Speakers

LISA BARHAM

President, Hotel Resources

Lisa Barham, a native Texan, a business and marketing major from Lamar University, in Beaumont, Texas, has been in the hospitality industry for more than 18 years.

She started her sales and marketing career while working for Metro Hotels. During the 8 years that she worked in the hotel industry, she worked primarily in the corporate office, developing and facilitating sales and marketing programs for 33 hotels.

It was 14 years ago when she founded her own company, Hotel Resources. Initially a reader board service, Hotel Resources is today, a company offering multi-faceted support for hotels sales and marketing. Services include: reader board services in 4 major markets, organizing telemarketing campaigns & sales blitzes, Internet competitive research, competitive market analysis and teaching internet prospecting workshops for the hospitality industry.

The company’s clients include every major brand hotel company and hundreds of independents as well as CVB’s and AV Companies.

Lisa is a member of Meeting Professionals International and works with the MPI Foundation on several research projects.

Lisa also donates her time and expertise to other organizations within the industry such as MPI, HSMAI, state tourism organizations & many other groups in the travel industry.

Lisa’s other interests include spending quality time with her 3 boys and husband.

THOMAS E. CALLAHAN, CPA, CRE, MAI

Co-President & Chief Executive Officer - West

Thomas E. Callahan, CPA, CRE, MAI, is Co-President and Chief Executive Officer - West with PKF Consulting. He is in charge of the firm's consulting practice in the Western United States and its San Francisco office.

He is a recognized authority on the hospitality and real estate industries, for which he has conducted numerous economic, financial, management, and valuation studies. As a Member of the Appraisal Institute (MAI), he has appraised the market value of all types of income-producing properties, including hotels, restaurants, resorts, ski facilities, golf courses, and other commercial properties.

He has conducted market and economic feasibility studies for hotels and resorts in the United States, Europe, the Pacific, and Asia, including master-plan studies for multi-use real estate projects in the U.S., Singapore, and the Republic of China.

A graduate of Washington State University, Callahan is a Certified Public Accountant , and a Certified General Real Estate Appraiser, and a member of the American Society of Real Estate Counselors (CRE). He is certified as an expert witness in his field in both State and Federal Courts in Massachusetts, Illinois, New Mexico, Texas, and California.

Mr. Callahan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and is regularly quoted in industry publications and in the general press. He is a member of the International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC) and the Research Committee of the American Hotel & Motel Association.

HOLLY DUCKWORTH, CMP

Chapter Business Manager, Meeting Professionals International
Business Strategist, Volunteer Coach, Trainer, Speaker, Facilitator

Holly is an experienced business leader delivering powerful business strategy insight and consulting to MPI chapter volunteer leaders in the western US.

She is passionate about the transformation and development of people through volunteer coaching, goal setting, data analysis and business feedback that demonstrates results. MPI chapters appreciate her focused attention to detail and honest advice. Holly truly is a partner with her chapter businesses driving them to success and delivering membership value.

Holly generously shares her expertise; she has spoken to many groups including the Portland Oregon Visitors Association, Alpha Phi International, Metropolitan Senior Network, National Speakers Association - Oregon and the Oregon National Association for Training and Development, and countless MPI Chapters.

Holly has always been driven to exceed customer expectations. She began her career in hospitality began working as the Convention Services manager for the Portland Oregon convention bureau, now Travel Portland. Leadership by example Holly served as the MPI Oregon chapter president in 2006-2007. Holly attained her degree in business management from Linfield College and achieved her CMP certification in 2001.

When not twittering, face-booking, or reading the current leadership book on her Kindle Holly enjoys hitting sticks at the local golf course, scrapbooking and wine tasting.

JOAN L. EISENSTODT

Eisenstodt Associates, LLC

Joan L. Eisenstodt, whose expertise is in facilitation and training, meetings department performance audits, and for meetings, program planning, facilities contracts, negotiations, and meeting management training, brings more than 35 years of experience to her work. She founded Eisenstodt Associates, a Washington, DC-based conference consulting, facilitation and training company, in 1981.

