Agenda

Sunday, April 1

4:00–5:00 p.m.

Registration

5:00–6:00 p.m.

Welcome Reception
Sponsored by:Rural Telephone Finance Cooperative (RTFC)

Monday, April 2

7:30–8:30 a.m.

Registration & Continental Breakfast

8:20 a.m.

Welcome
Speaker: Shirley Bloomfield, Chief Executive Officer, NTCA

8:30–9:30 a.m.

Keynote – Duck and (Re)Cover: Survival and Growth in the Age of Uncertainty
In this timely keynote address, you will learn proven ways your business can both prevail and prosper in the near-term future. You also will hear how much of the conventional wisdom we all hear about and how leaders should react to ongoing economic volatility get questioned. Instead, the presenter will offer an irreverently common-sense approach to sustainable and profitable growth for a business like yours. Short on theory and long on actionable advice, this uniquely engaging presentation will provide you with innovative concepts such as finding and filling emerging market vacuums, creating profitable new partnerships, and implementing the powerful tools of our time.

Presenter: Steven S. Little, Author and Business Growth Expert, Steven S. Little, Inc.

9:30–10:45 a.m.

Management Challenges Roundtable
Listen to your peers in this fast-paced roundtable discussion. Learn challenges that others are facing and share advice on how to solve them. You will walk away from this session with more suggestions and solutions than you could ever imagine.

Moderator: Steven S. Little, Author and Business Growth Expert, Steven S. Little, Inc.

10:45–11:00 a.m.

Break

11:00 a.m.–Noon

Pulling the Curtain Back on USF Reform
Now that the curtain has been pulled back a bit further on Universal Service Fund (USF) reform, what are small to mid-sized telcos doing to survive? Join us for a panel discussion on how your peers are moving to new revenue models and realities.

Moderator: Mike Romano, Senior Vice President of Policy, NTCA

Panelists:
Derrick Bulawa, Chief Executive Officer/General Manager, BEK Communications Cooperative
Lawrence Zawalick, Senior Vice President, Rural Telephone Finance Cooperative
Jeff Dupree, Vice President, Government Relations, NECA

Noon–1:30 p.m.

Lunch with Speaker—Jonathan Adelstein, Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service

1:30–3:00 p.m.

When Disaster Strikes
The past few years have proven to the industry that you need to be ready at a moment’s notice. A disaster preparedness expert will give you a briefing on what to do first when disaster strikes. Learn about contingency plans and working with state and local authorities to get your telco back up and running.

Presenter: Dennis V. Rose, Director, Business Continuity and Preparedness, CHR Solutions

3:00–3:15 p.m.

Break

3:15–4:15 p.m.

Concurrent Sessions

	What I Wish I Knew Ahh, if I only knew that when I started this job! New and experienced general managers will hear from seasoned industry veterans who will share the secrets to their success and how they would have done things differently if they knew then what they know now. Presenters: Bill Magruder, Chief Executive Officer (ret.), Duo County Telephone Cooperative David Schmidt, General Manager (ret.), Heart of Iowa Communications Cooperative
	Capitalizing on State Networks In this era where independent telcos should be looking to capitalize on all of their resources, one tool that often gets overlooked is the value of the fiber networks owned by the rural telco industry. In this session, you will learn what kind of synergies and efficiencies are brought to market by telcos and how these state networks work with carriers and other networks to really take new revenue opportunities to the next level. Presenters: Mark Shlanta, Chief Executive Officer, SDN Communications Ron Keller, President and Chief Executive Officer, Iowa Network Services
	Race to the Smart Home The race is on. One of the top trends in consumer technology is the smart home. The operators that own the smart home will do well. How can you position your company to be the lead technology provider? Learn the services and solutions supported by the latest approaches and technologies including telemedicine, virtual office, home monitoring, cloud computing and security/surveillance services. Presenter: Brett Sappington, Director of Research, Parks Associates
	Collaborative Leadership Running a successful company means having a successful board. Learn how to engage your board in the issues that will move the company forward. Chief executive officers will discover where their board is, where they need to be and how they need to get there. Uncover new ways to make them harness new technologies and understand future offerings. Presenter: States Hines, President, Vision 360

4:25–5:25 p.m.

Concurrent Sessions Repeat

5:30–6:30 p.m.

Networking Reception
Sponsored by: CoBank

Tuesday, April 3

7:00–8:00 a.m.

Continental Breakfast

8:00–9:15 a.m.

Cyber Security—Protecting Your Network
One of the foremost experts in telecom security will share views on the security challenges we face, and nothing will be spared. You’ll hear technical, political, social, economic and national security implications on why we are vulnerable and what you need to know to protect your network. You’ll identify how the bad guys get in and which targets interest the hackers. Learn about new dangers and future problems we will face in the future.

Presenter: Marcus Sachs, Vice President for National Security Policy, Verizon Communications

9:15–10:15 a.m.

How to Analyze Wireless and Other Opportunities
Discover the subtle and not so subtle issues you must examine before accepting or rejecting any wireless business opportunity, and find out what makes wireless so different. Take a closer look at lessons from the wireless world and what should be applied to any new business analysis you undertake.

Presenter: Carri Bennet, Chief Executive Officer/Managing Principal, Bennet & Bennet PLLC

10:15–10:30 a.m.

Break

10:30 a.m.–Noon

Economic Intelligence Report—An Update and Outlook on the U.S. Economy
Hear thoughts on what to expect in 2012 and 2013, as the U.S. economy moves through another cycle of a crawling economy. You will get an overview, financial analysis and forecast of global economic conditions for the next year.

Presenter: Sheldon Petersen, Chief Executive Officer, Rural Telephone Finance Cooperative

Noon

Wrap-Up
Speaker: Dennis McGarry, Director Training and Development, NTCA