Business leaders statewide will converge on University Plaza Hotel & Convention Center for the 2011 Governor’s Conference on Economic Development Sept. 21–23.
The event will feature a luncheon and awards ceremony with Gov. Jay Nixon, breakout seminars for business owners, bus tours of Ozarks Technical Community College and Expedia, and exhibitors from around Missouri pitching products and sharing stories.
The scheduled keynote speakers are Peter deSilva, president of UMB Financial Corp. and CEO of UMB Bank, and Stephen H. Lipstein, president and CEO of BJC HealthCare. Lipstein will give the opening keynote address Sept. 22 at 9:15 a.m. DeSilva is scheduled to address the attendees Sept. 22 at 1:30 p.m., following the Governor’s luncheon, which runs 11:45 a.m.–1:15 p.m.
Missouri Department of Economic Development Communications Director John Fougere said roughly 650 people attended last year’s conference in Kansas City, and he’s hopeful this year’s event could attract more. DED is the organizer of the 53rd annual conference.
“This is the premiere economic development conference in the state every year. In a nutshell, it brings together the state’s economic leaders to explore the latest trends, programs and education with regard to all aspects of economic development in Missouri,” Fougere said.
Nixon plans to hand out 10 economic development awards, including the Economic Development Project of the Year, during the luncheon.
Springfield last hosted the conference in 2007.
With Empowered to Deliver as the theme of the conference, three breakout sessions Sept. 22–23 will cover public/private marketing coordination, work force training programs, optimizing social media, and obtaining government contract and short-term lending.
Though early registration is past deadline, registration through the start of the conference is $325 a person. A guest of an attendee can attend the Governor’s Awards Luncheon for an additional $35 or the reception at Springfield Brewing Co. on the evening of Sept. 22 for $45. Exhibitor registration costs $500, according to
DED.MO.gov.
Attendees also can sign up to take a tour of the OTC Springfield campus or the Expedia offices in the former Springfield-Branson National Airport terminal for $10. Both tours are scheduled 2–4 p.m. Sept. 21.
Rich Campbell, school director for Strafford-based C-1 Truck Driving School, said he and another recruiter for the school would be manning its exhibitor’s booth at the event. As an accredited school that works with various state-funded agencies, he hopes to talk with people from around the state who may be interested in its services.
“We’re setting up as an exhibitor so that the various state employees, case managers and so forth will have an opportunity to visit with us and see exactly what it is that we provide their clients,” Campbell said.[[In-content Ad]]
