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Embracing Changing Technology |
| Adam Fein
– Pembroke Consulting |
| Adam J. Fein, Ph.D.
is president of Pembroke Consulting, Inc and
author of wholesale industry's future trends
report Facing the Forces of Change: The Road
to Opportunity. |
THE 2007 TECHNOLOGY OUTLOOK FOR WHOLESALE
DISTRIBUTION Wholesale distribution is emerging
as one of the most technology-intensive industries
in the U.S. economy. Technology investments
by wholesaler-distributors represent opportunities
to solve genuine problems for customers while
driving continuous improvement in the business.
The industry continues to contribute an impressive
portion of our country’s productivity growth,
with employment gains far below top line revenue
increases. Join Adam J. Fein, president of
Pembroke Consulting and the wholesale distribution
industry’s leading expert, as he provides
his insights into the next generation of technology.
Dr. Fein will discuss the current state of
technology at wholesaler-distributors today,
examine emerging technology trends and their
likely impact, and provide his outlook for
2007. |
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| Behind
the Scenes of a Virtual Trade Show |
| Steve Epner
– Brown Smith Wallace Consulting Group
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| Steve is founder
and president of the Brown Smith Wallace Consulting
Group. During his 35+ year career, he has
built a reputation for assisting clients with
the integration of strategic business planning,
information systems and tactical requirements.
He has also become a highly regarded industry
expert. Steve is a computer science graduate
of Purdue University. He pioneered in early
on-line systems and database environments
and selected and implemented one of the first
voice recognition systems in the United States.
Steve has published more than 800 articles
in major business and trade publications.
He has been quoted in the national business
press, including the Wall Street Journal and
has authored or contributed to numerous books:
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A Look Behind the Curtain This presentation
will take you on a tour behind the scenes
of this Distribution Virtual Tech Fair. Steve
Epner will explain how we put this fair together.
He will highlight what we did, what we learned
from this experience and will guide you through
questions to think about when deciding to
produce your own Virtual Tech Fair. |
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| Wholesale
Distribution Technology Roadmap |
| Paul St.
Germain – IBM Corporation-Segment Executive
for Wholesale Distribution Industry Midmarket
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| As the Segment Executive
for IBM’s Wholesale Distribution Industry,
Paul St. Germain is responsible for leading
the marketing of solutions and products to
wholesaler-distributors in the Americas. During
his 26 years with IBM, Mr. St. Germain has
worked with wholesale distribution, retail,
transportation and manufacturing customers.
He has worked with several distributors to
understand the trends in the industry and
determine how the changes affect various segments
and lines of trade. Paul is a frequent speaker
at industry conferences and has contributed
articles in industry publications, most recently
in Automotive Industries Association of Canada
Express magazine. He works closely with industry
analysts and academic leaders in industrial
distribution to gain and share industry knowledge
to generate thought leadership for the industry,
and is a current member of the National Association
of Wholesaler-Distributors. Prior to his current
position, Mr. St. Germain was responsible
for helping customers determine the opportunities,
challenges and risks associated with implementing
supply chain and e-business solutions to address
their business needs. Mr. St. Germain attended
the University of Waterloo, where he graduated
from the Electrical Engineering program. |
Many Wholesaler-Distributors are looking at
technology to improve productivity to streamline
operations and optimize the use of their resources,
human, mechanical and financial. Accountability
for investment in information technology is
also increasing. This session will discuss
some of the main forces affecting the industry,
and propose a path or roadmap that distributors
can consider following to address today's
and future challenges. |
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| Benefits
of Leveraging EDI/E-Commerce E2E Across an
Organization |
| Josh Bultz
– Intuit Eclipse, Inc. |
| Joshua M. Bultz,
manager, Service Custom and Go-Live Solutions
for Intuit Eclipse. Josh joined the company
in 2000 as an applications tester with several
years of experience in the distribution software
field. After serving as a specialist in lot
billing, pricing/contracts, and inventory,
and as an account manager, he joined the outside
sales team as a technical sales engineer.
