Succeeding in today’s economy - Is your business ready for the new normal?

Grant Thornton is pleased to present a complimentary webcast filled with insights from recognized economic and business leaders and strategists. Join us for an informative economic forum and business strategy webcast designed for CEOs, CFOs and other business leaders.

Wed., May 26, 2010 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. ET CPE: 1.5 credit hour

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Experts agree the global recession has changed the business landscape for years to come—perhaps forever. The question remains: “How do you turn the lessons learned into future success for your company?

Join us for an informative economic forum and business strategy webcast designed for CEOs, CFOs and other business leaders. This timely session is designed to

• Provide an overview of current economic conditions
• Share expert insights into the near-term economic future
• Sum up the broad lessons learned
• Explore those factors that have allowed some businesses to thrive in this economy
• Explain what the “new business normal” will be and how it will affect businesses

Keynote speaker:
Dr Larry Chimerine
Economy and Business Strategist, Radnor International Consulting

Moderator:
John R. Brandt
Business Strategy Consultant, Manufacturing Performance Institute

Panelists:
Jim Copeland
Managing Partner, National Specialist Advisory Services, Grant Thornton LLP Canada 

Jack DiFranco
National Managing Principal, Transaction Services, Grant Thornton US 

Martin Walrath IV
Vice President Corporate Finance, Triple Five Group of Companies 

Michael Plotzke
Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer, Plastipak Packaging Inc. 

Host:
Alex MacBeath
Global Leader, Markets, Grant Thornton International Ltd.

Learn more about our speakers

The experts

Keynote speaker:
Dr Larry Chimerine, Economy and Business Strategist, Radnor International Consulting. For more than 25 years as an economic consultant, Dr Chimerine has lent his advice to all sizes of business including Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions and government agencies, providing private consultation on the state of the North American and world economies and the impact of economic conditions on decision making, budgeting, and strategic planning. He serves on numerous corporate boards, is a member of various professional associations and has held teaching positions at three universities.

Moderator:
John R. Brandt, Business Strategy Consultant, Manufacturing Performance Institute. CEO and Founder of MPI, a global research firm, Brandt has spent more than two decades studying leadership in effective, purpose-driven organizations. An expert on how companies can adapt themselves to the realities of new markets, new corporate structures, and new customer expectations, he is an accomplished leadership and management innovator. Brandt combines two decades of business strategy consulting with a passion for journalism. Most recently he served as President, Publisher and Editorial Director of the Chief Executive Group, publisher of Chief Executive. Prior to joining Chief Executive, Brandt was publisher and editor-in-chief of IndustryWeek, the definitive source of current information about and analyses of the world's foremost manufacturing organizations.

Panelists:

• Jim Copeland, Managing Partner, National Specialist Advisory Services, Grant Thornton LLP Canada. Jim is the leader of Grant Thornton Canada’s specialist advisory services practice and has is focused on providing practical advice to clients on a wide range of strategy and productivity improvement issues.
• Jack DiFranco, National Managing Principal, Transaction Services, Grant Thornton US. Jack specializes in providing strategic advisory services to business owners examining succession, exit strategies and corporate finance. In addition, he has helped companies and their shareholders identify and evaluate their strategic and financial options for increasing shareholder value.
• Martin Walrath IV, Vice President Corporate Finance, Triple Five Group of Companies. A multi-national conglomerate with primary businesses in retail shopping center management, real estate development, banking, and oil and gas—and with offices in Canada and the US—Martin is President for the US operations and is responsible for managing all areas of corporate finance for Triple Five.
• Michael Plotzke, Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer, Plastipak Packaging Inc. With operations in 9 countries and 27 locations, Plastipak is a multi-generational family-owned business headquartered in Plymouth, Michigan. The company has experienced tremendous growth during the tenure of the current leadership; growing from revenues of $70 million to approximately $2 billion today.

Host:
Alex MacBeath, Global Leader, Markets, Grant Thornton International Ltd. Alex is passionate about leading Grant Thornton member firms in delivering the best possible accounting and advisory services to privately held businesses worldwide. He believes that this vital market segment is the engine room of all economies and that their innovative and entrepreneurial approach to business underpins the prosperity of any nation. Alex is proud to be able to host Grant Thornton International's inaugural global forum on global economic issues that affect PHBs.

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Registration

New users

1. Click “New Student Registration” to create your account.
2. Complete user setup and create user name and password. You can use any user name and password that will be easy for you to remember.
3. In the second-to-last field, enter the Grant Thornton company pass code, grant (all lowercase). This is not the same as your password. Hit submit.
4. Locate the webcast in the catalog by clicking the “View entire catalog” button (Succeeding in today’s economy – Is your business ready for the new economy? Course 15727) and enroll.

Returning users

1. Click “Enroll” to auto-enroll in the course upon user name and password entry.
2. Enter your user name and password in the returning students “Student Login.”
3. If the auto-enroll feature does not complete properly, locate the webcast in the catalog (Succeeding in today’s economy – Is your business ready for the new economy? Course 15727) and manually enroll.

You will receive an email confirmation from LearnLive, our webcast platform provider, with instructions for attending the webcast. If you need assistance registering please call LearnLive directly at (206) 812-4700.

For additional questions, please contact:

Sandra Cusato
T (416) 369-7012
E scusato@GrantThornton.ca

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