First Concurrent Workshop Session:

I. Economic Development Practices & Measures of Success
Find out what measures Wisconsin economic development practitioners and their partners use to measure success and how they apply these measures to monitor and manage economic development initiatives. Also, Chair of WEDA Public Relations Committee will report results of study on procedures used by WEDA members.

Moderator: Jan Alf, Forward Wisconsin, Inc., and WEDA President-elect

Panelists:

• Vic Grassman, Chair of WEDA Public Relations Committee, Program Manager Business & Outreach, UW-Whitewater Small Business Development Center
• Rob Kleman, Executive Director, Oshkosh Commercial Development Corporation
• John Lalor, PhD, Executive Dean of Outreach Learning, Madison Area Technical College
• Dave Waffle, City Administrator, City of Reedsburg

II. Capturing More Federal Procurement Dollars
Training, resources and opportunities will be demonstrated to teach you how to attract more federal business to your firm.

Denise Kornetzke, Director of the Business Procurement Assistance Center, Madison Area Technical College

III. Technology Paths to Economic Development in Wisconsin
The basic tenets of technology development will be reexamined and a new strategy to enliven and guide technology innovation for new economic development will be presented.

Bruce Beihoff, Rockwell Automation
Bill Bryant, Crossroadsaccess

IV. Community Development Venture Capital
The panelists will present an overview of the emerging industry called community development venture capital.

Moderator: William Beckett, President and CEO, CHRYSPAC

Panelists:

• Charles H. Allison, Jr., Vision Consulting Associates LLC
• Farshad Maltes, Economic Researcher, Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority

V. The Economic Development Roles of Nonprofit Corporations
Four experts will present how nonprofit organizations stimulate economic development in Wisconsin communities.

Moderator: Stephen L. Percy, Chancellor's Deputy for the Milwaukee Idea and Director, Center for Urban Initiatives and Research, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Panelists:

• Pamela Fendt, Senior Policy Analyst, Director, Center for Economic Development, UW-Milwaukee
• Karen Gotzler, President and CEO, Urban Economic Development Association of Wisconsin
• Michael Morgan, Program Related Investment Officer, Helen Bader Foundation
• Leo Ries, Program Director, Local Initiatives Support Corporation

VI. Homeland Security
Panel discussion of homeland security issues and strategies Wisconsin must engage in to maintain the highest level of safety for our citizens.

Moderator: Jonathan Barry, President Wisconsin Technical College System Board

Panelists:

• Nancy Crowley, RN, CEM, Manitowoc County Emergency Management
• Ed Janke, Chief Deputy, Brown County Sheriff's Department
• Nick Tomlin, Deputy Director, Office of Law Enforcement Technology Commercialization

VII. "Agriculture…It's Not The Back 40 Anymore"
Learn how the structural relationships and diversity of Wisconsin's modern agricultural base makes it one of the most valuable sectors of our economy.

Moderator: Jim Harsdorf, Secretary, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection

Panelists:

• Patrick Geoghegan, Sr. Vice President, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, Inc., Madison
• Timm Johnson, Executive Director, Wisconsin Agricultural Stewardship Initiative, Madison
• Quentin Schultz, President, BioDiagnostics, Inc., Ellsworth
• John Vrieze, President, Emerald Dairy, Baldwin

VIII. Momentum Chippewa Valley - Wisconsin's B.E.S.T. Working Together
BUSINESS * EDUCATION * SERVICE * TECHNOLOGY * TOURISM
Learn how cooperative public and private partnerships are developed among communities within the Chippewa Valley by coordinating regional economic development efforts.

Moderator: Darcy Way, Director, Momentum Chippewa Valley

Panelists:

• Linda Clark, Chair, MCV Business Development Committee, Manager of Economic Development, Xcel Energy
• Bill Ihlenfeldt, Past President, Momentum Chippewa Valley, President, Chippewa Valley Technical College
• Howard Ludwigson, Chair, Eau Claire County Board of Supervisors
• Donna Weber, President, Momentum Chippewa Valley, Assistant to the Chancellor for Affirmative Action, UW-Stout

Second Concurrent Workshop Session

IX. Helping Small Businesses Move Innovation and Technology to Market
Learn how to use the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program to help your small businesses compete for federal R&D funds.

Moderator: Erica Kauten, State Director, Small Business Development Center, UW-Extension

Panelists:

• Cheryl Gain, Director, Office of Science and Technology, Wisconsin Department of Commerce
• Dr. Philip Sobocinski, Ph.D., Associate Director of Technology Development and Commercialization, University-Industry Relations, UW-Madison
• Laura Baranowski, SBIR/STTR Program Specialist, Wisconsin FAST
• Dr. Christopher Murphy, DVM, Ph.D., CEO, Platypus Technologies, LLC

X. Building Angel Networks in Wisconsin
This workshop will show how to build an angel investing network. Panelists include members of angel networks that are planning, forming, and actively investing.