Joan works with corporations, associations, professional societies, foundations, and hotel companies and convention and visitors bureaus to facilitate and design meetings, negotiate contracts, provide training, and conduct focus groups.

In addition to clients with whom she works, Joan is retained as a hospitality industry expert witness and is on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Journal of Convention and Event Tourism. She is active in the hospitality industry and in her community where she has served on boards of community and education-related organizations. She serves on the Executive Board of the Newton-Marasco Foundation (http://www.newtonmarascofoundation.org/), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire responsible environmental stewardship.

Active in MPI since 1979 and in other industry and non-industry associations, Joan has been honored for her contributions to education by MPI, PCMA, HSMAI, IACC, and in 2004, was inducted into the CIC Hall of Leaders, thus receiving the industry's highest honor.

Known for her passion for learning and education, Joan is a frequent learning facilitator at meetings in and outside the industry, moderates the MiForum Listserv (http://www.mimegasite.com/), and is a frequent article contributor to publications in and outside the industry. She is also active in the International Association of Facilitators (www.iaf-world.org), the World Future Society (www.wfs.org), CHRIE, ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership, and in her community.

A lover of words, a reader or fiction, non-fiction, blogs, periodicals, wikis, and cereal boxes, some of her current favorites are "A Whole New Mind" by Daniel Pink, "Learning Meetings and Conferences in Practice" by Steen Elsborg and Ib Raven, and anything by Harlan Coben, fiction writer.

JOHN S. FOSTER, Esq., CHME

Foster, Jensen & Gulley, L.L.C.

JOHN S. FOSTER, ESQ., CHME, is an attorney and counsel specializing in the legal aspects of meetings, conventions, trade shows & special events and association management. He is an associate or general counsel for over four hundred (400) organizations and has been named as one of the 25 most influential people in the meetings industry by MeetingNews. His peers have also voted him a Special Recognition Award through the Georgia Society of Association Executives (GSAE). John has also been selected as PCMA’s Author of the Year. MPI has selected John to be a Platinum Speaker and a Subject Matter Expert in its Peer-to-Peer program. John is also a Chapter author for PCMA’s Professional Meeting Management book, on “Contracts in the Meetings Industry.” John is the legal columnist for CONVENE magazine published by PCMA. He reviews meeting contracts for organizations nationwide and speaks frequently at industry events. John can be reached at John.Foster@FJGLaw.net.

DAN GOLDES

Executive Vice President & Chief Stakeholder Officer
San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau

Dan Goldes is Executive Vice President & Chief Stakeholder Officer with the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau. In this position, he focuses on fostering positive relationships with visitor industry stakeholders, including Bureau members, business associations, neighborhood and community groups, local media and government officials. He also oversees the Bureau's non-profit Education Foundation. Dan worked as Membership Services Manager at the SFCVB from 1989 - 1999 before leaving to found Training Leaders, a consultancy providing training programs for new managers. He returned to the Bureau in February 2005.

Dan currently serves on the advisory boards for the Hospitality Management programs at both San Francisco State University and the University of San Francisco and the Boards of Directors of the California Travel Industry Association (CalTIA), the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District and the Downtown Parking Corporation.

Dan serves on the Citizens Advisory Committee of Grants for the Arts, San Francisco’s municipal arts funding organization, and he chairs the Leadership Council of the Northern California Council of ASAE & The Center, an international organization focused on the profession of association management.

He has served on the Boards of the American Society for Training & Development - Golden Gate Chapter and the Northern California Society of Association Executives.

Dan is a graduate of the Institute of Organization Management and of the Coro Foundation’s City Focus program.

DAVID HOPKINS

West Coast Green

David Hopkins is a motivating young leader, emerging entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and published writer. He is the co-author of a new book on social entrepreneurship called The Tactics of Hope: How Social Entrepreneurs Are Changing Our World, which supports and inspires individuals of all ages to move from passion to action tackling social and environmental challenges.

Currently, Mr. Hopkins is working as the Exhibits and Trade floor Curator for West Coast Green, the world’s largest conference + expo focused on green innovation in sustainable building and design. He also continues to lead as one of the founding directors of BeRewarding.com, an incentive-based education website that raises awareness about social and environmental facts while generating donations to leading nonprofit organizations solving them.