He then transitioned to the product management
organization - where he's currently working
with distributors and manufacturers in an
effort to bring both performance improvement
and cost reduction to the supply chain. |
This presentation will offer a comprehensive
definition and explanation of EDI technology,
along with a discussion of the potential financial
and operational improvements a distributor
could realize by implementing EDI across his
or her organization. |
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| Computer
System Selection and Implementation |
| Dennis Cowhey
– Computer Insights, Inc. |
| Mr. Cowhey has worked
with clients using inventory intensive software
for almost 30 years. He served for 5 years
as an industry representative on the Illinois
CPA Society Computer Information Systems Committee.
While serving on that committee, his subcommittee
authored a book on evaluating software packages.
Mr. Cowhey founded Computer Insights, Inc.
in 1981 to market and support business systems
based on a concept he terms “total computer
systems” marketing. The company, headquartered
in Bloomingdale, Illinois, is a leading supplier
of fully integrated systems to Distributors,
primarily in the Fastener Industry. The company
provides its industry specific software, The
BUSINESS EDGE to Fastener and Supply Distributors
everywhere. He is a frequent contributing
author to industry magazines and periodicals.
You can reach him at Computer Insights, Inc.,
108 South Third Street, Bloomingdale, IL 60108,
800-539-1233. The web address is www.ci-inc.com
and you can reach him by eMail at dcowhey@ci-inc.com.
Diane, M. Miller, General Manager – Diane
has a BS From Roosevelt University in Computer
Science. She is currently enrolled in their
MBA Program. She has been with Computer Insights
since 1995. She was formerly responsible for
all Systems, Programming and General Administration
at a $50,000.000.00 per year Distributor,
North Shore Supply, Inc. |
Panel Discussion hosted by Alexander Hair
on World Business Review. Guests include:
Dan Miklovic, Vice President Research, Gartner
G2 Consulting; Dennis R. Cowhey, President,
Computer Insights, Inc.; Diane M. Miller,
General Manager, Computer Insights, Inc. |
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| Getting
Your Independent Systems to Talk to Each Other |
| Rick Sundahl
– Blue River Software |
| Rick Sundahl has
been President of Blue River Software since
1993 and President of Grey Wolf Systems since
1996. Mr. Sundahl's educational background
includes a BS in Electrical Engineering, a
BS in Marketing, and a MBA in Finance all
received from the University of Colorado at
Boulder. Mr. Sundahl also holds certifications
as a Certified Management Accountant, Certified
Computer Professional and Microsoft Certified
System Engineer. Rick's speaking experience
include University of Industrial Distribution,
Infor's User Conferences and SHIMS Wholesalers
Association's national and regional meetings.
Rick has also been employed as an adjunct
professor at Wichita State University and
Kansas Newman College. Mr. Sundahl's previous
employers include R&D Systems (Infor), IBM,
General Dynamics, and Martin Marietta. |
Distribution businesses can no longer depend
upon one system to provide 100% of all of
the information required of employees, customers
and vendors. "Getting Your Independent Systems
to Talk to Each Other" will cover the role
of application integration in distribution
information technology. Application integration
is technology for solutions like EDI, business
intelligence, eStorefront, barcoding and RFID,
parcel management, warehouse management, etc.
Learn how to get starting implementing application
integration in your business today. |
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| Gross
Profit Optimization Over Continually Cleansed
Data |
| Price Management
Speakers – Infor |
| Matt Petty, Director
Of Sales, Infor - Matt Petty has over 11 years
of experience selling and supporting Supply
Chain Solutions into the Distribution and
Manufacturing marketplaces. Prior to becoming
Infor, Mr. Petty spent 8 years at NxTrend
Technology leading software sales efforts.
He is currently the Director of Sales for
the Eastern region of the United States at
Infor. Randy Hughes, VP Sales & Marketing,
epaCube - Randy Hughes joins epaCUBE as Vice
President of Sales and Marketing after spending
20 years with the Infor Distribution Group.
Mr. Hughes was instrumental in growing Infor
Distribution Group (formerly NxTrend Technology)
from $10M annual sales and 25 personnel to
a $100M annual revenue company employing more
than 400 team members. Mr. Hughes held various
sales and marketing positions with Infor,
and over the past 5 years led a group to create
a new eCommerce Division for Infor resulting
in average annual growth exceeding 175% per
year. Mr. Hughes' experience focuses on selling
and marketing technology solutions for various
aspects of automating the supply chain. |
Imperfect product data can erode your gross
margin, frustrate your customers, and slow
new sales opportunities. The proven safeguards
are automated data cleansing, systematic management
of your data processes, and margin optimization.
