Colorado Ski Country USA

Keynote Speaker - Dana Perino

Dana Perino brings a unique viewpoint from her time inside the White House, providing the insight into the current political climate and the changes to come. As only the second female press secretary in U.S. history and one of the most widely respected members of President Bush's senior staff cabinet, she is an expert in crafting and communicating key messages under stressful conditions.

After the 9/11 attacks, Perino served as a spokesperson for the Department of Justice. She later worked as director of communications at the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) where she provided strategic counsel on message development, media relations, and public outreach for CEQ and its chairman. Perino worked with the President's director of communications, his press secretary and his director of media affairs, handling all energy and environment-related media calls and serving as the spokesperson for the White House on environmental issues. In addition, she served as the coordinator for all agencies on environment, energy, and natural resource issues, reviewing and approving the agencies' announcements and keeping the other White House offices apprised of CEQ actions.

Before joining the Bush administration, Perino covered the state assembly of Illinois as a television journalist and working in the private sector in San Diego, including at the Porter Novelli. She attended graduate school at the University of Illinois-Springfield, where she obtained her masters in public affairs reporting. She then worked in Washington, DC, for Rep. Scott McInnis (R-CO) as a staff assistant before serving nearly four years as the press secretary for Rep. Dan Schaefer (R-CO), who then chaired a House Commerce subcommittee on Energy and Power.

Featured Speaker - Mike Federle

Michael Federle is currently Group Publisher of Bonnier Corp.'s Mountain Division, publishers of Ski and Skiing magazines, SkiNet.com and Warren Miller Films.

Mr. Federle has worked in the publishing industry for more than 25 years and most recently held positions with Time Inc.'s Business & Finance Network, which included media outlets such as Fortune, Fortune Small Business, Money and Business 2.0 as well as CNNMoney.com.

Prior to joining Bonnier Corp., Mr. Federle served as CEO of Next Jump Inc., an Internet company specializing in merchant-funded rewards programs. His expertise in developing multimedia and integrated marketing platforms across print, digital, broadcast media and conferences comes from having experience in various positions with publications such as People, Life and Ziff-Davis. Mr. Federle began his career with New England Publications in Camden, Maine.

Mr. Federle received a BA from Colby College in Waterville, Maine and currently lives in Boulder, CO

Featured Speaker - Dr. Richard L. Wobbekind

Dr. Richard L. Wobbekind is Director of the Business Research Division and Associate Dean for MBA and Enterprise Programs at the University of Colorado at Boulder. He joined the faculty at the Leeds School of Business in the fall of 1985. He assumed his current position as associate dean in July of 2000.

As Director of the Business Research Division his responsibilities include developing an annual consensus forecast of the Colorado economy and performing various economic impact assessments of the Colorado economy. Richard also produces a quarterly Business Leaders Confidence Index for Colorado and a Quarterly economic indicator series for Boulder County.

He participates annually in the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank Regional Economic Roundtable and is a contributor to the Western BlueChip forecast newsletter.

He is a member of the Governor's Revenue Estimating Advisory Committee, the Denver Regional Council of Government's Forecast 2035 Advisory Committee, the Colorado Tourism Office research advisory council, the Boulder Redevelopment Authority and the Boulder Economic Council.

Richard teaches M.B.A. students in macroeconomics, public policy, entrepreneurship and managerial economics. He has received three awards for teaching excellence from the students of the Leeds School.

Richard has lived in Colorado for 31 years and has spent much of his time studying the development of the Colorado and regional economies. Richard received a BA in economics from Bucknell University and an MA and Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Featured Speaker - James Clark

James Clark is a social media and word of mouth marketing expert, blogger, podcaster and trusted corporate advisor.

As the co-founder of Room 214, Inc., a social media engineering agency focusing on delivering online visibility and viral social media campaigns, Mr. Clark helps companies plan, pilot, launch and extend their social media efforts.

Clark was a previous high-tech public relations agency owner, with deep experience in messaging, branding, and product launches. Mr. Clark took his years of experience in PR and shifted his focus more than five years ago to social media applications (blogs, podcasts, Twitter, Facebook, Digg, YouTube, iPhone Apps) to help clients drive sales, awareness and brand recognition.

Mr. Clark leads the social media efforts for companies that include: Travel Channel, Microsoft, Qwest and SmartyPig. Of course if there is more than 8 inches of new snow, you'll have to follow Clark on Twitter: @jamesoclark to get any updates. This is one of the major reasons he and his business partner choose to be entrepreneurs.