The document provides an overview of the 2011 membership programs for the Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence. It lists 13 events from February to December 2011 on topics like social media marketing, understanding business finances, leadership, succession planning, and work-life balance. The events will feature speakers from various locations and include panel discussions, case studies, and a members' social. The goal is to provide business owners with strategies and tools to strengthen their companies.

1. Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence
2011 Membership Programs
February 3 Socialnomics: The New Reality for Building Your Business and Your Brand
7:30-10:30 am Erik Qualman (of Boston)
Rivers Club Tweets. Online posts. Viral videos. Social media channels like these are being used by your customers
each and every day, influencing your impact and the market’s perception of your business and brand.
Erik Qualman, author of Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way We Live and Do
Business, demonstrates the impact powerful communication will have on the way you produce,
market and sell. Regardless of your industry, this is the defining program on how to incorporate social
media into your business strategy providing you the edge and … The Power to Prosper.
March 25 Cha-Ching! Unlock Your Business’ True Profit Potential
7:30-10:30 am Bob Hogan (of Seattle)
Sheraton Your company’s financial statements can provide more powerful information than you may realize.
Station Square Bob Hogan, who has trained and consulted thousands of business owners throughout the U.S and
beyond, will provide what you need to quickly understand the true financial strengths and challenges
of your business today. Pulling out this ‘new’ information to educate your bankers and adjust your
strategy will ultimately result in a stronger balance sheet and a stronger company.
CAPSTONE PROGRAM Getting the Values off the Wall and into the Hall
April 13 Ken Majer (of San Francisco)
7:30-11:30 am Values not only provide the foundation for your company, but when effectively woven throughout
The Duquesne Club your business provide continual motivation for aligning and inspiring your workforce. Ken Majer,
author of Values-Based Leadership and consultant to dynamic companies and executives, will
present a revolutionary approach that can change your business dramatically and permanently.
You will walk away from this capstone program with practical ways to translate a common set of
shared organizational values to increased profitability.
May 19 Kids, Wealth and Consequences: Financial Parenting for the Business Family
5:30-8:00 pm Jayne Pearl (of Amherst)
University Club Financial choices. Intellectual choices. Emotional choices. As parents and business owners, the
choices you make affect both your business and your family in the short term...and the long term.
Jayne Pearl, co-author of Kids, Wealth, and Consequences: Ensuring a Responsible Financial Future
for the Next Generation, will share strategies to better equip your children to be financially aware,
goal-driven and focused. The goal is to avoid an unintended dependency and lack of direction, while
encouraging an independent and competent next generation.
June 9 Up, Up and Away: Members’ Summer Social
6:00-9:00 pm Hosted by Charlie and Lori Lenzner
Lenzner Farm Estate Join your fellow Institute members for an evening of networking at the home of Charlie and Lori
Lenzner. Their several hundred plus acre estate dating back to 1875 will provide the ideal setting for
a time to meet other leaders of our region's most dynamic and growing companies.
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2. June 22 Exit Stage Left or Stage Right: Ensure a Standing Ovation for Your Business
7:30-10:00 am Rick Tifone, Andrew Hayes and David Blair (of Pittsburgh)
University Club Some actors exit stage right, some exit stage left and some have to be pulled off with the dreaded
cane. Planning not only when, but how you will exit, will drive your growth strategy over the
decades. This diverse panel will challenge you to consider how your business will transition – be it
management succession, acquisition, merger or other – leaving behind a legacy for both you and your
company that will endure.
August 24 Make Your Competition Irrelevant: Unlock the Power of Blue Ocean Strategy
7:30-10:00 am John Krahe (of Erie) and Dan Monaghan (of Erie)
Regional Learning Blue Ocean Strategy isn't just an idea. It's a specific process for changing how you think about and
Alliance create business opportunities. Using the best-selling, frame-changing book, Blue Ocean Strategy, as
the foundation for our discussion, we will present both a proven analytical framework and the tools
for successfully creating and capturing blue oceans of opportunities. Stop operating in a red ocean of
competition and discover the Blue Ocean Strategy approach to creating new demand and highly
profitable growth based on value innovation: the simultaneous pursuit of differentiation and low
costs.
CAPSTONE PROGRAM Flight of the Phoenix: Transitioning Your Family Business to the Next Generation
September 27 Ritch Sorenson and Harry “Paddy” McNeely (of St. Thomas)
7:30-11:30 am The mere thought of 'intergenerational conversations’ about transferring ownership and
The Duquesne Club governance of your business is enough to ruffle one's feathers. However, having these
conversations early and often will make both your family and your business stronger. Learn
through an interactive case study. Ritch Sorenson, Opus Chair in Family Business at the University
of St. Thomas, and Harry “Paddy” McNeely, third generation CEO of Meritex (a national
commercial real estate management company) how to build systems around family, governance
and business to support the success of future generations.
October 20 Beyond Price: Differentiate Your Company in Ways that Really Matter
7:30-10:00 am Mary Kay Plantes (of Boston)
University Club Commoditization is driving many businesses to compete on price, which in turn influences purchasing
and production decisions that may impact quality. The good news is that you can escape price
competition by business model innovation. Learn from Mary Kay Plantes, an MIT economist and
corporate strategist, on how to design a new strategically differentiated business based on where and
how you compete as a market-driven company. The result? Customers willing to pay a premium for
the products and services you offer.
November 15 Time is Money…But Also a Whole Lot More
7:30-10:30 am Rabbi Steven Z. Leder (of Los Angeles)
University Club You’ve all heard the phrase ‘time is money.’ Balancing time at the business and time with your
family, your friends, your interests and your community can be a challenge. Steven Leder, Senior
Rabbi of Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles, will look at ways to balance your life as carefully
as you do your bank account. Living a rich life, in more ways than one, will ensure the legacy each
and every one of us leaves behind is balanced between the company, the family and the individual.
December Members’ Winter Social
Accurate as of June 22, 2011
Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence • 412-648-1542 • www.entrepreneur.pitt.edu