Moderator: David J. Ward, President, NorthStar Economics, Inc., and member of Origin Investment Group, La Crosse

Panelists:

• Adam Bock, Research Manager, Early Stage Research
• James M. Hanke, Momentum Chippewa Valley
• Gary Nadolsky, Spirit Enterprises, Fond du Lac
• Terry Sivesind, Mirus Corporation, Madison

XI. Workforce Development is Economic Development!
Workforce availability and preparedness is the #1 issue for businesses. This workshop will present unique examples of how workforce development professionals put both resources and leadership into play.

Moderator: Ron Hunt, Deputy Division Administrator, Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development

Panelists:

• Richard Best, Executive Director, Workforce Resources, Inc.
• Jim Golembeski, Executive Director, Bay Area Workforce Development Board
• Beth Norris, Coordinator, Southeast Workforce Development Board

XII. Competing in a Global Environment
Global competition is becoming increasingly fierce. Panelists will discuss how Wisconsin companies can expand their sales with exports and succeed in a world economy.

Moderator: Roger Axtell, UW System Board of Regents and former Vice President, Worldwide Marketing, Parker Pen Corporation

Panelists:

• Roxanne Baumann, Alliances Manager, Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership
• Joyce Keehn, Director, Worldwide Sales, Trek Bicycle Corporation
• Jim Meinert, Director of International Marketing, Snider Mold Co.
• Mary Regel, Administrator, Division of International Development, Wisconsin Department of Commerce

• Randy Freeman, Vice President of Marketing, Rockwell Automation
• Tom Luljak, Vice Chancellor, University Relations, UW-Milwaukee
• William J. Otto, President and COO, Marcus Hotels and Resorts

XIV. Education as an Economic Cluster
Learn how education is an "economic cluster" essential to Wisconsin's future as the principal producer of resources essential for the knowledge economy: innovative ideas and "brainworkers."

Moderator: Dr. Rolf Wegenke, President, Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities

Panelists:

• Elizabeth Burmaster, State Superintendent, Department of Public Instruction
• Dr. Richard Carpenter, President, Wisconsin Technical College System
• Dr. Katharine Lyall, President, University of Wisconsin System

Moderator:

Mike Morgan, Program Related Investments Officer, Helen Bader Foundation

Panelists:

• Tim Keane, President and CEO, NuEdge Systems, Co-Chair, Milwaukee Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) Partnership Strategy Board
• Eric Parker, Executive Director, Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership
• Julie Penman, Commissioner, Department of City Development, City of Milwaukee
• Greg White, Co-Founder and General Partner, Chicago Venture Partners

XVI. With a Long Enough Lever: Leveraging the OEM-supplier relationship to build a world-class manufacturing cluster in Wisconsin
This panel will discuss the novel concept of "leveraging" inter-firm relationships to ensure the continued viability of high-road manufacturing clusters in Wisconsin.

Moderator: Jonathan Zeitlin, Senior Fellow, Center for World Affairs and the Global Economy (WAGE), Professor of Sociology, Industrial Relations, and History, UW-Madison

Panelists:

• Paul Ericksen, Manager, supplier flexibility, John Deere Worldwide Commercial and Consumer Equipment Division
• Joel Rogers, Director, Center on Wisconsin Strategy, Professor of Law, Sociology, Political Science, UW-Madison
  

Third Concurrent Workshop Session

XVII. New County Economic Development Models
Three southeastern Wisconsin counties present new economic development models that are used to reflect their unique local community needs.

Moderator: Penny Scheuerman, Community Development Manager, WE Energies

Panelists:

• Brenda Hicks-Sorensen, Economic Development Coordinator, Washington County
• Gordy Kacala, Executive Director, Racine County Economic Development Corporation
• Bill Mitchell, President, Waukesha County Economic Development Corporation

XVIII. eCommerce & eBusiness: Strengthening Wisconsin Companies and Industry Clusters
Senior executives will describe how e-commerce and e-business are providing competitive advantages for their companies as well as their value chain members including customers, suppliers and distributors.

