Social Media and Search 3.0: New Opportunities for Every Business

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.

Social Media (Web 2.0) is a vehicle to promote your business, bring value to customers and build brand loyalty.  Market more effectively to businesses and consumers with evolving tools like blogs, feeds, forums, Facebook, Twitter and more.  On the near horizon is Search 3.0, part of Web 3.0, rapidly reshaping the essential world of search marketing.  Learning to leverage this technology early will yield significant benefits. The presentation will end with “8 Things You Can Do Right Now” with Social Media and Search 3.0 for marketing success.

Speaker:
Sean Branagan, CEO & eVangelist
Digital Vertical Marketing

Growing the Family Business – Avoiding Pitfalls on the path to Success

9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

The rewards and satisfaction of managing family businesses require careful attention to unique challenges. Learn about these challenges and potential solutions from a family business expert and the owner of a family business that has thrived by embracing a strategic approach to delicate issues. The speakers will provide an overview of succession planning, business valuation, leadership, family relations, conflict management, and more. Local resources to support family businesses and facilitate meaningful dialogues between businesses will also be highlighted.

Speaker:
Donna Herlihy
NY Family Business Center

Building the Dream Team: Developing Your Leaders for the Challenges Ahead

11:00 - Noon

More than ever, your business needs outstanding leadership at every level to compete in a difficult and challenging business climate. To remain competitive, your leaders must be able to influence and lead to excellence. Your people need to achieve their goals and objectives; be creative and willing to change; and to take ownership for the areas of the business they impact. Learn how organizations in our region are focusing their efforts on developing their employees and leaders. Hear how proven leadership models and methods are being utilized to improve organizations.

Speaker: TBD

Solving Your Problem Solving Problem

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.

Interested in developing or enhancing your business’ problem solving capacity? World class organizations have in common the ability to identify, prioritize and solve the most pressing problems on a continuous basis. With multiple approaches to take, choosing the right one for you will help remove roadblocks and ensure a timely implementation and successful execution. Learn how Six Sigma, TWI and Toyota (A3) approaches compare and how they can best fit into your small to mid-sized enterprise.

Speaker:
Glen Chwala, Black Belt
Central New York Technology Development Organization (TDO)

Lean Office: Using Kaizen Events to Accelerate Improvements

9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

Initially used exclusively in manufacturing, Kaizen Events are increasingly being used to advance front and back office processes, rapidly improving service and quality and creating capacity. Results are seen in accelerated cash flows and higher levels of efficiency and effectiveness in order processing, purchasing, month-end closings, engineering revisions, invoicing & collection and more. Lean Office Kaizen Events focus on knowledge-based, administrative and transactional processes. In two to five days, cross-functional teams implement improvements that often take months to accomplish through traditional means. Use this powerful tool to improve your competitiveness – without investing in expensive information systems, additional staffing or new facilities.

Speaker: TBD

Secrets of Success

11:00 - Noon

Two local manufacturers will share their best practices for operational excellence. Strategies include planning for excellence, lean six sigma, TWI, leadership development and succession planning. Learn how these strategies reduced cost, improved performance and added new capabilities allowing the business to grow. Speakers will discuss both the upper level strategies and hand-on tactics that made a difference in their business.

Speaker: TBD

Managing Cellular Assets
“Making Cents of your Wireless/Cellular Services: Tips on Purchasing Devices and How to Reduce Your Monthly Spending.”

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.

The wireless/cellular industry continues to evolve. This workshop will explore the latest trends in the marketplace. From PDA’s to carrier networks to rate plans, we will offer insights into: purchasing the right equipment to improve your business operations, what to look for when selecting a cellular carrier, how to reduce your monthly expense by as much as 18% without sacrificing efficiencies, and the long term global standardization of cellular technologies.

Speakers:
Tom Huegel, Senior Partner, Wireless Business Group
Sam Serianni, Senior Partner, Wireless Business Group

Intellectual Property Update

9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

Practicing legal experts will present an overview of current Intellectual Property law and how it might impact your business. The workshop will cover a broad range of IP issues, from the realities of IP in international trade, to recent and pending changes in U.S. law, and what it all means for you.

Speaker:
David L. Nocilly
Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC

Crazy Security Stories

11:00 - Noon

Your company’s data is one of your most important assets, and keeping your data safe is a critical responsibility in today’s connected information environment. Your employees are one of the most important sources of protection in keeping data safe, but poorly trained, irresponsible, or merely misinformed employees can also be a cause of serious data breaches. Participants in this workshop will share and hear stories of how their employees have saved the day or created a nightmare. Workshop facilitator Jeff Stanton, author of The Visible Employee, will moderate the discussion and provide feedback and suggestions on strategies to get employees on board with information security policies and practices.

Speaker:
Jeffrey M. Stanton, Associate Dean for Research and Doctoral Programs
Syracuse University School of Information Studies

Finance Tools for Sustainable Development

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.

The market for green products and services is accelerating, and sustainability is becoming a mainstream business practice. What are the tools and resources that can help you grow in this dynamic new marketplace? Whether it’s launching a new business, introducing a new product, or “greening” your existing operations, you need growth capital. There are a myriad of federal and state programs to support the growth of the green economy, but navigating the maze can be daunting. This session is a practical overview of those funding programs, along with a look at the network of resources across the Central Upstate New York region. The goal of the session is to help you make better sense of tools that can help you finance your sustainable growth. A panel of public and private sector resource providers will provide insight.

Speakers:
TBD

Beyond Waste: Improving Your Bottom Line Through Proactive Waste Management

9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

This session will focus on the paradigm shift that needs to occur to move from thinking about waste as potentially reusable materials rather than simply as rubbish. This concept, known as “Beyond Waste,” is promoted in the New York Department of Environmental Conservation’s Solid Waste Management Plan. 
Some topics covered will be:

• Recycling solutions that support the local economy
• Support for material reuse practices, including composting, materials exchanges, and agricultural waste biodigestion
• Planning resource recovery parks (to replace landfills)

Speakers:
TBD

Energy Efficiency: National Grid and NYSERDA

11:00 - Noon

A suite of integrated electric and gas programs will be available on January 1, 2010, for residential, commercial and industrial customers, complementing the work of state and local agencies, utilities and, particularly, NYSERDA. Through grants, low-interest loans, and technical assistance, NYSERDA and NG are partnering with businesses to make processes and buildings more energy efficient, reduce waste streams and improve profitability. (Note: this session repeats one offered at Accelerate 2009, but offers updated program information and materials).

Speakers:
Jim Stapleton, National Grid
and representative of NYSERDA