While pricing is one of the more significant
variables affecting a distributor’s profitability,
relatively few dollars have been spent automating
the modeling process for both “cost” and “margin”
optimization. Most distributors have developed
and maintain extensive pricing schemas in
their operational systems and create reports
to analyze events long after the facts are
available; however, the ability to truly analyze
and model costs, sell prices, promotions,
rebates, charge backs and other key attributes
proactively – before the facts are in -- has
been more elusive. Meaningful cost and margin
modeling starts with clean data. Companies
have found that without normalized and standardized
data, many other corporate initiatives (including
pricing |
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| Missing
a Link in the Supply Chain? |
| Syed Kamal
– Gillani |
| Founder and CEO -
Syed Kamal, holds a BBA in Banking, Finance,
and Business Information Systems from the
Mississippi State University. He is currently
a candidate for Executive MBA degree at SMU.
He has over 15 years of applications development,
IT consulting and executive management experience.
His breadth of consulting experience ranges
from strategic systems planning, business
process re-engineering and process management
to analysis, design and development of information
systems. Through his many years of dedication
to the information consulting practice, Kamal
helped a number of fortune 500 companies including
GE, Verizon, AT&T, BrightPoint and Kennametal
develop and implement a wide variety of business
critical applications. |
Succeeding in today's active distribution
market requires the ability to address changing
customer requirements, business growth and
an evolving market. A software solution must
address these functionality issues completely,
yet be flexible so you can incorporate your
own best business practices. Distribution
is a critical link in your supply chain. It
deserves the attention of a best-of-class,
Integrated Distribution Management and Financial
Solution. Gillani's in-depth understanding
of the distribution industry since is reflected
in the comprehensive functionality of iDsitribute
V8.2. Gillani can help you forge the missing
link in your supply chain. |
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| Operational
Excellence and Profitable Growth Through Enterprise
Technology |
| George Hvizd
– SAP America Inc. |
| George Hvizd, Industry
Principal, Wholesale Distribution - SAP George
Hvizd is a 25-year veteran of the manufacturing
and distribution industries. His professional
experience includes executive level positions
with several foodservice distribution organizations
and a large global consumer products process
manufacturing company. With almost ten years
of IT experience - including seven years focused
on the Consumer Products vertical at SAP -
George assists Wholesale Distributors in translating
strategy into business solutions. George currently
serves as an Industry Principal for Wholesale
Distribution and is responsible for pre-sales
and service support, along with business development
and customer-focused solution delivery. |
| The Wholesale
Distribution industry is a critical cog in
the overall supply chain, delivering roughly
80% of all products brought to market. With
over 500,000 companies operating worldwide,
today’s distributors face intense market competition
and a host of business challenges, including
disruptive mergers and acquisitions, rising
customer expectations, and an increased demand
for value-added services. It’s more important
than ever to manage customers and products
profitably, and implement ways to grow revenue
and lower costs. Join us for this informative
education center session focusing on current
industry trends and challenges. The presentation
will look at the future of technology in Wholesale
Distribution and how distributors are enabling
enterprise technologies to address current
business issues while driving growth and profitability.
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Attend
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| Vendor
Managed Inventory |
| Keith Jones
– Integrated Systems Technology |
| Keith Jones, national
sales manager, IST. 25 years experience developing
partner and channel relationships in the Technology
Industry. The last 10 years serving ERP systems
to the Distribution Industry. |
A brief examination of the history, growth,
value propositions of vendor managed inventory
problems. The presentation will also look
at the technology drivers of these programs.
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Attend
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| What
to Look For in an Enterprise Software Solution |
| Russ Mellot
– Activant |
| Russ Mellot, senior
director of solution development for Activant®;
is widely recognized as an expert in technology
for distributors. Activant, a leading technology
provider for fluid power distributors, develops
technology solutions and services to help
distributors increase sales, improve customer
service, and reduce operating costs. For more
information, visit www.activant.com |
Enterprise software solutions - designed with
distributors' specific needs in mind - can
help streamline business processes. This session
will help you determine what functionality
you need to help you increase sales, improve
customer service, and reduce operating expenses.
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