Jason Bader
- Optimizing Branch Manager Performance: What You Need to Know to Get to Maximum Return on This Crucial Function – Tuesday, October 9, 1:45 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Jason Bader is the managing partner of The Distribution Team which specializes in providing strategic business coaching, inventory management training and technology utilization to the wholesale distribution industry. Jason brings over 20 years of experience working in the distribution field, overseeing various operational teams, managing small and large facilities, and serving in an executive management capacity for the past 10 years.
Jason has a B.S. in human development from the University of Oregon and has held many different teaching and coaching positions throughout his life. Upon graduation, he spent a year in Japan teaching English to corporate clients such as Bankers Trust, Teac Corporation and Nippon Television. This opportunity strengthened his passion for teaching.
Jason is a contributor to many trade publications, such as The Wholesaler, Construction Supply, Industrial Supply and Today’s Electrical Distributor.
Alan Beaulieu
- The Economy is on Your Side: Getting the Most Out of the Recovery - Tuesday, October 9, 11:30 a.m.
One of the country’s most informed economists, Alan Beaulieu is a principal of ITR Economics where he serves as President. Since 1990 he has been consulting with companies throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia on how to forecast, plan, and increase their profits based on business cycle trend analysis. Alan is also the Senior Economic Advisor to NAW, Contributing Editor for Industry Week, and the Chief Economist for HARDI.
Alan is co-author, along with his brother Brian, of the book Make Your Move and has written numerous articles on economic analysis. He makes up to 150 appearances each year, and his keynotes and seminars have helped thousands of business owners and executives capitalize on emerging trends. Prior to joining ITR, Alan was a principal in a steel fabrication company and also in a software development company.
Nancye Combs
- Available throughout the conference
Nancye Combs is President of HR Enterprise, Inc., in Louisville, KY, and HARDI’s new HR & Organizational Management Consultant. She has a lifetime of HR work in her past and 25 years of consulting experience with hundreds of companies all over the world. She is a recognized voice of authority, an expert witness in federal court on employment practices, and a university instructor for HR professionals and entrepreneurs.
Andrew Duguay
- Regional Trends Forecasts – Tuesday, October 9, 1:45 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Andrew Duguay is an economist with ITR Economics where he is involved in the practical application at the individual business level of changes in the economic environment. Mr. Duguay is providing insightful, accurate analysis for companies throughout the US and in Canada. This analysis allows client companies to make timely decisions that will enhance their short and long term financial and competitive positions. His writings have appeared in several trade journals.
Andrew graduated from Gordon College with a degree in Economics. Before joining the Institute, Andrew studied economic development in China and also worked on a resource development team for a nonprofit in Jackson, MS. Andrew is an active volunteer with Peer Servants, a nonprofit organization that provides financial and technical assistance to independent microfinance institutions in the developing world.
Nina Easton
- The View From Washington – Monday, October 8, 11:30 a.m.
Fortune‘s Washington columnist and senior editor, covering politics and economics in the nation’s Capital for a readership of more than five million. Her column appears regularly in the magazine, and online at www.fortune.com. Easton is a regular panelist on Fox News Sunday and Special Report with Bret Baier, and has recently appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press and PBS’s The Charlie Rose Show. During 2008 she was a part of the Fox News Election Desk, where she provided primetime commentary each primary election night, as well as during the Democratic and Republican political conventions. She has also co-hosted CBS’s Face the Nation and appeared on ABC’s This Week, PBS’s Washington Week in Review and National Public Radio, among others.
Paul Pease
- Successful Channel Relationship Management: From Combative Rivalries to Collaborative Teamwork – Monday, October 8, 8:45 a.m.
Paul Pease has written and published five books, one as co-author with three-time Indy 500 Winner and racing legend Bobby Unser (Winners Are Driven), and has written over one hundred articles, many for national publications and trade journals. An engineering graduate from Purdue University, Pease went into sales in 1979. For eighteen of the next twenty years he was a straight commission sales rep in industrial automation, selling over $75 million in that timeframe. Since 1998 he has operated The Pease Group, a sales executive consulting, development, and training firm. SCAN Healthplan, Rockwell Automation, Yaskawa Electric America, Journal Communications, Emerson Electric, Cooper Industries, and Konica-Minolta are just a few clients. Paul has taught “Delivering the Best Customer Service” internationally on behalf of the UCLA Business Extension and has spoken for trade missions to China and Ireland. Since 2001, he has delivered over 75 programs specifically for manufacturers who use independent sales channels to several manufacturing and trade associations.
Rajan Rajendran
- The Future of Refrigerants – Tuesday, October 9, 9:45 a.m.
Rajan Rajendran is the Director of Engineering Services and Sustainability for Emerson Climate Technologies Refrigeration Division in Sidney, Ohio. He holds a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Iowa State University and has an MBA in Finance from Wright State University.
Rajan has over 21 years of experience in the research, development, and application of compressor products in refrigeration systems.
He also serves on both the American Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) committees.
Sam Richter
- Web Search Secrets: Helping Your Distributors be Demand Drivers – Saturday, October 6, 5:00 p.m.
- Know Your Customers: Keys to Demand Creation - Sunday, October 7, 12:00 p.m.
Sam Richter, Chief Executive of SBR Worldwide and SVP/Chief Marketing Officer at ActiFi, is an internationally recognized expert on sales, marketing, and leadership. His award‐winning experience includes building innovative technology, sales, and marketing programs for start‐up companies and some of the world’s most famous brands.
He has been featured in thousands of television and radio programs, national and online publications, and he presents keynote and full‐day training programs to audiences around the globe. His most recent book, Take the Cold Out of Cold Calling has received rave reviews and comes highly recommended by sales experts and executives across North America.
In 2003, Richter was named to the Business Journal‘s “Forty Under 40″ list honoring the top Minnesota business leaders. In 2007 he was a finalist for Inc. Magazine‘s Entrepreneur of the Year.
Stephen Tusa
- HVAC in 2012: Wall Sreet’s Perspective – Tuesday, October 9, 8:30 a.m.
Steve Tusa is an Executive Director for JP Morgan, having assumed coverage of the Electrical Equipment/Multi-Industry sector in June of 2004. In that time, he has received broad industry exposure, and emphasis on aerospace, process controls, electronic/semiconductor components, instrumentation and other varied industries.
Tusa joined JP Morgan in 1998, working as initial associate on its large-cap multi-industry team. He initiated coverage of the small-cap/mid-cap diversified industrials in September 2003, with a list of seven companies that included Crane, Pentair, Corning, Lennox International, York Research, Watsco, Watts Water Technologies, and Roper Industries.
Steve Tusa is a member of the CFA Institute and the New York Society of Security Analysts. He received a B.A. in Political Science, with a focus in philosophy, from Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA.
