Le Big Bang :: Past Editions

Gary Cosimini, Business Development Director, Creative Professional Product Group
Adobe Systems Incorporated

No Roadmap: Creating A New Category for Adobe Acrobat
Along with the World Wide Web and its accompanying software, the 1990s saw the introduction and success of another computer application for which no precedent existed: Adobe Acrobat. Acrobat's Portable Document Format is now the mostly widely used format on the Web besides HTML, a worldwide standard for documentation, advertising and print, and Adobe's best selling product.
Acrobat'S success depended on early market positioning and share in a category that did not exist. This presentation will provide a great deal of illumination to anyone starting a business which needs to appeal both to a technical and a consumer market at the same time. To achieve this, classic business development played a key role as well as strategic adjustments that were made in every release of the product.

About the speaker: Gary Cosimini is Adobe's Business Development Director for the Creative Pro Business Unit and currently support worldwide sales and product management for the InDesign product family. He joined Adobe as its first Business Development Manager in 1992 after seeing a demonstration of a prototype of the Acrobat viewer. Prior to Adobe, Gary held the position Senior Art Director for Graphics Technology at The New York Times where, in the course of a 16-year career, he was involved in the introduction of a desktop publishing technology and digital photography. As the initial Art Director of the Science Times section, he shared a group Pulitzer prize in 1986 for a series of articles concerning the Strategic Defence Initiative, or "Star Wars".

Carlos Fox, President
Intento International Inc.

Increasing Sales Effectiveness! - It takes both: will & ability
This session will explore the many drivers and metrics associated with sales effectiveness.
We will go beyond the obvious to get insights into what you "may not know that you do not know” and how you may now be able to engage differently with your own sales force, channels, partners and customers to dramatically increase sales effectiveness. The recognition that it is the collective of individuals will and ability that makes any venture succeed will be a core thread in this journey of executive awareness.

About the speaker: As a veteran executive of the high tech revolution and the globalization of business, Carlos Fox brings together his experience in international sales, marketing and business development together with his acquired wisdom of what makes people and organizations effective into a valuable service to his clients. He is now founder and President of Intento International, a firm dedicated to increasing global sales effectiveness.
His career includes executive roles at the field office, regional and global headquarters of Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Jetform (now Adobe), netPCS Networks and Chrysalis-ITS "Silicon Valley" companies.
He is a "Knowledge Angel" advisor with the Queen's Centre of Enterprise Development; serves on the Board of Directors of Chipworks, the advisory board of Texec Executive Development and the Marketing Advisory Board at OrbitIQ.

Sara McKenna, Equity Partner
Cabana Séguin inc.

The Power to Persuade
Is your marketing material working hard enough for you? Is your sales strategy supported by clearly targeted material? Learn how to analyze, plan and execute top image-enhancement strategies for your business with Sara McKenna. She cuts to the chase and gives you tools to help you clearly define your company and product positioning while understanding how to control your branded image and maximize its impact.

About the speaker: Sara McKenna has always been a natural when it comes to words. Her desire for structure likely derives from her studies in Health Sciences. Put the two together and you have a powerhouse delivering clear-language strategies and thought-provoking creative. Sara loves the challenge of creating branding and advertising strategies, slogans, text and rationales for clients. She equally enjoys the thrill of presenting-be it a campaign, a client positioning or a speech to the business community. In 2002, Sara earned a Women of Distinction nomination and won the Entrepreneur of the Year award.
Sara joined the company in 1983, became an Equity Partner in 1989 and today owns 50% of Cabana Séguin inc.

John-Kurt Pliniussen, Associate Professor
Queen's School of Business

Marketing Strategy: Looking for the Yummy
This will be an interactive session where John will lead his energetic case discussion of a world-class business dealing with common strategic marketing issues. Participants will be sent the case prior to the conference so they can have an opportunity to read and prepare their thoughts. Crucial frameworks and marketing benchmarks will be highlighted. John will challenge the audience in his review of the thinking skills that top marketers must have in order to successfully compete in high-tech markets globally.

About the speaker: John Pliniussen is a business professor with Queen's School of Business, teaching in Advanced MBA, the MBA in Science and Technology, and Executive MBA programs. Frequently cited in the national media, John has written seven management books, numerous business articles and case studies, and is an authority on Internet and global marketing with a specialization in new product innovation. Dr. Pliniussen earned his honours business degree from the Ivey Business School at Western, a MA from Goddard, a MPA from Queen’s, and his PhD in Strategy and Info Systems from the University of Bath, in England.