David Hopkins’ passion for learning about and taking action on sustainability issues began as a student at Middlebury College, a renowned institution that was recently selected by the Sierra Club as the “greenest college” in the United States.

While at Middlebury, Mr. Hopkins served as Director of the International Affairs Center of the Roosevelt Institution, the nation's first student think-tank devoted to progressive policy reform, and he graduated cum laude in International Studies, Politics, and Economics.

David Hopkins has experience in keynote speaking, corporate marketing, sales, grant writing, fundraising, teambuilding, teaching, and grassroots mobilization. He has worked with communities in Cambodia, France, Tanzania, and Greece, and now resides in San Francisco.

ADAM METZ

Metz Consulting

Adam Metz is the premier consumer and lifestyle brand social web strategy consultant in the U.S. and is the first social web strategist to develop a holistic social media analytics model. His strategic methodology merges classic management consulting with top-tier social technology research, combining 1970s and 1980s consulting standards like Flawless Consulting and The Fifth Discipline, with best practices as recommended by tech analyst firms like Forrester and Gartner.

Mr. Metz has consulted with over 50 consumer and tech brands, including Hershey's Chocolate, Waggin' Train Pet Food, Pirate's Booty, MBT Shoes, Obama Girl (Barely Political), Passport Hotels, Hollywood Park Racetrack, The San Francisco Convention and Visitor's Bureau, Sonoma County, Mighty Leaf Tea, Timbuk2, and dozens of others.

Adam Metz has worked on the first social media program for Pulitzer-Prize winning author Thomas Friedman.

In 2008, Mr. Metz authored the eBook There Is No Secret Sauce, which has sold and downloaded over 2000 copies. The book is available for sale or download on social networks like Facebook and MySpace, as well as in stores and over Amazon and conventional digital booksellers.

In June 2008, Adam Metz founded the strategic consulting firm METZ, which now employs two strategy associates and one intern.

Adam Metz has lectured at University of California, Berkeley, the University of Washington, and University of California, Santa Cruz and has given keynote talks at numerous conferences and associations including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, the Western Association of Convention & Visitors Bureau Technology Conference, the Tri-Valley Convention & Visitor's Bureau Annual Marketing Conference, and the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association. He has also participated in dozens of technology conference panels on social web strategy and consumer and lifestyle brand strategy.

GUY NAHMIACH

Event Management Professionals

Guy I. Nahmiach is a 20-year veteran of the trade show and event industry on both the planner and supplier sides.

Guy conducts in-house training and consulting for corporations in their sales and procurement departments in preparation for trade show and event participation.

DAVID NOUR

Managing Partner, The Nour Group, Inc.
Author, Relationship Economics | ConnectAbility

David Nour is a social networking strategist and one of the foremost thought leaders on the quantifiable value of business relationships. In a global economy that is becoming increasingly disconnected, David and his team are solving global client challenges with Strategic Relationship Planning™ and Enterprise Social Networking best practices.

A native of Iran, David came to the U.S. with a suitcase, $100, limited family ties and no fluency in English! In the past 25 years he has built an impressive career of entrepreneurial success, both within large corporations and early stage ventures.

David is the author of Relationship Economics (Wiley, 2008), The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Raising Capital (Praeger, 2009), ConnectAbility (McGraw-Hill, 2010), and the Social Networking Technology Best Practices Series. He is a contributor to The Social Media Bible (Wiley, 2009) and is currently researching and writing his next commercial book on Enterprise Social Networking.

David and his team have researched over 400 global social networking applications in 22 distinct categories, publishing articles such as “What’s your enterprise social networking strategy?” “How mission critical is your social networking?” and “The Future of Enterprise Social Networking.” David’s unique perspective and independent insights have been featured in a variety of prominent blogs and print publications including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, Association Now, Entrepreneur and Success magazine.

