UTi has made a business case for
investing in Latin America. Daniel Grimes of UTi will let you in
on the opportunities that exist in the Latin America industrial
markets. In addition to an overview the six major economies of
Latin America, Grimes will give you a tour of each region’s
economic, geographic and cultural factors. Discover the risks and
perceptions of doing business in Latin America and how to overcome them
from an expert at facilitating the logistics of exporting product into
Latin America.
Read Daniel Grime’s biography.
ESP: Sessions featuring this symbol will offer simultaneous translation
into Spanish.
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