John is CIO with cgkTechnologies Inc., a Program Director with Shad International, and was Chairman of Bayway Community Investment Corporation. Prior to joining Queen’s, Dr. Pliniussen worked in finance and marketing, and for over a decade consulted and conducted training for Industry Canada, IBM, the Ministry of Energy, Science, and Technology, the Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, the Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Tourism, the Institute of Canadian Bankers, the Ministry of Justice, the Ontario Institute of Chartered Accountants, the Ministry of Correctional Services and Solicitor General, the Society of Management Accountants of Ontario, the Ministry of Northern Affairs, Shad International, the Ministry of Health, Union of Ontario Indians, and Fishery Products International.

Jeffrey Stamp, Vice President of R&D
Eureka! Ranch

Meaningful Marketing: Win More, Lose Less by Making Meaningful Connections With Your Customers
The "Win More, Lose Less" program expands on the ideas presented in the fourth and latest book from the acclaimed U.S. new product develop firm, The Eureka! Ranch entitled: "Meaningful Marketing: Selling More with Less Effort."

This quick hitting session gives an upbeat, audience interactive, hands-on immersion into the secret lives of great ideas and the characteristics required to excite and attract customers to your Marketing, R&D, or Business Development efforts. Giving details from a 7 year research study on businesses of all sizes in all sectors, Jeff will highlight the strategies and practicals ideas for multiplying the impact of every dollar you invest and every hour you spend on sales and marketing. This session will show you how you can double your chances of success by focusing on making Meaningful connections with customers instead of relying on Mindless marketing gimmicks.

About the speaker: Jeffrey is an 8-year veteran and Vice President of R&D of the Eureka! Ranch. The Eureka! Ranch is an award-winning marketing and innovation think tank in Cincinnati, Ohio, that works with clients to discover and develop MEANINGFULLY more effective ideas for growing their client's businesses.
Jeffrey is highly sought as a speaker, giving around 50 speeches nationwide each year. In 2002, he was the keynote at the FMI Advertising Executives Conference, speaking on his passion - creating meaningful ideas that make a difference in customer's lives.

Granville Toogood, Founder & CEO
Granville Toogood Associates

Talk Your Way to the Top - How to Position Yourself as a Leader with any Audience
Using audience participation, Mr. Toogood will reveal how to create and execute the perfect presentation. He will examine the characteristics of leadership in public speaking and demonstrate clearly what works and what doesn't in the art of executive communication.

About the speaker: Granville Toogood is an acclaimed leader in the executive coaching industry. His clients have included more than 100 of the Fortune 500 CEOs, thousands of senior executives the world over, senators, congress men and women, international leaders and celebrities.
His books, "The Articulate Executive - Learn to Look, Act, and Sound Like a Leader," is a McGraw-Hill business category bestseller. He is also author of "The Inspired Executive - The Art of Leadership in the Age of Knowledge," and "The Creative Executive - How Business leaders innovate by stimulating passion, intuition and creativity."

Daniel Trépanier, President & CEO
Quake Technologies

Why Entrepreneurs Win
IT companies can thrive in boom periods. They can even thrive in bust periods. However, a sudden change from one to the other can kill companies.
Entrepreneurs must constantly adjust their strategies and spending based on market conditions. This presentation will examine how Entrepreneurial Leadership can provide a key to success in these difficult times and examine market expansion strategies in both good and bad parts of the cycle.

About the speaker: A native of Montreal, Dan Trépanier gained the majority of his experience in the United States. Prior to helping found Quake, he spent six years at ANADIGICS Inc., a semiconductor company located in Warren, New Jersey. Most recently, he held the position of director of marketing, and was instrumental in helping the company achieve a 500% growth in fiber-optic IC sales over a five-year period.
Before working with ANADIGICS, Dan led the sales and marketing efforts of Milliren Technologies, Inc. (MTI), a crystal oscillator start-up located in Newburyport, Massachusetts. At MTI, his efforts resulted in a significant increase in sales over a two-year period. Dan's earlier experience included working for an electronic component distributor.
Dan holds a BSc in Electrical Engineering from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and an MBA from New York University. When he can find spare time, Dan enjoys mountain biking, tennis and racing sailboats.