An Eagle Scout himself, David is passionate about youth in his support of the Scouting movement, Junior Achievement, One Voice, The Bridge, and the High Tech Ministries. He is also an active member of several professional organizations, including the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), American Management Association (AMA), Institute of Management Consultants (IMC) and the Society of International Business Fellows (SIBF).

David earned an Executive MBA from the Goizueta Business School at Emory University and a BA degree in Management from Georgia State University.

PATRICK SCHWERDTFEGER

In 2006, Patrick Schwerdtfeger was a struggling Mortgage Broker. After spending $2,800 to promote a hotel seminar that attracted only eight attendees, he recorded his educational material as a Podcast and registered it on the Internet. Those podcasts were eventually downloaded more than 50,000 times in 27 countries, changing his career forever.

Mr. Schwerdtfeger experienced the power of the Internet first hand. The Podcast series was written up on various websites and blogs and eventually became the third most popular mortgage-related Podcast on the iTunes Music Store. Today, he has written two marketing books providing step-by-step instructions for self-employed professionals to find new clients by leveraging the Internet.

When the Podcast took off, Patrick Schwerdtfeger became a believer. He now runs a 1600+ member entrepreneur group on Meetup (sponsored by American Express OPEN), has 11 educational CDs and two books on Amazon and a 6-DVD home study course available for ambitious entrepreneurs. He has spoken at conferences around the world and has become a strong advocate for the modern entrepreneur. Mr. Schwerdtfeger has been quoted in theAssociated Press, Advertising Age, Naples Daily News (FL), The Bismarck Tribune, and The San Diego Union-Tribune, and been a featured guest on various radio stations including Here and Now on National Public Radio (NPR) and Authors Unscripted.

Patrick Schwerdtfeger is the author of Webify Your Business, Internet Marketing Secrets for the Self-Employed as well as Make Yourself Useful, Marketing in the 21st Century. His educational podcasts have been downloaded over 50,000 times and he has spoken at conferences around the world.

Patrick Schwerdtfeger was born in Vancouver, Canada, and received his Bachelor of Commerce from Carleton University in Ottawa. He never knew he was an American citizen until he was 27 years old and moved to Los Angeles just six days after receiving his first American passport. He now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Books

• Webify Your Business, Internet Marketing Secrets for the Self-Employed
• Make Yourself Useful, Marketing in the 21st Century

BRUCE TURKEL

TURKEL

Bruce Turkel is an advertising and branding expert who helps make his clients’ brands more valuable.

He has worked with great companies including Nike, Discovery Channel, HBO, and the Miami and Kissimmee Convention and Visitors Bureaus.

Bruce has spoken at DMAI, MIT and Harvard, been heard on NPR and CNN and featured in Fast Company and Communications Arts Magazines. He has published three books on advertising and marketing including his latest – Building Brand Value.

Why has he done all this? Bruce says it’s simple: “I don’t play harmonica that well.”

WILFORD H. WELCH

Wilford H. Welch’s professional career has been devoted to understanding and taking actions to address global challenges—as a U.S. diplomat in Asia, as a professor of international business, as the publisher of The WorldPaper, a world affairs publication that was carried in twenty seven countries in six language editions. For many years he was also an international business consultant with Arthur D. Little International Inc., where he worked for multinational corporations on their international business strategies and governments on their industrial development strategies.

In 2004 Mr. Welch co-founded the Quest for Global Healing initiative that brings thousands of people together from around the world every other year to help transform their concerns over environmental and social challenges into concrete initiatives.

Wilford Welch has degrees from Yale, Harvard, and the University of California at Berkeley and lives in Sausalito, California. For the past six years he has served on the board of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, (SIPA), and currently serves on the boards of the World Affairs Council of Northern California, The Yosemite National Institutes, and the Headlands Institute.

In addition to his life-long engagement in world affairs Wilford Welch has a deep commitment to the environment. He was Chairman of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), and was a member of the 1994 Sagamartha Environmental Expedition that removed 5,000 pounds of trash from the high camps on Mount Everest. He and the leader of that expedition, currently give presentations to corporate audiences on insights from high altitude mountaineering that are pertinent to business strategies development and execution and the restoration of a sustainable planet.