CEO Summit

Industry leaders meet in Dallas for education, networking and the exchange of ideas.

By Kristin Quinn

Nearly 100 printing industry owners and executives attended the 2010 CEO Summit, Feb. 17-19, at the Ritz Carlton in Dallas. Attendees had the opportunity to listen to selling, sales management and sales training discussions, as well as sit in on a lunchtime economics presentation, engage in round table discussions and network at evening receptions. Common themes attendees discussed were attracting the next generation of employees to the industry, continuing to grow business in a tough economy, incorporating social media into marketing strategies, transitioning to a marketing services provider and retraining sales forces to sell services and programs in addition to products.

Andre Vanier, a principal at Kieran Label Corp, San Diego, attended the CEO Summit for the first time. “It was two tremendous days of engaging speakers, thought-provoking round tables and great camaraderie,” Vanier said. 

In the first session, Dave Lakhani of Bold Approach Inc. said a tough economy is the right time to rethink and restructure a company. “One of the most important actions a CEO can take today is to lead your team to explore new options in a challenging economy,” Lakhani said. “Try bold initiatives to innovate and grow market and mind share while the competition retreats.”

Economist Alan Beaulieu, president of the Institute for Trend Research, agreed. “If your company is going to grow, it will be because of you and not the economy,” he said. “This country may have suffered a horrible recession, but it is not down and out.” He predicted it will be at least five years before the economy will regain real growth.

Linda Cox, director of operations for Navitor, North Mankato, Minn., attended the CEO Summit for the second time. “I thought the economics presentation was very interesting because it was just so relevant to the situation we are all in,” Cox said. She also enjoyed the “speed dating” round table, where participants approached different groups for help solving a particular business question. “It was a great opportunity to get to know another 20 people,” Cox said.

In another session, 25-year-old entrepreneur and author Cameron Johnson discussed sales management for the next generation. Between the ages of nine and 21, Cameron had 12 successful businesses. His philosophy is “adapt or die.” He said people often ask him where he sees his businesses in the next three to five years. “I don’t know, because how can we anticipate how fast things are going to change?” he said. Johnson said older generations have the ability to run circles around his generation when it comes to work ethic. “If you could merge young, technologically-inclined brains with veteran sales skills, you would have the best salesperson possible,” Johnson said.

Kevin Austin, CEO of Golden Pacific Systems, Rohnert Park, Calif., said Johnson’s speech was excellent. “He is the entrepreneur,” Austin said. “He really captured the essence of the entrepreneur.”

Paul Curry, CEO of Printgraphics, Vandalia, Ohio, has been a PSDA member for nearly 30 years and attended several CEO Summits. “I really enjoyed Cameron’s speech,” Curry said. “It was certainly a novelty.” Curry added that the CEO Summit is about sharing ideas. “The social element is almost as important as the event itself,” Curry said. “Since our industry is getting smaller, it’s even more important to spend time together.”

On the last day of the summit, Bryan Flanagan, director of corporate training for Zig Ziglar, encouraged the audience to be confident and take bold approaches to business. Flanagan recounted his own story, telling attendees that he was “in sales for six years before sales was in me,” until he read a passage in a Zig Ziglar book that said, “You cannot consistently perform at a level that is inconsistent with the way you see yourself.” Flanagan added that the No. 1 rule of sales is, “Timid salespeople and CEOs have skinny kids if they’re not stepping up and putting bread on the table.” Following Flanagan’s presentation, Brian Lambert, director of sales training for the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD), demonstrated how sales training can help companies prevail. He also introduced the audience to the sales certificate program offered at the 2010 Print Solutions Conference and Expo, May 24-26, in Baltimore. Lambert recently completed his Ph.D. dissertation in sales management, studying what salespeople need to know and do to be successful, by identifying the five levers of effectiveness: science, process, relationships, technology and performance.

During the “speed dating” round table on day one, new PSDA member Sarah Bender, vice president of Priority Systems Inc., Skokie, Ill., posed her question: “How do I get value out of my PSDA membership?” Greg Gill, president and CEO of Performance Business Solutions, Apopka, Fla., responded. “I’ve been attending PSDA events for seven years,” he said. “I come into this group, and I know just about everyone in this room. A lot of deals are made from meeting at PSDA events.” Bender said she looks forward to seeing what PSDA has to offer. “I want to cultivate relationships with the people in this room so that they understand my business and what it can do for them.”

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