Moderator: Dr. Raj Veeramani, Director, Consortium for Global E-Commerce, UW-Madison

Panelists:

• Todd Fischer, Vice President and CIO, Endries International
• Katherine Hudson, President and CEO, Brady Corporation
• Holly Reed, Vice President, SBC Ameritech
• Dan Stieber, Director of Operations, Endries International
• Sam Taylor, Vice President, E-Commerce and International, Lands' End

XIX. Regional Training Partnerships
This workshop will demonstrate the advantages of nationally recognized partnerships between companies, unions, and communities for economic and workforce development policies.

Moderator: Earl Buford, Director, BIG STEP

Panelists:

• Rhandi Berth, Director, Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership
• Leon Burzynski, Coordinator, Construction Industry Training Partnership
• Ginny Wilke, Coordinator, Health Care Industry Training Partnership
  

XX. The Northern EDGE: Economic Development & Growing the Economy
For the economic base of Wisconsin's northern counties to grow, a strategy must be developed to infuse new-economy ideas into the existing economic base and grow incomes in the traditional economic sectors, while expanding into new higher wage areas of economic growth. Targeted research, GIS technology and other assessment tools build a foundation of research and information from which priorities can be established and decisions made to create higher paying jobs. This workshop will discuss how these tools will be used in the 29 Northern EDGE counties.

Moderator: Al Anderson, Director, Center for Community Economic Development, UW - Extension

Panelists:

• Bill Pinkovitz, Center for Community Economic Development, UW- Extension
• Senator Russ Decker, 29th Senate District

Moderator: Sue Gleason, Local Workforce Planning Coordinator, Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development

Panelists:

• Melanie Platt-Gibson, Director of Marketing, Forward Wisconsin
• Jeffrey Rafn, President, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
• Kirk Rossi, International Trade Consultant, Wisconsin Department of Commerce

XXII. Leveraging Intellectual Property for a Competitive Edge in the 21st Century
This workshop will focus on Intellectual Property (IP) as a tool to: 1) provide a competitive edge for businesses large and small, and 2) grow market share and thus stimulate economic development.

Moderator: Michael J. Gratz, Registered Patent Attorney, Chair of the State Bar of Wisconsin's Intellectual Property Section, and Shareholder of Boyle, Fredrickson, Newholm, Stein & Gratz, S.C.

Panelists:

• John Gatto, Esq., President, Transatlantic Venture Solutions LLC, formerly with the Wisconsin Department of Commerce
• Debra Malewicki, Director, Wisconsin Innovation Service Center
• Mark McGuire, Esq., President, Nameprotect, Inc.
• Paul Van Den Heuvel, Esq., Founder, Grace Consulting LLC, formerly with Proservices Health Information Technologies, Blue Cross Blue Shield United of Wisconsin

XXIII. The Missing Link in Economic Development: Thriving Families
The offspring of struggling families account for 26% of state and 45% of county expenditures. This workshop will identify feasible ways to strengthen families, the state's economy and capitalize on Wisconsin's image as a family friendly state.

Moderator: Jack DeWitt, LL.B., Director, Wisconsin Cares, Inc.

Keynoter: Jack Westman, M.D., President, Wisconsin Cares, Inc.

The Role of Families in Economic Development: Ignore at Your Peril

Panelists:

• Thomas Corbett, Ph.D., Former Associate Director, Wisconsin Institute for Research on Poverty
  • The Role of Families in Work-based Welfare Reform
• Susan Sikora, MSW, CICSW, Director of Family Services, Rosalie Manor Community & Family Services
  • The Economic Benefits of Supporting the Parents of Newborns: Welcome Home Baby
• Ramon Wagner, M.A., Director, Community Advocates, Milwaukee
  • Strengthening Families: Building Front Porches in Milwaukee Neighborhoods

XXIV. Wisconsin's Groundwater: Who gets to use it? Who does not?
Conservationists, farming, business interests and University of Wisconsin System scientists have together asked: How do we protect this great resource while maintaining the economy depending upon it?

Moderator: John DuPlissis, Forestry Outreach Specialist, UW-Stevens Point

Panelists:

• Todd Ambs, Executive Director, River Alliance of Wisconsin
• Scott Froehlke, Chair, River Alliance of Wisconsin
• George Kraft, Director, Center for Watershed Study and Outreach, Director, Central Wisconsin Groundwater Center and Professor of Water Resources, UW-Stevens Point and UW-Extension
• Jim Wysocki, Chief Financial Officer, Wysocki Companies

Welcome Reception

Welcome: Jay L. Smith, Co-chair, Wisconsin Economic Summit,
Past President & Member, UW System Board of Regents,
Chairman & CEO, JLS Investment Group
Remarks [PDF]

Katharine C. Lyall, Co-chair, Wisconsin Economic Summit
President, University of Wisconsin System

Remarks: The Honorable Scott Walker, County Executive, Milwaukee County