Creating New Value The Theme Of Upcoming Conference

Creating New Value The Theme Of Upcoming Conference

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA-Several of the nation's leading researchers and practitioners on business-to-business marketing are among the speakers for an upcoming conference hosted by Penn State's Institute for the Study of Business Markets (ISBM).

The 18th Annual ISBM Members Meeting is scheduled to take place August 23-24 at the Nittany Lion Inn. The theme of the meeting is "Business Marketing Beyond the Product: Combining Products, Services, Know-How and Brand to Create New Value in Today's Markets."

"In today's markets, building value, holding share, and squeezing every drop of profit from earnings are all crucial," says Ralph Oliva, executive director of the Institute for the Study of Business Markets in Penn State's Smeal College of Business. "Businesses need to find new ways to mix product, service, support, know-how, and brand to build new value, avoid commoditization, and harvest profits."

The speakers include Adrian Slywotzky, vice president of Mercer Management Consulting and author of the book, How Digital Is Your Business?; Steve Brown, executive director of the Center for Services Leadership at Arizona State University; Tom Esposito of the Insight Group; and Dr. Don Schultz, professor of integrated marketing at Northwestern University.

"Today's markets are tough and the speakers represent some of the best minds in the world today to help businesses create new value," says Oliva.

The two-day conference also features presentations from Robert Johnson, marketing manager for Xerox Office Systems Group; Terry Madonia, vice president of business marketing and e-business strategy for AT&T wireless; Ellen Lutz, director of strategic marketing at Exelon Enterprises; Dennis Murphy, vice president of marketing and new business development at Exelon Enterprises; Keith Kuehn, vice president of online marketing and communications at EDS; and Professor James Anderson of Northwestern University.

The speakers will provide insights on building profitable business models, analyzing business designs, and understanding how to mobilize the tools of the digital revolution. Other topics include marketing of services in business-to-business markets, approaches to profitably moving from product to solution marketing, and the value of brand.
"New digital technologies, tempered with lessons learned from the dot-coms, can be powerful tools in enabling companies to create new value. Additionally, the role of branding in converging economies is key," says Oliva.

The ISBM is a research center in Penn State's Smeal College and has assembled a blend of researchers and practitioners to share insights, lessons learned, new ways to create value, and new processes for more profitable businesses. The ISBM is networked with researchers, educators and practitioners in business-to-business marketing in companies and universities throughout the world. Its primary purpose is to assist with business-to-business marketing in the new global economy.

For Information on the conference, contact the ISBM at 814-863-2782 or via e-mail at ISBM@psu.edu . Registration information can be found online at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/research/isbm/register .